Harper faces Facebook outrage over suspended Parliament

More than 224,000 members of a Facebook group failed to undo Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s decision to prorogue Parliament, but that doesn’t mean they’ve gone unnoticed. The group, Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament, is an just one of many groups unhappy with Harper’s decision to shutter the doors on Parliament Hill.

While some Canadians are directing their unhappiness with the government through social networking sites, Ryan Lindsay took his discontent one step further. He used Facebook to organize protests and rallies.

“The facebook groups spawned local chapters so that each could mobilize a local rally across the country. Here in Toronto there were estimates as high as 10,000 people,” said Lindsay. The Torontonian is the creator of one the Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament Facebook groups.

Last December, Harper announced that Parliament would be on hiatus until March the 3rd, just after the end of the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. According to a party spokesperson, Conservatives aim to discuss the next steps in Canada’s economic plan over the two month break.

And while the Torries discussed economics, Canadians at across the nation discussed how to make democracy work again said Judy Rebick, Chair in Social Justice and Democracy at Ryerson University in Toronto.

“Nothing like this has ever happened before. It’s a case where without the gatekeeprs of the media, a single voice could be heard across the nation,” said Rebick. That voice belongs to Christopher White, a University of Alberta graduate student. White is the creator of the larger Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament, a group that quickly grew in membership in its first week.

“The rallies against proroguing Parliament were done without an official organization or formal associations. It started with individuals reaching out, talking with each other and it’s unprecedented,” added Rebick, “I’m excited to see what becomes of it.”