I woke up this morning to a hazy orange hue streaming in from my apartment windows. And I wasn’t alone. Smoke from almost 200 active wildfires in northern Ontario, along with a stifling heat wave have pushed Toronto to the top of the list for the worst air quality in the world. In northern Ontario, where most of the wildfires have originated, the remote, fly-in community of Collins (Namaygoosisagagun First Nation) was wiped off the map. Whitewater Lake First Nation also suffered extensive destruction, and numerous other communities were evacuated. Residents were given mere minutes to escape, with many fleeing onto boats into the Collins Lake. Reading the news while breathing in the smog on my way to work this morning, I couldn’t help but feel a deep seething anger at our ruling class. None of this is accidental — while Mark Carney and his colleagues (like Doug Ford) seek shelter from the smoke in their mansions, working class Canadians are forced to pay the price for their actions.
Since taking office in early 2025, Carney has rolled back or weakened virtually every climate policy and regulation and just this month, amidst a record-breaking wildfire season, he announced plans to build a new oil pipeline alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. And the motive is clear — just days before the announcement of the new pipeline, Carney told Canadians his government was making changes in order to grow the oil and gas industry, and noted that these changes will lead to higher emissions “in the next few years”. It comes as no surprise that the Canadian ruling class is continuing to prioritize profit over people as they desperately try to keep this decaying system alive for their own interests. The only way we will ever end climate change is by overthrowing these parasites that are killing the planet.
– Sydney G., Toronto
