A series of high-profile protests in Toronto, Vancouver and other major Canadian cities have left hundreds of participants camped out in parks and other public spaces on Monday -- and some believe the demonstrations could persist for weeks.
On Monday morning, a small handful of protesters marched through Toronto's financial district, though their connection to the Occupy Toronto group camped out at a nearby park was not immediately clear.
The protesters in Toronto and other cities are citing many grievances with the status quo, including the widening inequality between the rich and the poor.
But organizers say the protests are not limited to a single issue.
"It's basically just an outcry of the fundamental problems that plague our society from the inequality across the world, the poverty, the corruption, the environmental destruction, the wars," Occupy Vancouver spokesperson Matt Berkowitz told CTV's Canada AM during a telephone interview on Monday morning.
Those same issues and concerns are being cited in Halifax, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa and Montreal, where other Occupy-branded protests are being held. The many demonstrations follow in the footsteps of a similar protest movement that began in New York City more than a month ago.
And like their American counterparts, the Canadian protesters plan on sticking around for the long-haul.
"Time will only tell, it could be weeks, if not months," said Berkowitz, when asked how long the protests could endure.
"There's obviously a lot of willingness for people to stay throughout November, December, even January that people have expressed."
Fellow Occupy Vancouver protester Dan Richardson said it could take some time for the participants to decide where the demonstrations will ultimately lead.
"Our goal is to come up with clear demands, we're not going to expect to have them yesterday or today or tomorrow," Richardson told The Canadian Press on Sunday. "It could be weeks. Right now, what we're trying to do is get everybody into the idea of working together, talking to each other and being able to operate under a leaderless organization and movement."
The protesters are getting a mixed reaction from members of the public who are watching the demonstrations taking place across the country.
Some people support what the people in the streets are doing, while others say their demonstrations won't accomplish much.
A Twitter user named Omar Ahmed said the fact that he heard people talking on public transit about the issues being raised was proof that "the movement is already a success."
Critics, on the other hand, were much harsher about the overall effectiveness of the protests.
Businessman Cory Morgan of Calgary tweeted that he thought the protesters would lose their resolve if the weather turned.
"A little cool weather will clear out the last remnants of the handful of silly souls squatting in our public parks," Morgan said.
Toronto-area tweeter Jeff Stephenson said the protesters should "get a job and a life."
With files from The Canadian Press
