MONTREAL - A day after the Occupy movement was peacefully evicted from Victoria Square, hundreds gathered at the site to find a way to move it forward.
The peaceful crowd, made up of all ages, spoke Saturday about a wide range of ideas and causes related to democracy and the economy.
"I think everybody should have a right to have a say in a democratic process and I think that the one per cent, they have too much power. It's true, and people lost their voice," said Tatiana Jana, on hand at Saturday's event.
Many former tent mates and supporters told CTV Montreal they felt the six-week campout in Victoria Square made a difference, despite being disassembled Friday by police and the City of Montreal.
"It's quite eerie because it was such a colourful tent city," said Katie Heffiring.
The eviction didn't mark the end of the movement, they said, but rather, a new beginning. Activists said ideas are brewing about how the Occupy movement will continue in Montreal and what form it will take, but aside from holding regular general assemblies, there's no concrete plan yet.
Protesters say to expect the unexpected. Though Occupy Montreal has moved out, many say they are determined to move on.
"Yeah there have been things about occupying spaces, maybe like just putting up a tent in a square, in this place or that place to keep the movement alive," said Heffiring.
Occupiers insist despite their solidarity and their ability to communicate messages as a group, they're not an organization, but a movement.
"This is the beginning of a broader ‘conscientization' of the public with people concerned about the state of things, with the crisis of capitalism," said activist Marc Leger.
There are lessons to be learned from the economic crash about how to fight the system, said Adam Szymanski.
"I do think this is reflective of a larger shift of consciousness amongst the public that the way things are are not acceptable and people are not accepting them," he said.
