An event that may have missed the attention of many was a massive protest against restrictions last weekend in Quebec’s largest city.
According to various sources, the estimated number of people gathered in the crowd was around 100,000.
This protest, and at the same time the march against the draconian restrictions and lockdown rules in connection with Covid-19, was by far the most numerous of all in Canada to date.
The protest took place in Montreal, Québec, the largest French-speaking city in North America, and people gathered around the Olympic Stadium – the city’s most recognizable structure.
Saturday’s protest and march, according to Rebel News, was almost festive, with many people shouting “Liberté” – “freedom”, the whole thing was peaceful, despite several altercations after the demonstration ended.
The protest was planned and coordinated by a group called “Québec Debout” – “Québec Rise Up”.
The group published a video from Saturday’s event on its Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/QuebecDebout
It read that “100,000 people stood up today to challenge Montreal health measures.”
According to CTV, the Montreal police were at the scene of the protest and handing out tickets for not complying with the obligation to wear masks by some demonstrators.
Former federal MP and leader of the People’s Party of Canada (PPC), Maxime Bernier, who is a vocal opponent of the lockdown bans in connection with Covid-19, took part in the protest saying “enough is enough”.
The original politician’s statement can be viewed here:
We’re marching against #lockdowns and for your freedom in Montreal!#NoMoreLockdowns pic.twitter.com/jTNkhKHd0E
— Maxime Bernier (@MaximeBernier) May 1, 2021
Barnier said in his video message posted on his Twitter profile: “I think we have almost 100,000 people here fighting, that’s fighting to your free — for our freedom … We are sending a strong message to these establishment politicians: Enough is enough, we must stop these draconian lockdowns right now!”
In another message on Twitter, the politician disputed the original CTV mainstream television message that a vaccination site for Covid-19 near the stadium had to be closed due to protests, affecting around 50 vaccinations.
Bernier replied that the “the lying mainstream” media was making a splash about what really happened at the vaccine site.
“This is pure bullsh-t from the lying mainstream media. The demonstration was publicized weeks ago, nothing was disrupted, the regional health care center simply decided to reschedule some vaccination appointments. DON’T BELIEVE THE FAKE NEWS!”
– wrote Bernier on Twitter.
This is pure bullshit from the lying mainstream media. The demonstration was publicized weeks ago, nothing was disrupted, the regional health care center simply decided to reschedule some vaccination appointments. DON’T BELIEVE THE FAKE NEWS! @CTVMontreal https://t.co/zi8uKF2Vnl
— Maxime Bernier (@MaximeBernier) May 2, 2021
Many protesters held signs opposing the idea of so-called “vaccine passports”, which have been the subject of discussion in the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in recent weeks.
Prime Minister Trudeau said his government is working with its allies on “certificates of vaccination” that would enable travel.
The province of Quebec has some of the strictest lockdown rules in Canada. There has been a curfew from 9:30 pm to 5:00 am across the province for months.
You can see what the protest in Montreal looked like here:
