Truckers’ protests against vaccine mandates, which started in Canada, have now reached the United States. This prompted the Biden administration to take immediate action against the potential demonstrations that can sweep across the country soon.
COVID restrictions can push America to nationwide protests soon
A Facebook group named Convoy to DC 2022 gathered traction right after its formation; more than 100,000 people joined it in no time. However, the social media giant was quick to remove the group, saying it violated website policies.
While Facebook associated the group with a far-right entity, QAnon, the potential demonstrators rejected the allegations, claiming they strictly wanted to protest against the vaccine mandates; they have nothing to do with QAnon.
Jeremy Johnson, one of the admins of the group, noted Facebook linked them to QAnon, even though no one posted about QAnon either on their personal profiles or the deleted group.
Speaking to Fox News, Johnson noted Facebook wants to silence voices that speak the truth.
Truckers March 1, 2022 Freedom Convoy in the USA, you go guys and gals #FreedomConvoy pic.twitter.com/KoaK8T9YMK
— Noelle Haller-Riggs (@NoelleHRiggs) February 10, 2022
After the Facebook ban, the convoy is now active on Telegram, where more than 28,000 people joined the movement.
Johnson stated the protestors are not vaccine deniers, and they believe in the efficacy of the vaccine. All they think is these vaccines should not be imposed on anyone.
In addition to that, Johnson said the goal is to end the prevailing discrimination present against those who choose not to get vaccinated.
Biden refused to lift COVID restrictions again
The Department of Homeland Security is already worried about the protests, as it warned US law enforcement agencies that truckers’ protests against the vaccine mandates could disrupt Super Bowl LVI on February 13.
According to the DHS bulletin, the protests can severely impact transportation and other federal government operations.
Protesters are specifically objecting to the mask mandates on children and claim these medical freedom protests’ aim to denounce any practice that defies freedom of expression.
As per White House press secretary Jen Psaki, the DHS has already deployed 500 employees to deter the protests over the weekend. Similarly, she stated the department is pushing extra staff members to ensure the Super Bowl is organized as planned.
These comments came after Biden’s telephone conversation with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau; Biden demanded Canada should move quickly to clear the blocked trade route by truckers.
Even though many blue states decided to wrap up their mask mandates, Biden said on Thursday that removing masks requirements would be a “premature” decision.
Times Square Billboard Demands Biden End The Federal Mask Mandate https://t.co/icJtFVHM6u
— Ben Owen 🚛🚚 (@hrkbenowen) February 10, 2022
However, Biden did not criticize the decisions of Democrat governors. Speaking to NBC’s “Nightly News,” Biden noted it is hard to say if governors are making the wrong decision.
According to Biden, the omicron variant impacted the “psyche of American people.”
Nevada became the latest state to remove mask mandates, which would be applicable immediately in some instances. However, the state still requires medical staffers to observe the mandate.
