Ambassador Bridge reopens, truckers’ ‘freedom convoy’ gets win in Ontario

The Ambassador Bridge, known as largest land crossing between the United States and Canada, is free of “freedom convoy” protesters and back open to traffic. A spokesperson for Detroit International Bridge Co. confirmed the bridge reopened late Sunday night after police cleared the remaining protesters over the weekend. Windsor, Ontario Police arrested 25 to 30 protesters and towed several vehicles Sunday.

“If they want to grab us and hook us up and take us away, so be it,” a protester only identified as Dan said Saturday. “There will be no, no there will be no violence. There will be no resistance.”

While the Ambassador Bridge blockade was cleared, protesters in Ontario did get a major win against COVID-19 mandates in the province Monday. Premiere Doug Ford announced the lifting of a variety of restrictions, taking effect either later this week or March 1. The changes taking effect this week include:

• Removing capacity limits except for sporting events, concert venues theaters and higher risk settings
• Increasing social gathering limits to 25 people indoors and 100 people outdoors
• Increasing organized public event limits to 50 people indoors with no limits outdoors

Changes that take effect March 1 include:

• Eliminating capacity limits in all indoor public settings
• Lifting vaccine requirements for all settings

“Today’s announcement is not because of what’s happening in Ottawa or Windsor, but despite it,” Ford said. “At the peak of the Omicron wave, over 4,000 people were hospitalized with COVID-19 in Ontario. That number has now dropped to 1,500.”

The Ambassador Bridge wasn’t the only target of the Freedom Convoy protesters. According to a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation report, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau plans to use the Emergencies Act to quell the rest of the protest. The rarely-used provision allows the federal government to override the provinces and authorize special temporary measures to ensure security during national emergencies anywhere in the country.

“Freedom convoy” protests are gathering steam in the U.S. and Europe. According to a report from The Guardian, at least three national organizations say they will hold their own convoys to Washington, D.C. next month. One will leave Fresno, California on March 2 and arrive in Washington, D.C. on March 6.

Meanwhile, an inter-country “freedom convoy” converged in Brussels, Belgium Monday. In response, police filtered traffic while taking extensive precautions in and around European Union headquarters. Many of the protesters were from France, where the convoy began last week.