Battle in Seattle

The film Battle in Seattle was a hit at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and now its about to be released in theatres across Canada. Theatres in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal will begin showing the fictionalized account of the epic protest that made waves through the world.

The November 1999 protest started as one of the largest peace protests on American soil, in five days its tone turned ugly and riots cropped up and clashes with police and the National Guard erupted.

Most of the violence in the Seattle demonstrations were from outside sources and not the protesters that were there to oppose the actions of the World Trade Organization (WTO), yet the action of the no protesters bled into the protest groups and caused changes in the way protesters are viewed around the world, by elected officials, the police, the media and the public.

While the action of the original event took place in Seattle, Washington, the film was made 120 miles north in Vancouver, BC, where many of the organizers of the peaceful opposition traveled from.The film stars Charlize Theron, Woody Harrelson, Ray Liotta, Martin Henderson and was Written, Directed, and Produced by Actor Stuart Townsend.

If you live in one of these Canadian cities or near, I encourage you to check out the film and learn why the actions of this historic protest made changes.