Canadian trucker voices support for ongoing protest: 'We want to be free'
Fox News' Alexis McAdams speaks to truckers at the 'Freedom Convoy' protest in Ottawa.
The Canadian trucker "Freedom Convoy" continues to gain momentum, but as a splinter movement in the U.S. gains more support it is important to understand what exactly the protests demand.
The "Convoy" claimed that its initial protest of 1,600 trucks swelled to 36,000 over the first week, though the Washington Post places the number closer to 8,000. The cause has drawn international attention and support, with a U.S. trucker protest possibly starting this weekend in Los Angeles around the Super Bowl, the Department of Homeland Security announced.
In a statement posted to Facebook on Jan. 26, the Canadian truckers clearly stated their demands, which they tied to personal freedoms from government overreach: The truckers demanded in the letter that the Canadian government remove the vaccine mandates and to terminate any government-backed digital tracking platform such as the COVID-19 vaccine passport and contact tracing programs.
The convoy has also pushed to "end divisive rhetoric," which Trudeau referenced when he accused the country’s Conservative Party of "stoking Canadians’ fears about the supply chain," Canadian news outlet Global News reported. Trudeau also accused the truckers of "hate, abuse, and racism," according to the Independent.
"Specifically it is about removing the mandates," Canadian trucker Mat Mackenzie said on "America’s Newsroom" last week. "A lot of people think it has to do with the trucker mandate in terms of border crossing, but in fact, it is about restoring the freedom to all Canadians."
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"It is the freedom of choice," he added. "So, no longer with restrictions with masks, leave it up to the people. Most of us are vaccinated, it is not an issue of vaccinations."
The demands now include a demand that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resign, Vox reported.
Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who said that he had tested positive for coronavirus disease (COVID-19), speaks during a media availability held at a location which is not being made public for security reasons, near Ottawa, Ontario, Canada January 31, 2022. Adrian Wyld/Pool via REUTERS
The truckers cited the United Kingdom as the best model to follow: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Jan. 19 indicated that the country would remove all COVID restrictions starting Jan. 27. He pushed through the announcement officially on Feb. 9 that all restrictions would drop in two weeks, the Guardian reported.
The U.S. and Canada each implemented vaccine mandates for inbound foreign national travelers, with the Canadian mandate starting Jan. 15 and the U.S. mandate starting Jan. 22.
"After Jan. 15, 2022, unvaccinated or partially vaccinated foreign nationals will only be allowed to enter Canada if they meet the criteria for limited exceptions," the Public Health Agency of Canada wrote in a statement. "Nonexempt unvaccinated or partially vaccinated foreign nationals will be prohibited entry into Canada."
The "Freedom Convoy" started on Jan. 22 but really hit its stride on Jan. 29 as various smaller convoys converged in Ottawa to start the more sustained part of the protest outside the Canadian Parliament.
Trudeau and the Canadian Trucking Alliance said that 90% of Canadian truckers have been vaccinated.
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Alan Bedard, chairman and CEO of Canada’s largest trucking company TFI International Inc., said that companies reassigned unvaccinated truckers to domestic routes in order to avoid the mandate, National Newswatch reported.
And polling published by Maru Public Opinion on Jan. 25 found that 77% of Canadians felt it was acceptable to restrict unvaccinated individuals from entering public spaces and premises.
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