Canadian activist group Streets Are for People! made a special delivery to the Ontario provincial government on Earth Day. The group led a parade that pushed its “petition car” – motorless, painted white and covered with over 4,000 signatures – to the Legislative Building in Toronto, where they delivered it along with a paper petition signed by over 3,000 people.

Supporters were greeted by their member of parliament, who came out on the lawn to accept the petition. He was adorned with a superhero cape emblazoned with planet Earth to remind him of those who were counting on him as he presented the petition inside the Legislature. The boot of the car, filled with dirt, was opened, and people took turns planting herbs and flowers. A sing-along and clowning lesson raised spirits just before the merry band entered the assembly.

However, when it came time for the petition to be read, over 90% of Ontario’s MPP’s left the room. “The issues around the malady of car culture are so well-entrenched,” says Streets are for People! member Shamez Amlani, “that to

sum up these myriad problems into sound bites embraceable by the media and bureaucrats is almost impossible. But this kind of action questions the status quo and gets conversations started at the grassroots level – that’s what makes it a powerful tool for change.” The full text of the petition is linked here: www.streetsareforpeople.org.

- Streets are for people!