Toronto was rattled this past weekend when protestors from all over the globe  arrived to voice their opinion against the world economic powers. I have never seen a G20 summit without protests or violence and this year’s summit in Toronto was no different. I couldn’t let the opportunity to experience this event pass by so I made my way to downtown Toronto to take a few shots on Saturday afternoon. Yes, for those of you living in Toronto, Saturday was one of the most violent days of the protest. Fortunately, I was never in the direct path of the violence, but I must confess I have no appreciation for those individual that create or instigate violence, so containing my self at the sight of injustice was difficult.

Nonetheless, I felt well protected because the city of Toronto made sure police presence was overwhelming. In my opinion, these guys are the real heroes. They not only had to endure extremely long hours of work, but also the verbal, physical, and psychological abuse of many of the protesters.

I am in full agreement that the world needs change and I align my self with those peaceful protesters who expressed their feelings and view points, but I feel no empathy for those who protested just to be rebelious, those who covered their faces so as to not be identified by police, and those anarchists who participated in Black Bloc tactics (which caused most of the damage). In my travels across Downtown Toronto, I was shocked by the amount of people that had no real cause to protest, but where either acting silly or provoking the police.

It was heart breaking to see my beautiful city of Toronto suffer from the abuse of criminals who had nothing better to do but to cause violence for the joy of being rebellious. Martin Luther King Jr. once said:

“Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars… Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that”

At one point, I encountered a group of masked individuals. I couldn’t resist the temptation of asking them why they wore masks. Their response: Let’s just say it wasn’t very polite! Notice the dude in the yellow jacket wearing the gas mask! Weird!!!

Global social issues are extremely complex because of the many factors involved. Do they have a solution? Sure! I think the real solution is by changing ourselves. If each and every one of us strive to become better persons who live justly and with faith; if we uphold human dignity and defend life from conception, till natural death; and if we educate our children with those same principles, then we are changing the world one person at a time. Imposing, oppressing, or forcing a people to live or act in a certain way will get you nowhere.  I leave you with yet another Martin Luther King Jr. Quote:

“Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time; the need for mankind to overcome oppression and violence without resorting to oppression and violence. Mankind must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.”