Hamilton police will be reviewing its response to Sunday’s dueling protests at Victoria Park and along Main Street West.
Two opposing groups were kept at bay and were not allowed to get to Locke Street.
A group calling for a “patriots march along Locke” was billed as a support walk in the aftermath of the March 4 mob vandalism by masked protesters. In opposition to that was a group calling itself “Hamilton Against Fascism.”
The protests shut down Main Street West for a while, but there were no injuries, no property damage and no arrests.
Hamilton Deputy Police Chief Dan Kinsella says the top priority is always public safety adding”we’re there to keep the peace and make sure people have the opportunity that is constitutionally guaranteed to demonstrate. We did an excellent job in doing that, I believe, in ensuring that happened while ensuring public safety.”
The deputy police chief adds the outcome speaks for itself, as there were no injuries.
He says work will continue to keep the lines of communication open with all groups involved in Sunday’s protests.
“We have to be cognizant of what’s going on. We do have to be vigilant and constantly monitor what may be developing. But, I think there is a broader message in reaching out to organizers of both sides and trying to communicate with them so they can get their message out, without the negative impact that they are causing to our community,” Kinsella said.
Kinsella says something most people didn’t know was that there was an interaction around the Tower-Hamilton’s anarchist hangout on Cannon, but it too was kept under control.
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