Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau calls them a “small fringe minority” with “unacceptable views.” In a televised speech earlier this week he said they “do not represent the views of Canada.” But this double-vaxxed and boosted politician announced Thursday he is in COVID quarantine over the weekend as hundreds of thousands of Canadians descend upon the nation’s capital in protest of their government’s draconian Covid policies. Interesting timing.
Here are some of Trudeau’s “small fringe minority”:
The Freedom Convoy 2022 has raised more than $7 million dollars in two weeks to fund their cross-country trek to Ottawa. (That’s the equivalent of roughly $5.5 million in U.S. dollars, and one of GoFundMe’s highest grossing campaigns on record, with donations pouring in daily.) The crowdfunding site lists more than 90,000 individual donors, some of whom have made headlines with their support. The brother-in-law of the leader of Canada’s New Democratic Party gave $13,000, earning a public rebuke from the liberal politician during an interview with CBC News.
Other notable supporters include Elon Musk and Donald Trump, Jr.
The caravan includes many truckers and supporters who, though vaccinated themselves, oppose mandates and lockdowns. They have sparked an international phenomenon, as evidenced by response on the group’s Facebook page and on the special Convoy Coverage website hosted by The Counter Signal. There is even a Freedom Convoy 2022 Support Group gaining tens of thousands of members daily. Messages of gratitude and encouragement are flooding in from across the globe.
Organizers estimate more than 50,000 rigs are rolling on the west-to-east route. Some embarked from Canada’s Pacific Coast last Sunday; others have joined along the way. Their plan is to meet in Ottawa with thousands more traveling from locations in the north, east and south.
At first ignored by major media, then downplayed, the movement has now grown too large to overlook. CBC News reports that Ottawa police are preparing for a “massive convoy” but don’t yet know how big it will be or how long it will last. The news outlet quoted Ottawa city councilman Catherine McKenney warning the truckers: “You have the right to disagree. You do not have the right to damage our infrastructure, to threaten violence, or to spew your statements of hatred, xenophobia and racism to those who disagree with you.”
But event organizer Tamara Lich refutes such misleading accusations. “Our number one priority always was and continues to be a PEACEFUL GATHERING to have our voices from across Canada heard. Be KIND, be RESPECTFUL, be UNIFIED…” she notes on Facebook. “THIS IS A PEACEFUL and LAWFUL action. DO NOT ENGAGE WITH IMBEDDED AGITATORS that we are fully aware will be present. PEACE. LOVE. UNITY. WE ARE CANADIANS.”
The truckers say their aim is to obtain signatures of their elected leaders on a Memorandum of Understanding, by which the elected leaders will pledge to “uphold and enforce all Canadian and International Human Rights Laws” enumerated in the document or “RESIGN their lawful positions of authority immediately.” Film producers are traveling with the caravan and gathering clips to make a documentary about the odyssey called Trucking for Freedom.
The Canadian crusaders are due to reach Parliament Hill in their nation’s capital by noon on Saturday, January 29.
