Reports of a second truck convoy to rival one the previous weekend hadn’t materialized at the legislature by mid-afternoon on Saturday, but horns were honking and protesters were as boisterous as ever.
They lined Belleville Street in front of the legislature two and three deep to voice their opposition to COVID-19 health mandates and to show support for the “Freedom Convoy” that converged in Ottawa last weekend. Many waved flags, with hockey sticks a favourite as flagpoles.
The crowd didn’t spread much onto the legislature lawn during the first part of the event, and the legislature steps and part of the walkway in front of it were cordoned off with rope.
Last weekend, trucks arriving in Victoria from up-Island clogged the streets and a crowd estimated by Victoria police at up to 5,000 gathered at the legislature rally, timed to coincide with a larger protest in Ottawa.
Victoria police had received conflicting reports of how the protest would look, putting the number of vehicles coming at anywhere from very few to twice as many. They estimated the Saturday crowd peaked at about 1,500 and was down to about 1,000 by 3:30 p.m.
People with signs in support of vaccines and COVID-control efforts were spread throughout the convoy-supporting crowd, but civility seemed to rule the day.
“Maybe that’s just the nature of this protest,” said Roseline Ferre, who was carrying a sign in support of the health-care system at Belleville and Government streets. “I’ve had some great conversations with people on the other side.
“We need to engage in dialogue, we need to learn how to talk and hear each other again.”
She described herself as a “quiet protester” who appreciates what health-care workers and politicians have done.
Andrew Maddock said he showed up to support the truckers and all Canadians.
“I’m glad that the truckers manned up and stepped up to the plate,” he said. “But it takes everybody in Canada to change these things. These mandates aren’t working, they’ve got to get rid of that. You can’t force people into this stuff.”
Richard Czech attended to back the truckers.
“My dad was a truck driver for 40 years, so I’m here to support the truck drivers and the cause,” he said. “I believe in freedom. I don’t believe in mandates.”
Czech, who has been vaccinated against COVID-19 because of work, said he isn’t for or against vaccines — personal choice is what matters to him.
A few blocks away at Government and Wharf streets, people with signs supporting vaccines had the corner to themselves.
“I don’t think of it as a counterprotest as much as a separate demonstration,” said Cole Tresoor, who was aware of others like him down the street at the main event.
He said his group met away from the legislature to accommodate people who didn’t feel comfortable in a large crowd.
Police spokesman Bowen Osoko said that “nothing really out-of-the-ordinary” had occurred by mid-afternoon at the legislature and there were no signs that anyone was intending to stay and camp.
Similar rallies were held across Canada on Saturday, with protests and counter-protests in Ottawa, Toronto, Quebec City and Vancouver, among other cities.
In downtown Vancouver, horns blared all afternoon as vehicles drove up and down Burrard Street and people gathered on Robson Street.
At Kingsway and Broadway streets, counter-protesters stood and biked in front of an anti-mandate truck convoy, blocking traffic until police temporarily rerouted several large trucks, to the cheers of the crowd.
Tempers flared as counter-protesters held up signs in support of vaccines and called for silence outside St. Paul's Hospital.
The Hospital Employees' Union said its members had been told by the local health authority to remove their scrubs and identification tags when leaving work on Saturday "out of concern for their safety."
— With files from The Canadian Press and Vancouver Sun
