Canadian truckers shut down busiest border crossing in North America: LIVE UPDATES
The busiest border crossing in North America was shut down as the Canadian truckers protesting their country's vaccine mandates made it to the Detroit-Windsor border, causing traffic on the highway to Detroit.
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As Canadians truckers begin their second week of protests against vaccine mandates, media outlets have described and labeled the protests as an "insurrection" and said their actions amount to "sedition."
The protests, labeled as the "Freedom Convoy," first began in Vancouver, British Columbia on January 23. Hundreds of big rig trucks traveled to Ottawa where they were joined by thousands of Canadians on Saturday in protest against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s coronavirus policies.
Trudeau denounced the protests while speaking in parliament on Monday.
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“We’ve contacted them all and they’re all refusing...to provide heavy tow truck work,” Ottawa City Manager Steve Kanellakos said in a press conference following a special city council meeting on Monday night.
“Many of them or most of them don’t want to do the work, especially the heavy tow truck work, because they rely on the heavy truck industry for their livelihood and they don’t want to damage that part of their business,” Kanellakos added.
Canadian police announced Monday that seven people have been arrested and more than 100 have been issued tickets in connection to "demonstration-related enforcement" in Ottawa.
This comes after Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared a state of emergency Sunday afternoon as approximately 500 trucks and vehicles with the "Freedom Convoy" continued to linger in the streets of the Canadian capital to protest vaccine mandates and other coronavirus-related restrictions.
"We, of course, support, as you know, the the right to freedom of speech and protest," Psaki told reporters in a White House press briefing Tuesday. "But we while we do see some of these conditions due protests it is clear that these disruptions have broadened in scope beyond the vaccine requirement implementation. We beyond that, we are, of course, in touch with our Canadian counterparts. But I don't have any updates in terms of specific steps."
Police man a barricade in front of vehicles parked as part of the trucker protest Tuesday in Ottawa, Ontario. (Adrian Wyld /The Canadian Press via AP)
Ottawa Police Deputy Chief Steve Bell warned protesters Tuesday to stay away from Canada’s capital as officers “continue to work all-out to put a safe end to the unlawful occupation of our downtown core and improve neighborhood safety.”
Bell said so far, police have made 22 arrests, issued more than 1,300 tickets and have launched 79 criminal investigations in relation to the crowds of Canadian truckers protesting coronavirus restrictions and mandates.
“Yesterday we had an attack on our hardworking officers. While attempting to seize fuel from demonstrators, multiple officers were swarmed by these same demonstrators. We have initiated a criminal investigation into this matter,” Bell said.
The deputy police chief also revealed that around 25 percent of the 418 trucks currently “encamped” in Ottawa have children living in them, who could be at risk during police operations.
And working in collaboration with police in Ohio, investigators traced, identified and arrested an individual who allegedly called in “fake threats designed to deceive and distract our emergency resources,” Bell also revealed.
His message for the protesters was “don’t come, and if you do, there will be consequences including financial consequences for your illegal and unlawful behavior.”
The busiest border crossing in North America remains partly shut down midday Tuesday as the Canadian truckers protesting their country's vaccine mandates made it to the Detroit-Windsor border, causing traffic on the highway to Detroit.
"Limited traffic is being allowed into U.S through the Ambassador Bridge. Officers are on scene maintaining traffic points, public safety and enforcement," police in Windsor, Ontario, said in a tweet. "Please avoid the area and use alternate route."
Protesters gather on Parliament hill as trucks continue to block the downtown core in protest of COVID-19 restrictions in Ottawa on Saturday. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press via AP)
After GoFundMe shut down fundraising for the Canadian "Freedom Convoy," donors flocked to Christian crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo to support truckers protesting vaccine mandates in Ottawa.
The founder and CFO of the platform, Jacob Wells, is now calling out GoFundMe and Big Tech for their "authoritarian style of social platforms," which he says promote bias as fact and causes further division.
The campaign "Freedom Convoy 2022" has raised nearly $5 million through GiveSendGo as of Monday.
"Big Tech really has taken it upon themselves to be the arbiters of truth. And it's a place that they were never intended to be, and it's caused more damage than good," Wells told Fox News Digital in a phone interview Monday. "We are now stepping into that place because there is a natural pushback from many people because America was founded on these ideas of freedom."
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Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau characterized the protesters Monday during a speech in parliament as "a few people shouting and waving swastikas."
Trudeau made the remark during an impassioned speech about his country's fight against the spread of the coronavirus, where he said "this pandemic has sucked for all Canadians."
“Individuals are trying to blockade our economy, our democracy, and our fellow citizens’ daily lives,” Trudeau said. “It has to stop."
“A few people shouting and waving swastikas does not define who Canadians are," he added, according to the Associated Press.
Police in Windsor, Ontario tweeted Tuesday that the Ambassador Bridge connecting Canada to Detroit, Michigan has now reopened on the U.S.-bound side, but heavy traffic remains, according to Google Maps.
The Ambassador Bridge links Detroit, Michigan, USA with Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is one of the busiest international trade routes in North America. (iStock)
The busiest border crossing in North America was shut down as the Canadian truckers protesting their country's vaccine mandates made it to the Detroit-Windsor border, causing traffic on the highway to Detroit.
"It doesn’t make sense as they shouldn’t be blocking the borders or the roads," Canadian truck driver Nav Aulch told Click on Detroit.
Traffic began building on I-75 and the Ambassador Bridge around 3 p.m. Monday. Detroit Officials said the Ambassador Bridge was closed at about 8 p.m., leaving thousands of truckers left stranded on Detroit roads, according to Fox 2 Detroit.
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Truck drivers and supporters protest against vaccine mandates in the trucking industry in Ottawa, Canada on January 31, 2022. (Photo by Amru Salahuddien/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
An Ontario judge granted a 10-day injunction on Monday that forbids truckers parked on city streets in downtown Ottawa from constantly honking their horns.
"Tooting a horn is not an expression of any great thought I'm aware of," Ontario Superior Court Justice Hugh McLean said during court proceedings, according to the CBC.
McLean said he had heard sufficient evidence that the incessant honking from the convoy in protest of government vaccine mandates is impinging on Ottawa residents' right for "quiet, if we can use that term," which he said trumped the trucker's right to protest. -Jon Brown
Trucks attempting to drive down University Avenue between Bloor Street and Queen's Park are blocked by a police cruiser during a demonstration in support of a trucker convoy in Ottawa protesting COVID-19 restrictions, in Toronto, Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP)
Canadian police announced Monday that seven people have been arrested and more than 100 have been issued tickets in connection to "demonstration-related enforcement" in Ottawa.
This comes after Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson declared a state of emergency Sunday afternoon as approximately 500 trucks and vehicles with the "Freedom Convoy" continued to linger in the streets of the Canadian capital to protest vaccine mandates and other coronavirus-related restrictions.
Ottawa Police Service issued a warning earlier Monday that "anyone found bringing fuel to the demonstration trucks in the red zone could be subject to arrest and charges." -Danielle Wallace
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