It has been a while now since the Trucker’s Freedom Convoy was broken up and its participants either dispersed or punished. It has also been a while since the disgraceful example of freezing people’s bank accounts took place. I say a while since, in the world of politics and the media, a month is an eternity. So what have we learned? 

First the Good News…

We have learned that Canadians are braver than we thought. They shook off their lethargy, protested, and showed the world they were willing to go to the mat for something they believed in. That is the good news. They also proved that they had the courage to protest an issue millions cared about, and thousands were brave enough to support on bypasses, highways and in rallies across the nation. Great news. A lot of inaccurate propaganda has been spread about the Freedom Convoy, but in the end we are left with a hopeful sign for the future. Canadians are back, and we won’t take things lying down. 

Things Will Never Be the Same

The Trucker’s Freedom Convoy changed things. There’s no doubt about it. Those who think the Covid mandates started coming down by themselves are mistaken. The convoy was instrumental in bringing them down. It inspired thousands of us to take action on an issue we cared about. Provincial governments heard that, and it gave them permission to end the mandates. The convoy became a popular movement that influenced Canadian political life. Now that the precedent has been set, it is unlikely that it will be forgotten. Canadians led the way in a world wide movement and nothing can change that

And Now for the Bad News…

But there is bad news as well. The Canadian government, under Trudeau’s Liberals, together  with the legacy media, spread misinformation about the convoy and used totalitarian legislation to end it. Perhaps never in Canadian history has a government acted in such an authoritarian way. Facts about the convoy were distorted. The C.B.C. has since apologized, but not to the degree they should have. Both government and the media went beyond their powers in crushing a popular protest. It’s bad news for us and democracy and just plain wrong.  Declaring the Emergency Measures Act was unnecessary, excessive and oppressive. We can live in the hope that one day that fact will be recognized, but for now we must face facts. The “True North, Strong and Free” is not as free it once was. We the people must make it so again.

A Priceless Lesson

The Convoy taught us a lesson. It is best expressed in the old but valuable cliché “Freedom Isn’t Free.” From now on we will have to fight for our freedoms and defend them. Against who? The sad answer to that is our own government and the legacy media complex. Since the end of the second World War we have taken our rights and freedoms for granted. Why wouldn’t we? The unprecedented peace and prosperity we have experienced since that time convinced us that those rights were unassailable, that they would be there forever, and that totalitarianism could never take root. We can’t afford to make that assumption anymore.

Where to Now? 

The famous Canadian novelist Robertson Davies once referred to the “passionate underlife of the Canadian people.”  It shows itself in events like the Freedom convoy, heroic wartime bravery, flashes of brilliance in sports and the arts, our fight against an unforgiving climate and terrain, a patriotic passion for our nation and in a thousand other ways. Just when you think Canadians are hopelessly mild mannered and uncaring they rise up. We need a burst of that “passionate underlife” now. We should never let the memory of the Trucker’s convoy die. We should continue to protest the removal of our freedoms and transform the issue into a movement that encompasses the nation. If we don’t we will only have ourselves to blame later. From the very beginning the Convoy was a legitimate expression of the  people’s will and we should never let that fact be forgotten. Our future rights and freedoms depend on it.