OPINION: I support the Canadian trucker convoy protest. Here’s why.

You would have had to live under a rock to not be impacted by the pandemic. And we all know that some have been affected more than others. Some have lost loved ones, some have lost relationships, some have lost businesses and generations of hard work, and some have lost their right to govern their own bodies. We also all know how this has turned into a political weapon to divide us and push agendas on a fearful people. You would also have had to live under a rock to miss the record-breaking convoy in Canada that has sparked a global movement for freedom.

Throughout the world, we are watching live as our neighbors in Canada are taking a stand against the cross-border vaccine mandate on truckers. They are fighting for their jobs, for their ability to bring supplies to their families and communities, and for their freedom to choose what they inject into their own bodies, without coercion.

When the pandemic first hit us, truckers never stopped. While the rest of the world spent two weeks locked down and not leaving their homes, truckers kept on trucking. Before vaccines, before therapies, before treatments, before knowing the risks, they kept driving to bring all of the things you ordered from the comfort and safety of your home. They filled your grocery stores and pharmacies. They brought you hand sanitizer and masks and vitamins and food. Now they are taking a stand against nonsensical federal mandates that strip them of what I believe is a fundamental human right. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians have had enough. The size of the movement is incalculable, and it has inspired demonstrations of solidarity worldwide, from Australia to Europe to Africa to Alaska.

We the fringe are making our voices heard. My heart swells with pride and hope as the people make a peaceful protest against government overreach that is nothing short of tyranny. Of course, the media keeping in line with its crumbling narrative, has vilified and attacked these people. But if you open your eyes, you will see the most beautiful display of community, diversity and patriotism I have ever seen. The people are refusing to let the government divide them into vaccinated and unvaccinated. They are rejecting the fear and propaganda of a hypocritical prime minister. They are rejecting discrimination and coercion against a minority. They are embracing their humanity and joining together to make a stand for freedom for all. They are bringing each other gas, and food to sustain the protest. They are playing hockey in the streets. They are singing their national anthem and waving flags. They are cleaning up the streets and the statues. They are fathers, mothers, children, grandparents, friends, strangers, vaccinated and unvaccinated. They are the shot heard ‘round the world, and they have awakened the patriot in us all.

And their stance is costly. They need us to support them. It’s time to hold the line. As Mark Twain wrote, “In the beginning of a change the patriot is a scarce man, and brave, and hated and scorned. When his cause succeeds, the timid join him, for then it costs nothing to be a patriot.” There is a line drawn in the sand, and it’s time to pick a side. Do you stand for freedom of speech and medical choice? Or do you stand with the ones forcing their will upon others?

I have been fighting these mandates since the beginning: freedom over fear. I will always stand for freedom. It’s in my blood. History is being written right now. What will it say about you? Do you stand up against discrimination of a minority? Or do you join the mob-rule-panicked cancel culture? As Alaskans, these truckers are our lifeline. This is our chance to thank them not just for the supplies they deliver, but for their most important delivery yet: freedom.

Jamie Allard is a member of the Anchorage Assembly representing District 2 (Chugiak/Eagle River), as well as a candidate for Alaska House District 22. She is a co-organizer of an Anchorage convoy in support of the Canadian truck convoy protest.

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