Another rally is in the works in Halifax on Friday afternoon.
It is in response to the spring budget that was tabled one month ago with $300 million worth of cuts to sectors such as arts and culture, tourism and disabilities.
Chris O’Neil with the Nova Scotia Arts Coalition says although they had wind of the cuts a few days before, when the budget got tabled, it was really shocking.
“It literally took all of us about a week to really go through everything and figure out all of the impacts,” says O’Neil.
She says she met with Finance Minister John Lohr a few days later on the matter.
“We said, ‘John, what were you thinking? And he couldn’t really give us an answer. Which is what we’ve seen over and over again with all of the MLA’s,'” explains O’Neil.
In response to the budget, multiple rallies were held all over the province that involved thousands of Nova Scotians. Premier Tim Houston then walked back some of the cuts.
However, O’Neil says there are still issues that affect the Mi’kmaw and African Nova Scotian communities.
“It’s an unprecedented number of people who have actually spoken. Not just people who actually live and work this stuff all the time, but ordinary Nova Scotians who come from all walks of life,” adds O’Neil.
Singing in the House
The Appropriations Act of the budget passed, Wednesday, but not without a delay first.
It was Tuesday evening when MLA’s were finishing the debate when the public observing, broke out into song to urge the government to change its mind. This caused legislature to be delayed until the next day and banned the public from the House.
O’Neil says this created a bizarre narrative.
“I mean literally people were singing, ‘it’s okay to change your mind’, and part of the reason they did that is because the politicians are not meeting with us,” says O’Neil. “At a certain point, we exhaust our options.”
She says there is a big difference between safety and comfort, and she feels the singing just made them uncomfortable.
“[It] was not threatening at all. It was super joyful.”
What is happening Friday
A rally outside Province House is planned for Friday afternoon.
O’Neil says it’s their way of showing that they are not going away.
“We are exhausted. We have been fighting this using every tool we can possibly find,” explains O’Neil. “There’s such a profound lack of interest in the government right now to hear our voices. So, our voices have to get a little louder. And we’re going to just keep going.”
The All Hands on Deck rally is 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.
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