The eastbound “freedom convoy” rolling towards Ottawa in protest of government mandates is well underway with hundreds coming out to support the truckers’ departure from BC’s Lower Mainland early Sunday morning.. 26cf8e356eb76f0155be44e15b43b3cd71c5dcd802b4f61398023bb5a76043dd-1Courtesy Sherri Sapara .The recent mandate — instituted by the federal Liberal government on January 15 — is forcing truckers crossing the border into Canada to provide proof of vaccination upon arrival using the ArriveCan app if they want to avoid testing and quarantine requirements..American truckers will be denied entry..Prior to the the January 15 mandate truckers were deemed an essential service..Despite widespread concern of further economic devastation amid an already hurting supply chain, Liberal Health Minister Jean Yves-Duclos maintains his position that restricting cross-border movement of unvaccinated truckers is the “right thing to do.”.The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) anticipates the loss of 12,000-16,000 (10-15%) cross-border commercial drivers as a result..In border areas, drivers will often cross over five or six times a day..“That’s a lot of loads in a year that no longer have a way of coming up,” Colin Valentim told the Western Standard..Valentim — who has been a trucker for more than 20 years — spearheaded the group out of BC, which steadily grew in size throughout the day as truckers across the province joined the Ottawa-bound convoy..The convoy is approaching Alberta and will spend the night in Calgary before departing east on January 24 in conjunction with Alberta’s truckers..When the convoy arrives in Ottawa, it will rendezvous with four convoys from various points of Ontario, convoys from Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, other Atlantic areas, and Quebec — forming a mass coalescence of rolling steel within the nation’s capital..“We need to show this government what they’re doing is wrong and we won’t take it anymore,” said Valentim..While the national demonstration is organized by big-riggers, those involved say it represents other professions that have been effected by mandatory injections such as healthcare workers, municipal workers and more. All professions and vehicles are welcome in the convoy..The official GoFundMe page has received more than 37,400 separate donations adding up to more than $2.8 million with donations steadily flowing in by the minute..The fund’s page — organized by Tamara Lich — says money raised will be dispersed to truckers for the cost of the journey and “any leftover donations will be donated to a credible veteran’s organization which will be chosen by the donors.”.The page says GoFundMe will be sending donations directly to “our bulk fuel supplier.”.“Your hard-earned money is going straight to who it was meant for without having to flow through anyone else,” reads the page..The Western Standard reached out to Lich for further details regarding the allocation of donor’s funds, but has not heard back..“Time to stop these mandates destroying people’s lives and businesses,” writes one donor..“This tyranny must stop, and I believe the truckers are uniquely positioned to make this point,” writes another..Maps, routes, times, and contact information for the respective organizers can be found here..Reid Small is a BC-based reporter for the Western Standard.,rsmall@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/reidsmall
