Photo Credit: Kiruthika Thusyanthan. A student at the time, Kiruthika captured these images using her cellphone.
TAMIL STUDENTS PROTEST OUTSIDE THE TORONTO DISTRICT SCHOOL BOARD
On February 12th, 2009 hundreds of high school Tamil Canadian students across the city protested outside the Toronto District School Board headquarters in North York. The 30-hour long protest, began on Thursday February 12th at 10 a.m., aimed at bringing attention to the genocide. The protest was organized after multiple attempts students made to raise the issue at their schools but were met with silence and claimed students were only presenting one side of the issue. The purpose of the protest was to raise awareness among teachers and the school board about the atrocities and to understand, empathize and create a dialogue with their Tamil students. Students also made reference to the Rwandan genocide stating the international community should not watch another genocide occur in silence. Students carried signs with slogans such as “Tamils want justice”, “Canada are you a silent witness to the genocide?”, and “This is not a matter of race, it is a matter of humanity”.