I am sure many of you watched with a mixture of interest, concern, disgust and embarrassment at the last three weeks in Ottawa and to a lesser extent, Windsor, Coutts, Toronto and Quebec City.
There were a number of things that were very bothersome about the occupation of Ottawa but there is one thought I could not get out of my mind. First, let's start with the long list of incredibly stupid and annoying things that happened in that city over the last three weeks.
What was the Ottawa police force thinking? - I don't think you needed to be an intelligence expert or an intense social media follower to know that the "Freedom Convoy" intended to occupy Ottawa. They had been posting for days, as they progressed across Canada, that they intended to park their massive rigs in front of the Parliament buildings and not leave until vaccine mandates were lifted (and apparently demand the overthrow of the democratically elected government). Peter Sloly, the former Ottawa police chief, stated during a news conference that he had been in touch with the organizers. They told him they would be in Ottawa for two days and then leave. Incredible - incredibly stupid, naive and a few other things. To take the leaders' word, who unlike real truckers were extremists, and not have a backup plan was in itself grounds for dismissal.
Where were the Ottawa police? - I am certainly not an expert on policing and police tactics, and it may be true that the Ottawa police force very quickly got overwhelmed by the occupation once they let the FC through (my short form for Freedom Convoy; you can substitute your own words in for FC). But did that mean they could not do anything? Clearly, without the implementation of the Federal Emergencies Act or the Provincial state of emergency, the FC was breaking many laws - parking, noise bylaws, hot tubs on streets, pig roasts, bouncy castles, etc, etc. Why did the police not take action early in an attempt to at least partially enforce the law and slow down the occupation (I think I know why, but more on that later).
Legitimate points of view and concerns quickly got co-opted - I think there are real issues that need to be raised regarding every level of government's ongoing response to the pandemic. Raising concerns about the government's actions does not mean you are an anti-vac, conspiracy wack job. I have had concerns about government action and inaction all through the pandemic. I am also vaccinated and have supported public health directives, even ones I thought were illogical and unnecessary (for example, you can shop for non-essential items in Costco and Walmart but small businesses are closed?). Is it really necessary that 100% of truck drivers be vaccinated? So, 100% of hospital workers don't have to be but truckers do? (I understand one is a Federal jurisdiction and one is Provincial, but guess what? I don't care!). Apparently, we grant vaccine mandate exceptions to truck drivers crossing the border that are carrying medical supplies but not food. I understand medical supplies are critical but food also sounds critical to me. Does the Federal Government have a plan to wind down pandemic restrictions while still protecting Canadians health? These are all reasonable questions and could have formed a basis of a legitimate, legal protest in Ottawa. Unfortunately, any justifiable question or protest quickly got overrun by the illegal occupation and bad behaviour in Ottawa.
Who picked these guys as leaders? - Why were none of the FC leaders that were visible and vocal truckers? (hint - because the FC and illegal occupation had nothing to do with truckers). Virtually all Canadian trucking associations disowned the FC. I won't go through all the individual leaders of the FC (I don't want to give them the airtime) but just take a quick look a Pat King. Again, you don't need to be an intelligence expert to quickly understand this guy is a bad actor and represents a dangerous fringe element in Canada. Having guys like this as a leader, spokesperson and fundraiser quickly drowned out any legitimate message that may have been part of the original intent of the FC.
How not to get the public's support? - So you want to protest and get your point of view across? Steal food at a homeless shelter and harass the staff, threaten regular residents of the city as they go to work or school, honk horns and spew diesel fumes all day and night, lock the front doors of an apartment building and start a fire, display right-wing extremist symbols whether they be Nazi or Confederate flags, desecrate public monuments. All these deplorable acts worked against the FC having any legitimate concerns listened to by most Canadians.
Where were the Ottawa police (part 2)? - I understand police, like all of us, have the right to their point of view. I support the right of police to participate in protests (I think they should not be wearing any official police uniform so there is no confusion that they are acting as a private citizen). But when they are on duty, their job is to enforce the law. Why then did we see Ottawa police carrying propane tanks and food to FC locations that were clearly breaking the law? These officers need to be disciplined for not carrying out their duties.
Where was the Provincial government? - I know Doug Ford wants to pretend that Ottawa is somehow a Federal island and not really part of Ontario (especially when there are problems) but Doug, Ottawa is a part of Ontario. Where was Doug Ford for the first two and a half weeks of the Ottawa occupation? Apparently enjoying snowmobiling at his cottage and driving around shovelling people's driveways. There was no sense that the situation in Ottawa or Windsor was a crisis for the Ford government. They had no action plan, no communications, nothing. Just deflection and hiding. Finally, Ford announced a state of emergency for Ontario but it was never clear what actions would be taken to end the crisis in Ottawa. Immediately afterwards came the Federal government's announcement of the Emergencies act. Note - remember there is a Provincial election this June and Doug Ford needs to be voted out, although I remain (very) concerned about the NDP and Liberal alternatives.
Really? - I think for most Canadians it became very clear that the original "protest" had nothing to do with truckers and quickly became an illegal occupation of Ottawa. There was lawlessness and bad behaviour everywhere. I do not think the majority of Canadians supported this (again a reminder that there were very legitimate points to be raised through lawful protest avenues). Despite the illegal activities of right-wing activists and white supremacists, the Conservative party was more than willing to stand with the FC, offer them their support, pose for photographs and party like it was 1984 (btw the Conservatives under Brian Mulroney won a huge majority in September 1984). Pierre Poilievre, Candice Bergen and Andrew Sheer (future, interim and past leaders) all seemed to enjoy the publicity appealing to the small, dwindling minority of right-wing voters in Canada. One last comment about the Conservatives. This theme where the Conservatives state that the Prime Minister should meet with the FC and listen - really? This is a group that is stating their purpose is to overthrow the democratically elected government and is led by Pat King. The Prime Minister should meet with them? Come on!
It is a goat rodeo at all levels - To ensure that the craziness was evident everywhere, the City of Ottawa jumped right in. First, they fired their Chief of Police, Peter Sloly (I know he resigned but does anyone believe that? Was he not forced out?). This is an individual that the Ottawa Police Services board hired after extensive interviews specifically to change the culture and nature of policing in Ottawa. They bail on him, and then the Mayor and other councillors trash him after he is gone. Btw, I am not suggesting Sloly didn't deserve to be fired, I just think the behaviour of Ottawa politicians is bad. Next, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson "negotiates" with the FC to move trucks from some residential streets onto Wellington Street. Although Watson insists this was to give Ottawa residents some level of relief, negotiating with the FC just seems to give them more legitimacy. You are moving them to an area where they are still breaking the law and many argued made it even more difficult for the police to eventually clear Wellington Street. Last but not least, Mayor Watson orchestrates the firing of Diane Deans, the Chair of the Ottawa Police Services board. He says the board inappropriately hired an ex-City of Waterloo Police Chief (retired for eight years) along with a slew of consultants to "assist" the interim Chief of Police (this does sound like a dumb idea). Deans says she was fired because she didn't support Waton's negotiation with the FC and because she intends to run against him in the next election for Mayor. Can it really be this bad everywhere in government?
What about the Emergencies Act? - This is a tough one. I certainly believe that the occupation of Ottawa was illegal and needed to end. It was not a legal, peaceful protest. Same for blocking the Ambassador bridge in Windsor. It was illegal and needed to end. But I feel like the Emergencies Act is a very big, heavy hammer and in the end, I think Ottawa could have been resolved without invoking this Act. It is a serious piece of legislation that I believe needs to be reserved for only the most serious and threatening of national emergencies. It seems to me that there is a lot of room between the police doing nothing, which appeared to be the case in both places, and the Emergencies Act. I understand the Act gives the police powers to track the financial resources of the FC and to cordon off the city, but I believe there were existing laws that the police could have enforced to end the occupation. Windsor was in fact resolved and cleared prior to invoking the Emergencies Act. Clearly, both the Ottawa and Windsor police needed more support and resources but they could have received this without the Emergencies Act. There was reporting in the media that one of the reasons police chiefs around the country were not sending resources to Ottawa was because they did not believe Peter Sloly had a plan to use the resources effectively and safely to resolve the occupation. The Emergencies Act was not needed to solve that problem either. We never got to see what impact the declaration of the Provincial state of emergency would have had on resolving the situation. Because Ford waited for so long before taking any action, and the Federal government jumped the gun on the Emergencies Act, we will never know if an alternative resolution could have been found. In the end, I believe the implementation of the Emergencies Act was government overreach and sets a potentially dangerous precedent for the future.
Whose fault was this? - This is a really difficult question and probably the right answer is that there is lots of blame to go around. As I have said, Chief Sloly, Premier Ford, the FC, the City of Ottawa, Federal Conservatives and the Federal Government are all at least partially to blame. But if I am going to pick one person (and as I have said one person is not really completely responsible) my choice is Justin Trudeau. Trudeau's government has been slow and reactive throughout the pandemic and continues to be so. His government has not established, actioned or communicated a clear plan for how the Federal government will balance health guidelines with the removal of restrictions. Teresa Tam, Chief Medical Officer has been speaking about the transition required as COVID cases decline, but the Government continues to make announcements piecemeal with no long-term plan. The frustrating part is that this is completely consistent with everything this Government does. From the environment, RCMP corruption, sexual harassment in the military, and action on Indigenous issues this Government has two speeds - slow and stop. They do not follow through on their grandiose plans. They cynically believe Canadians won't notice and will keep voting them into government. However, I think the biggest blame that Trudeau wears is lack of leadership. He has tried to use the pandemic to his political advantage whenever he can. He never misses an opportunity to point out that 85%+ of COVID financial support has come from the Federal government. If I hear Justin Trudeau say one more time "We will always have Canadians' backs" I am going to throw up. There is no doubt that Trudeau used vaccines and vaccine mandates during the last Federal election to jam the Conservatives and Erin O'Toole. He continues to do that by aligning the Conservatives with the FC and extremists. That may be good politics and it may have helped get him get elected, but it is not leadership. As I said, I am vaccinated (3 doses) and have supported public health measures. I do find it frustrating that a minority of Canadians refuse to get the shots and are disproportionately tying up medical resources. I am also concerned about the minority of Canadians that are spreading misinformation. However, I don't think the right course of action is to yell at these people, call them names, and isolate them. It seems that will only make things worse. Leadership has to be more than that. Trudeau has failed that test.
Ok, now for what is really bothering me. Does anyone believe that if Ottawa was occupied by Black Lives Matter or a First Nations group the situation would have gone on for three weeks? I am not suggesting that either BLM or FN would have used the tactics of the FC. I am suggesting that the reaction by police and governments at all levels seemed to be very different for a bunch of mainly white people with children, occupying our nation's capital with illegal bouncy castles, hot tubs, sound and DJ stages, pig roasts, and propane BBQs. You don't have to invest much time on Google searches to find numerous examples of extreme police behaviour while removing Indigenous protests against pipelines and land rights or breaking up "defund the police" rallies led by Black Lives Matter. It seems to me that we have a two-tier reaction to protests. Police and politicians have much more patience and tolerance to a group of largely white people protesting versus people of colour and Indigenous groups.
I was appalled at how slowly the police reacted to the situation in Windsor. Again, they did nothing for days and allowed the FC to get firmly entrenched. When the police did begin to move to break up the blockade it was painfully slow to watch. I am not suggesting that the police should have used tear gas, batons or fired rubber bullets or live ammunition but these people had been told to leave and were illegally blocking the bridge. In the end, I am glad the situation was resolved peacefully with no injuries reported. I just can't help but feel law enforcement would have acted differently with a different group.
Ottawa was a different situation. Once the FC had occupied Ottawa it was clearly a complex mission to remove the people, trucks and tents etc that were there. I thought the police moved efficiently to remove the FC and particularly on the second day, clearly came prepared with body armour, weapons and horses to deal with the hardcore elements that had no intention of leaving. I thought the police were organized and professional and removed a large imbedded occupation with little violence. You only have to watch protests in other cities to acknowledge the police did well in a very difficult situation. My criticism of the police is how long they took to act and how they allowed the city to be occupied.
I completely support free speech and the right to protest. I hope we continue to have robust debates in Canada and people express their point of view in whatever legal way they feel is the most effective. That includes all groups, ones I agree with and ones I don't.
I do however, feel that when police and government intervention is required, it needs to be consistent and appropriate. I can't help but think that the Freedom Convoy got a free ride from police for far too long. If it had been a group of people of colour or Indigenous people the reaction would have been very different.
Let me know what you think at thethirdperiod.ca@gmail.com
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