A Manitoba father denied access to his 9-year-old daughter in palliative care due to his vaccination status said his protest at the Emerson border crossing was important to him..Jake Klassen — a trucker who participated in the now-disbanded Emerson, Manitoba border blockade — said he hasn’t been able to see his daughter for more than six months while she has been in palliative care at St. Amant in Winnipeg..Klassen participated in the week-long Emerson blockade at the Manitoba-US border and told the Western Standard he wants his freedoms back..Due to his choice not to be vaccinated, Klassen said he has not been able to see his nine-year-old daughter Sophia for more than six months..Klassen said Sophia was born with special needs and has required assistance all her life. She has been in palliative care at St. Amant for more than five years..“St. Amant has been an amazing place for my daughter and we appreciate what they have done for us over the years,” said Klassen..“Sophia doesn’t communicate verbally,” said Klassen, adding, “she communicates through physical touch and cuddling and gets very upset if we can’t hold her when we visit.”.Klassen said his wife was able to see her occasionally but was also restricted due to her vaccination status. He said the visitation pods did not allow them to physically connect with Sophia which upset their daughter a great deal..“My kids haven’t even been able to see her for six or seven months,” said Klassen..“We’ve been working on getting her out of there,” said Klassen indicating they have tried to work out a home-care situation for Sophia, but have struggled to cover the costs..Klassen said Trudeau invoking the Emergencies Act is using a “scare tactic” to “take everything from us.”.“We can’t see our daughter because of these mandates,” said Klassen..“This is something worth fighting for.”.St. Amant’s Health & Transition Services’ said in a statement to the Western Standard, its current pandemic visitation practice “is in line with Manitoba Shared Health’s Long Term Care visitation principles whereby Designated Family Caregivers are welcome to visit their family members.”.The statement said unvaccinated family members can visit within “the visitation pod” which is away from all other residents..When asked why Klassen has been unable to see his daughter for more than six months, a spokeswoman for St. Amant’s said she is unable to comment on any specific family..Klassen said since his story has been made public, administrators from St. Amant have contacted his wife to “see if they can accommodate us somehow.”.Klassen participated with his semi trailer along with up to 75 others at the blockade at the Manitoba-US border near Emerson for the week-long blockade beginning February 10..According to statements from Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, $73 million in trade per day was affected by the blockade..The group involved in the protest came to an agreement with RCMP and peacefully rolled away from the blockade Wednesday at noon with a police escort. The situation was resolved without arrests, injury or charges..Melanie Risdon is a reporter with the Western Standard.,.mrisdon@westernstandardonline.com
