By Marney Blom and Daina Doucet
The word now is that tens of thousands of truckers are on the road from every part of Canada, and even the USA, converging on Canada’s capital, Ottawa, Saturday January 29, 2022, to protest mandates and tyranny. As the convoy started rolling, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau coincidentally tested negative for Covid, and is self-isolating in his cottage outside of Ottawa this weekend.
Jab or job, travel restrictions, loss of legal rights protected by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms had drained the world’s second largest nation of spirit, yet what was perceived by many Canadians as government emergency over-reach had been conveniently dismissed by the nation’s leaders.
Then Canadian truckers faced the vax mandate and two weeks of quarantine after each return trip from the U.S.A. With roughly 15 percent unvaccinated, the Canadian Trucking Alliance cautioned that more than 16,000 would become jobless. Unvaccinated, or partially vaccinated U.S. drivers — a percentage far higher than their Canadian counterparts — would also be denied border crossings. Together, the restrictions would strike a significant blow to an industry responsible for transporting 80 percent of the $648 billion annual Canada-USA cross-border trade. With store shelves already sparsely stocked in many parts of the country, removing truckers from their jobs would be destructive to food supply chains, and the Canadian government knew it.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, however, miscalculated the resolve of the nation’s truckers. On January 22nd, the first trucks 50 km south of Alaska pulled out, a convoy departed from Prince Rupert and Canada’s western shores, and 7,500 km to the east another started the journey from St. John’s, Newfoundland. Adorned with Canadian flags and freedom signs, the convoy of huge semis and pick-up trucks started their week-long trek through the snowy, frigid terrain of the Trans Canada Highway to the nation’s capital during one of the coldest months of Canadian winter.
Soon, an endless stream of trucks numbering as large as 100,000, 70 to 300 kms in length, broke previous records in the Guiness Book of World Records. More than 50,000 trucks from Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, Texas, California, Florida, New York and Washington State were on their way to the borders to display solidarity. Canadians and people of countries around the world poured out support for the truckers with more than $7 million raised, while some, like Bulgaria, started their own convoys.
As news spread of the convoy, a surge of hope and unity exploded in the hearts of many Canadians. Both young and old in the tens of thousands showed up in support. Jubilant, flag and sign-bearing citizens stood on overpasses, lined highways and handed out homemade sandwiches, baked goods and warm coffee for hours in the frigid sub-zero cold. “Guys I’m in love. I’m in love! I feel like I’m in a long distance relationship right now, ” said @savage.mode.fitness, a Canadian on instagram. “It’s not just with one person … it is with 500,000 truckers!”
“Honk for the convoy of freedom” read a series of large, green placards amidst the crowds of supporters, Canadian flags and “thank you” signs. “Save our children, stop vaccine mandates” read another.
“I have been in tears,” confessed @chancelinerukundo on instagram. “I feel like there is finally a slight bit of hope and it is empowering. It gives me confidence that as Canadians when we stand strong together and when we unite together we can make changes.”
“We were all freezing but so happy to be part of this momentous expression of unity,” said Connie Gambriel, a senior from Woodslee, Ontario. “I was out this morning on a 401 overpass [near Windsor] … several parents had taken their children out of school to be part of this event.”
“The truckers are kind of like that uncle who doesn’t say much …. but when he speaks people listen,” said a participant on freedomconvoy2022 instagram, recorded from the cab of his semi. “We’ve had enough … this ain’t a game. This isn’t just our lives, it’s about everyone in Canada’s lives.”
“A weight is lifting and people are connecting again and it is so amazing to see,” said a young mother instagrammer @mommy.well.minded. “Ultimately love wins, and that’s what’s being shown here.”
Under Trudeau’s leadership the nation has been spiraling down into the “Great Reset” of Klaus Schwabb and the World Economic Forum, but the Canadian people, apparently, wanted none of it. The simple, peaceful protest was turning into what some called a revolution.
St. Jacobs, Ontario Mennonites join in horse and buggy to support the Freedom Convoy
Immediately before his “Covid isolation,” and four days into the Freedom Convoy 2022, Trudeau in a press conference dismissed the nation-wide protest as “The small fringe minority of people … who are holding unacceptable views that they are expressing.”
Mainstream media were noticeably absent at the truckers’ departure points and along the way leading many participants to ask, Where is the media? An event of such magnitude would normally be covered by all mainstream media and every national broadcast. Instead, the Canadian government cut live camera feed on the 401 and on government-funded CBC aired a few minor clips spawning fears the convoy would trigger a Canadian brand of the January 6th storming of the US Capital.
Freedom Convoy 2022 organizers, meanwhile cobbled together the Memorandum of Understanding (M.O.U.) — a legal document they will deliver to the government when they reach Ottawa. If six million Canadians sign the memorandum, it has the power to ignite a victory by default on a referendum on the vaccine mandate. View M.O.U. here.
With the eyes of the world looking on, the nation’s capital expects a ground swell of more than one million protestors energized with hope that the basic rights and freedoms of all Canadians will be restored.
At a time when the nation of Canada is in desperate need of a hero, a mighty cavalry of truckers are rolling into Ottawa eager to get the job done.
Marney Blom is news director for the Acts News Network. Daina Doucet is senior editor for the Acts News Network.
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