Simply put, the G8 and G20 Summits that took place in Huntsville and Toronto from June 25th to 27th 2010 were resolutely overshadowed by the unprecedented police brutality that took place in  downtown Toronto.

By Sunday June 27th, 2010, it is widely reported that around 800-900 arrests were made, with the detainees held in a make-shift detention facility at 629 Eastern Avenue. By as early as Saturday evening, parts of downtown Toronto looked like a warzone.

How did this all transpire? The story is both complicated and unprecedented.

The weekend of protests organized by large civil society groups like the Canadian Labour Congress, the Defenders of the Land, the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP), the Toronto Community Mobilization Network, etc. remained largely peaceful.

On Thursday June 24th, 2010, the indigenous rights rally, although heavily monitored, went almost without a hitch. However, it was also on this day that most people found out that the Public Works Act had been passed in secret on June 2nd, 2010 by the provincial legislature, which allows for anyone five metres away from the G20 security fence to be searched and questioned. Dave Vasey, who refused to show his ID and who claims to have had no idea of the legislation, was arrested. Astoundingly, Toronto police chief Bill Blair admitted openly that he lied about the existence of such a law to “keep away the criminals”. This, rightly, has caused a firestorm of protest and discontent, even with the National Post.

Friday, June 25th, 2010 saw few confrontations at the anti-poverty rally organized by OCAP, but the protests were largely peaceful. However, Emomotimi Azorbo, who is deaf and did not hear the...