Today, a judge has permitted the release of Jacob Pirro, one of two supporters of Last Generation Canada and Antigone Collective, who climbed Montreal’s Jacques Cartier bridge last Tuesday, resulting in its closure for seven hours. Pirro was one of three people detained, alongside Michèle Lavoie and Olivier Huard. Lavoie, who was on site acting as a support, was released last Friday. Huard remains in custody until his bail hearing, set for Thursday. He started a hunger strike on Saturday morning, demanding his immediate release with no conditions, and is consequently being held in isolation. All three have been charged with mischief, with additional charges for Pirro and Huard of willfully resisting or obstructing a peace officer.

Last Generation Canada is demanding the federal government endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty to stop extracting and burning oil, gas and coal by 2030 and support and finance other countries to make a fast, fair and just transition. They are also demanding the creation of a National Emergency Management Agency to respond to unnatural disasters like wildfires and floods. Antigone Collective, alongside Last Generation, is demanding the shutdown of Enbridge's Line 9B pipeline.

At around 10:30 am ET, a judge at the Palais de justice de Montreal issued the decision to release Pirro under conditions similar to those of Lavoie. Pirro cannot be with more than three people in public, cannot talk about the case on social media, and cannot talk about the case with the media. He will also be under curfew from 11pm to 7am and is banned from owning any climbing equipment.

Regarding Pirro’s conditions and his treatment in custody, defence lawyer, Barbara Bedont, had this to say:

"Jacob Pirro has just spent seven days in custody for a nonviolent allegation. This is seven days longer than any climate criminal. The Crown needs to prosecute the real criminals; those who are profiting from the fossil fuel industries, which we know are killing us."

Pirro’s release comes alongside a report from the UN, which finds the world is on track for a catastrophic 3.1℃ of warming. This summer was among the hottest on record, with a third of Jasper destroyed by wildfire, communities across B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Labrador evacuated, and catastrophic flooding in southern Ontario and Quebec. Continuing to pump fossil fuels into the atmosphere ensures extreme weather events like these will increase in severity and frequency. Experts confirm that Canada is currently not prepared for the myriad impacts of the climate emergency. 

It’s clear – governments and fossil fuel companies are waging war on humanity. Continuing to extract and burn oil, gas and coal is killing people all over the world and will destroy whole nations. The Canadian government has failed to address the impacts of the climate crisis at just 1.5 degrees of warming. They’ve failed to act against the biggest threat we’ve ever faced, meeting with fossil fuel lobbyists as Canada floods, scorches and burns. We refuse to die for fossil fuels and we refuse to stand by while millions are murdered. We refuse to watch as our government drags its feet to take action to protect us. We ask everyone to join us in the resistance. We have a plan. Are you in?