by Craig Fortier
“No borders, no nations, stop the deportations!”
“We didn’t cross the border, the border crossed us!”
“Land, justice, self-determination! Canada is an illegal nation!”
“No one is illegal, Canada is illegal!”
These are four variations of chants that have been regularly heard during migrant justice rallies organized by No One Is Illegal in the city of Toronto over the past ten years. While these chants do not originate among activists in Toronto nor are they used exclusively in this city, they exist as part of a broad lexicon of political slogans that help to assert a radical anti-nationalist politics within contemporary migrant justice movements.
Rally chants play an important role in sustaining a high level of energy and enthusiasm within political demonstrations but they also bring into the public realm political debates that are happening within movements. As political context, analysis, relationships, and…
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