Horns blared as truckers, pickup trucks, cars and SUVs rolled out of the Innisfil ONroute Thursday morning.
Shortly before 9 a.m., supporters and participants in the 'Freedom Convoy' of truckers that began their long drive across Canada to protest pandemic mandates in B.C. left the Highway 400 fuel stop on the last leg of their journey to Ottawa.
“We’re doing this for freedom. Freedom of choice,” said Nigel Atkinson of Haliburton.
Sitting in his warm pickup truck on a frosty morning, Atkinson said he doesn’t believe there should be any COVID-19-related mandates.
“It’s got nothing to do with vaccinations or not, it’s about our freedom of choice and having our Charter of Rights restored to us. There should be no mandates, period.”
As the line of vehicles slowly inched forward toward the Highway 400 ramp, several paused long enough to share their views on the convoy, as well as the federal government’s joint agreement that all truckers crossing the U.S. border must be vaccinated against COVID-19.
“I’m here today so we can get our freedom back from Mr. Trudeau who is running our country not very appropriately. I’m a vaccinated truck driver, I cross the border weekly. I don’t have a problem with the vaccine, but I have a problem because we should have the right to choose what we want to do and not lose our jobs over it,” said Marie Weir of Angus.
“If you don’t get vaccinated you can’t cross the border. There’s nurses, doctors, PSWs, everybody – if you’re not vaccinated you lose your job. Where’s our economy going to go? It’s not fair to you and I.”
Weir said she’s not only protesting the vaccinations – she’d prefer to see less government intervention on a grander scale.
“It affects everybody. That’s all we want. We just want our unity back, our freedom back. And it’s not just about the vaccine, it’s about everything; carbon taxes, everything – just life.”
A mother, Jen, and her small son Bennett (no last names given) attended the rally. As the horns blared and cheers broke through the crowd when the trucks started moving, the mother pointed to her son’s coloured drawing of a truck he was holding up for all to see.
“We wish our truckers well. We are here because it’s enough for our kids, it’s enough they’ve carried this weight on their shoulders for two years – it’s enough. We deserve better than this, our country is better than this,” she said.
As the convoy moved south on Highway 400, approximately 100 warmly dressed well-wishers waved banners and dozens of Canadian flags on Innisfil’s 4th Line overpass. The cacophony of horns from the truckers and supporters echoed under the bridge as they left Innisfil on their way to Toronto and eventually, Ottawa.
