By: Greg Staley
Written On: 2022-01-26
The “Convoy for Freedom” left Delta B.C for Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario on January 23rd. The Convoy Go-Fund me is blunt when it says that our “current government is implementing rules and mandates that are destroying the foundation of our businesses, industries and livelihoods.”
The Go-Fund me added that they’re now taking their fight to the “doorsteps of the Federal government” and they’re demanding that the government of Canada “cease all mandates against its people.”
If we are to believe Canada’s Minister of Transport, Omar Alghabra, we would believe that the reason our supply chain is now more at risk than ever, is that those pesky truckers just won’t get vaccinated. That’s why the Federal government put in place a vaccine mandate of course – because Covid has challenged our supply chain!
The Minister of Transport, Mr. Alghabra tweeted that “Covid has challenged our supply chain. That is why we put in place a vaccine mandate for air, rail, marine, and cross border trucking.” Canada’s Minister of Transport concluded by saying that “we will continue to work with the transportation sector to improve the supply chain and keep goods on shelves.”
Mr. Alghabra then linked to a Global News article that downplays the overwhelming amount of photos that have surfaced online that display empty shelves inside grocery stores across the country.
You don’t need to know a great deal about the transportation of freight or about the trucking industry as a whole however, I think we can work out the obvious obscenity of the situation here. Are we to believe that the vaccine mandates aren’t going to make the supply issues across the country worse?
Why are we supposed to fear someone that sits in the cabin of their truck alone for up to 13 hours each day (Or longer) any ways? Why are we supposed to fear someone that doesn’t generally interact with the public during the course of their job? Why should it matter what a persons medical status is to do a job or to live freely in this country anyways?
I digress however, sometimes, movements swell and turn into something that no one could’ve foreseen and this feels like one of those moments in Canada’s history. Politicians have begun engaging with the Convoy and it has now become a politicized conversation.
In our current political landscape, the Liberal government downplays the potential of worsening the supply chain (with their vaccine mandates) that’s already struggling amid a driver shortage (18,000 drivers needed by March, 2022). Some Conservatives on the other hand are all aboard the Freedom Convoy after remaining silent for nearly two years and after not demanding their leader speak against the lockdowns and mandates but hey – I guess it’s better late than never right?
To be fair, how could it not become politicized considering the massive amount of grassroots support the Convoy has gained? The Freedom Convoy as of the date of the writing of this article has raised over $5.7 million dollars ($5,745,880) from roughly 74 thousand donors. The highest donation sits at $15,100 from none other David Fisman. Now, I highly doubt it’s the former Ontario Science table member but it was comical and I can’t disprove that it may be the one and only.
The Freedom Convoy has even become internationally recognized with former Canadian NHL hockey player Theo Fleury interviewing with Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham to discuss what the Freedom Convoy is and what it meant to him personally.
Fleury told Ingraham that even he had “shed a few tears” because he hasn’t seen our country this behind something and this excited about something in a very long time.
That is why we wanted to answer the question – what does the Freedom Convoy stand for?
On the Freedom Convoy’s Go-Fund me page it says that Canada is a “peaceful country that has helped protect nations across the globe from tyrannical governments who oppressed their people” but “now it seems it is happening here” they added.
The Go-Fund me says that our current government is “implementing rules and mandates that are destroying the foundation of our businesses, industries and livelihoods.” It’s hard to find fault in that statement if you ask me but I digress.
The post also reads that they are taking their fight to the “doorsteps of our Federal Government and demanding that they cease all mandates against its people.”
The Freedom Convoy is about more than just an end to vaccine mandates however. The Convoy’s page says that “small businesses are being destroyed, homes are being destroyed, and people are being mistreated and denied fundamental necessities to survive.” They Conclude their thought by adding that It’s our duty as Canadians to “put an end” to these mandates.
The Convoy Go-Fund me page also read that “It’s a small price to pay for our freedoms” and thanked donators for “helping reshape this once beautiful country back to the way it was.”
The funds, which now stand at a staggering $5.7 million are supposed to be dispersed to truckers to help with fuel costs and food and shelter if needed. The Go-Fund me says that “Any left over donations will be donated to a credible Veterans organization which will be chosen by the donors.”
The Canadian Trucking Alliance is nuanced in their response to the Freedom Convoy. They say that they “do not support” and strongly disapprove of “any protests on public roadways, highways and bridges” but then add that “members of the trucking industry who want to publicly express displeasure over government policies can choose to hold and organized, lawful event on Parliament Hill or contact their local MP.”
The Trucking Alliance added that what is “not acceptable is disrupting the motoring public on highways and commerce at the border.”
Canadians have become gripped by the Freedom Convoy. What will happen when they roll into Ottawa? Will Trudeau suddenly go on vacation? Will the Liberals call the truckers all sorts of bad names and insist they are bad people? I mean it wouldn’t be out of character for a Prime Minister who has publicly shamed the unvaccinated time and time again would it?
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