Hundreds of people gathered at the Alberta legislature on Saturday afternoon to protest cuts to public services.

Chanting “Save Our Services,” the protesters carried signs warning of cuts to funding for healthcare, education and social programs.
An estimated 500 people, from communities across the province, turned out for the rally.

Jerry Toews, with the Alberta Federation of Labour and one of the rally’s organizers, said the provincial government’s financial blueprint is being misunderstood.

“It seems to us that the government has somehow spun a story that this is a good news budget, that this in fact is a spending budget,” Toews said.

“When you look into it, it isn’t. It’s anything but a good news budget.
“There are billions of dollars that are being cut to public services that Albertans need.”

The protest was organized by Join Together Alberta, a relatively new group that has banded together a number of unions and public interest groups.

“It may be the first time in many years that such a broad base of groups has gotten together,” Toews said.

“Whether it’s unions and labour groups, but also public interest groups, social services groups, students, elderly folks – it’s people realizing that public services impact all of our lives and that they’re worth investing in.”

CBC News, Sat Mar 20 2010