For the People’s Convoy that has been in the Washington D.C. area since March 4, all roads now lead to the California capital of Sacramento..Organizers said they were headed to the Golden State, as of Thursday, to protest pending legislation of stricter COVID-19 mandates..“We have an opportunity to help raise awareness and hopefully stop some very atrocious bills before they become laws. This mission directly aligns with what The People’s Convoy stands for and is fighting against,” said Mike Landis, a co-organizer, in a release..“The California state legislature is going to vote on the most invasive COVID-19 legislation yet. If the legislation passes, laws will be made that will make all state residents, including children, legally bound under criminal penalty of law to give up their basic medical freedoms in order to participate in society.”.“Laws first passed in California tend to spread to other states.”.The People’s Convoy was inspired by the Freedom Convoy that converged on Ottawa and was made up of smaller convoys from all parts of the country that joined together as they neared the US capital..They set up their headquarters on the grounds of a speedway, in Hagerstown, Maryland, an hour and-a-half from Washington DC, making daily forays to the Beltway, also known as I-495, which circles the city, eventually venturing into DC proper..“The convoy is a planned, peaceful and unified transcontinental movement,” co-organizer Maureen Steele said at the time..“Government has forgotten its place and its mask and vaccination mandates are unconstitutional. With the advent of the vaccine and workable therapeutic agents, along with the hard work of so many sectors that contributed to declining COVID-19 cases and severity of illness, it is now time to re-open the country.” .Unlike the Canadian convoy, the US group did not park on streets, but did meet with elected representatives and lawmakers to present their case, including Sen. Ted Cruz, who rode in a truck as it made its way around the Beltway..DC police and other public service agencies prepared for potential demonstrations, including the Department of Defense allotting 700 National Guard troops to provide support if it was needed..It wasn’t..The DCist/WAMU Radio reports law enforcement wrote few tickets and made few arrests related to the convoy. On March 10, a driver of a pickup was issued a warning for impeding the flow of traffic on southbound I-270. In Montgomery County and Virginia State Police said no tickets were written to convoy participants while they were on the Commonwealth’s portion of the Beltway and I-395..“We’re not done here, but we’ll go to California and raise awareness on this along the way and hopefully gain more people like we did on our way here,” said Landis..“And then once we stop this, we will come back to finish this job.”.Some of the bills pending in California include no personal belief exemptions and very rare medical exemptions from COVID-19 vaccinations; classifying anti-COVID-19 medical opinion as unprofessional conduct subject to discipline by medical boards; lowering the age of vax consent to 12 without parental consent or knowledge; authorizing the medical board to inspect a doctor’s office and medical records without a patient’s consent and, most startling, prohibiting any person or entity from making statements government deems untrue or misleading by any means including on internet or in ads..“The Peoples Convoy unreservedly condemns these violations of basic rights that are being considered for law by the legislature of California,” said co-lead organizer, Marcus Sommers..“We’re leaving the DC area but we are not abandoning this mission. Everything that we see in these bills in California is in the bullseye of what we oppose. To not raise the alarm and bring pressure against these measures would be a dereliction of duty. The People’s Convoy is in this for the long haul.”.The trip west will travel through the American southeast, with plans of passing through Nashville, Memphis, Dallas/Ft. Worth, El Paso, Tucson and Phoenix, arriving in Los Angeles for the Defeat the Mandates Rally on April 10, where convoy co-organizers will be speaking. .“Following the rally, the convoy will go to the California statehouse in Sacramento to protest the 10 objectionable COVID-19 bills that are up before the legislature,” said Landis..“Hearings are getting scheduled for these bills over the next two weeks and we know it is much easier to stop this horrible legislation before the vote, rather than after. We will raise awareness doing what we do best. Rolling on the highway.” .The People’s Convoy’s return to the DC area on a third cross-country journey will be announced after the mission to Sacramento..Myke Thomas is a Western Standard contributor
