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Canadian Army veteran James Topp was released from the army during the pandemic. After the Freedom Convoy in Ottawa, Topp decided to walk through Canada protesting the federal government’s COVID mandates. Topp, who began his walk in February, was in the west of the city, near Antrim. Photo by Ashley Fraser / Postmedia
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As Ottawa hosts its first Canada Day face-to-face party since 2019, there is a lot of uncertainty about how the events will affect events sponsored by “freedom” groups.
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Groups protesting vaccine warrants and other pandemic restrictions are planning events in the city center on both June 30 and July 1.
It is difficult to predict how many “freedom” protesters will participate.
It is a grassroots movement with no single organization at the helm and includes people with a variety of other grievances, from hatred of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to conspiracy theories about a World Economic Forum-led conspiracy to control the world.
Some of the organizers are familiar faces from the “Freedom Convoy” protest that occupied downtown Ottawa last winter and the “Rolling Thunder” protest in April.
The “Rolling Thunder Ottawa” motorcycle rally passed through downtown Ottawa on a controlled route with police watching closely on Saturday, April 30, 2022. Photo by Ashley Fraser / POSTMEDIA
However, the social media channels of key “freedom” groups are not asking their followers to block the streets of the city center with trucks or raise inflatable castles and jacuzzis on Parliament Hill like last winter’s convoy.
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This is not likely anyway.
Some downtown streets will be closed to vehicles on Canada Day. In addition, from June 29 to July 4, a traffic control area will be installed for the detection of protesters.
A new “control zone” for vehicles from June 29 to July 4 at least Photo of the city of Ottawa
Expect a strong police presence. The Ottawa Police Service is requesting up to 491 RCMP officers to help patrol during Canada Day and during the summer and fall.
In a briefing, an Ottawa police officer said the force will protect the right of everyone to demonstrate in a legal and peaceful manner, but “we will not allow the conditions that led to the protests to occur again. February. “
Stephanie Carvin, a professor at Norman Paterson School of International Affairs at Carleton University, said there is no reason to assume the protests around Canada Day will be like the occupation of the convoy last winter.
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“I think it will be different for several reasons,” said Carvin, who specializes in international law, security, terrorism and technology and was a Canadian government analyst on national security issues.
Most of the mandates of COVID-19 have disappeared, catching the steam of a movement that has been unable to offer anything else to meet except “freedom,” “unity,” and opposition. to Trudeau, he said.
Also, Carvin said: Key organizers of the winter convoy who were arrested are in jail awaiting trial or have court-imposed conditions to stay away from downtown Ottawa. There is no multimillion-dollar crowdfunding campaign and widespread exposure to the right-wing media in the U.S. for Canada Day protests as there was for the convoy. Energy is being diverted by the conflict between the defenders of “freedom.” Police are better prepared and groups know they are being monitored by law enforcement.
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However, things can change quickly, he said. “Everything you say may become obsolete tomorrow.
“Things are fluid and they have the ability to come together quickly and make plans pretty quickly.”
On Canada Day, the crossover between “freedom” protesters waving Canadian flags and other people waving Canadian flags will be limited by the fact that government-sponsored concerts and fireworks have moved from Parliament to LeBreton Flats and close to Zibi in Gatineau.
However, there will be some official events during the day on Parliament Hill, where protesters have said they will hold a dance party in the evening.
And the Ottawa Jazz Festival is scheduled to host its free Canada Day concerts at City Hall, while the people of “freedom” plan their speeches in the afternoon. The festival previously said it plans to close Confederation Park on July 1 as a precaution. Traditionally, the Jazzfest offers free concerts on July 1 at both locations.
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Some of the protesters will be camping at a KOA camp in Renfrew and are planning a “family celebration of freedom” from June 29 to July 3.
Some 500 people have signed up to camp there, according to a live broadcast late last week from Dave of “Live from the Shed,” a multimedia company that promotes “freedom” events.
In videos, Dave has mocked the idea that there will be a “convoy” returning to Ottawa or that events around Canada Day will not be fun and peaceful.
“Don’t worry, we have great things planned, suitable for families as always,” he told the live broadcast.
“Very, very scary,” Dave joked in another video as he recounted the “freedom” events on Canada Day that included a picnic on the Supreme Court lawn, a “marginal march” down Wellington Street for speeches in the town hall and the “dance party” on Parliament Hill.
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There are also events on June 30, when veteran James Topp arrives in Ottawa on the final stretch of his walk across the country to protest the mandates of the COVID-19 vaccine and other pandemic public health measures. . The march will take to the streets of Ottawa and end at the National War Memorial for a ceremony.
Topp, a Canadian soldier accused of speaking out against the requirements of the COVID-19 vaccine while wearing the uniform in February, has said in videos posted on social media that he wants the event to be respectful and without insults, including the “F ***”. Trudeau ”flags usual in the convoy of truckers in winter.
People gathered in downtown Ottawa during the “Freedom Convoy” protest on Sunday, February 6, 2022. Photo by ASHLEY FRASER / POSTMEDIA
Another group of veterans says it plans a rally against June 30 to protest the use of the War Memorial for the action of “far-right political propaganda by political actors like James Topp.”
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While Carvin noted that situations can be fluid and change quickly, events can also expire regardless of the intent of the people who organized them.
At the April “Rolling Thunder” protest, the “official” event on Parliament Hill and a motorcycle ride to the War Memorial had no incidents. But Ottawa police with helmets and shields clashed with an aggressive crowd that gathered in the evening on Rideau Street, near Sussex Drive, as vehicles were wrapped up in the street.
Carvin said Ottawa residents should also understand that people have a right to organize peaceful protests, even if they are disruptive.
“They are allowed to walk and dance.
“If they want to stay on the sidewalk and scream how vaccines turn them into reptiles, fill their boots. That’s your right as a Canadian.”
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Here’s what to expect:
June 30
Veteran James Topp plans to end his march across the country against COVID-19 vaccine warrants and other pandemic public health restrictions at the National War Memorial, and supporters are being asked to join him during all or part of the last leg of his march through Ottawa.
The “Canada Marches” organization behind the event did not respond to a request for an interview.
The march begins at the LCBO / Metro on Robertson Road in the far west of Ottawa at 10 a.m., down Baseline Road to Hog’s Back Park, leaves at about 1:30 p.m., then down the Rideau Canal to at LCBO / Loblaws near Pretoria. Bridge, before heading around 3:15 pm down the canal to the National War Memorial for a ceremony at 4:00 pm
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Another group of veterans and community members says they plan an anti-5 p.m. demonstration at the statue of Oscar Peterson on Elgin Street near the War Memorial.
The “Veterans Responsibility Commission” says it opposes the use of the War Memorial for a political protest and wants to draw attention to the “far-right pseudo-American fascist commission that is entering the political system of our nation and those that allow it to happen. ” ”
July 1, Canada Day
Most of the government’s Canada Day events have moved to LeBreton Flats and the nearby Place des Festivals Zibi in Gatineau.
This is 1.6 kilometers west of Parliament Hill, which for the first time in more than 50 years will not be the heart of the party.
However, there will also be activities on the hill: SkyHawks air performances accompanied by the RCAF Pipes & Drums Band from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the Snowbirds air show from 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.
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