Note: Certain people in this article are identified only by first name to protect them from further harassment. Their comments at these hearings remain on public record.
Sept. 21 and 22 marked the two initial public hearings for the Ottawa People’s Commission on the Freedom Convoy Occupation (OPC), which gave residents the space to recount their experiences in February and call for government accountability.
The hearings at McNabb Community Centre and Le Patro d’Ottawa saw 13 community members share testimonies from the occupation.
“Our focus and emphasis here is to provide vulnerable, disadvantaged folks an opportunity to be heard,” Leilani Farha, one of four OPC commissioners, said on Sept. 21.
Heading into this series of public discussions, Sheldon Kiishkens Ross McGregor, who is Algonquin Anishinaabe, delivered an opening prayer and shared insights into the importance of clarity for the OPC.
“You guys are putting out a statement of your boundaries if this does happen again—what is acceptable and unacceptable for you,” McGregor said.
Concerns for neighbourhood well-being raised
Community members spoke of intense noise pollution, an inability to support local businesses and countless Canadian, Nazi and Confederate flags that accompanied the Freedom Convoy. New realities of the impact of the convoy noise also surfaced.
“I got absolutely zero sleep going into work because of those incessant horns.”
For example, Parkdale Avenue, which lies about 3.5 km from Parliament, houses many health-care workers like ICU nurse Heather, who spoke at the hearing. The noise radiating from downtown impeded her ability to care for patients.
“I only work night shifts, and I was working that weekend,” she said. “I got absolutely zero sleep going into work because of those incessant horns. It’s not so much about me, but the patients that I cared for got a nurse that was exhausted.”
Speakers also revealed health concerns for the neighbourhoods and environment. Centretown resident Kim Lidbetter expressed shock at the lack of municipal action post-convoy, despite the occupation’s visible effects on her surroundings.
“People were defecating on all the grassy areas around the unit I’m in,” Lidbetter said. “I’ve watched all summer to see if there’s been any cleanup of any of those areas and nothing has happened.”
“We were truly alone”: Marginalized individuals’ lives during the occupation
The opening OPC public forums also illuminated the lived experiences of people with disabilities, people experiencing homelessness and racialized people during the convoy. One testimony that resonated with the commissioners was that of Cliff, a disabled senior who resides in a red-zone rooming house. He shared thorough accounts of his time and what he witnessed in February.
“People were verbally assaulted and chased down sidewalks, harassed and verbally abused for wearing face masks.”
“Stories of protester interactions from my neighbourhood and my building started to surface daily,” he said. “People were verbally assaulted and chased down sidewalks, harassed and verbally abused for wearing face masks.”
He continued, “I myself, a disabled senior, had a blow horn pointed in my face and had negative comments yelled at me.”
Providing details of displacement and food insecurity from local business closures, he added, “homeless and marginalized individuals had little information about what was going on. We were truly alone, scared and forced out of familiar surroundings.”
“Never have I witnessed anything so white, so extreme and so threateningly dangerous,” Stephanie Strudwick, who has lived downtown for more than 30 years, said.
“I saw urine-soaked garbage and feces being dumped on a Jewish person’s lawn,” she said.
Sentiments of inadequate government response
Included in nearly every testimony was concern and disillusionment with the Ottawa Police Service and various levels of government.
“It’s crystal clear from the outside looking in that decisive leadership was missing,” remarked a former city communications employee, who asked to remain unnamed for personal safety.
“We’re constantly told it was an unprecedented event to excuse a weak response. That doesn’t cut it. Ottawa’s a G7 city that has a proven track record of hosting large, complicated events,” the former employee added, citing Ottawa’s 2021 Emergency Management Plan and Canada 150 celebrations.
“It’s crystal clear from the outside looking in that decisive leadership was missing.”
Matt, who delivered his testimony on Sept. 21, detailed his more than 30 hours spent as a counter-protester during the occupation. At one point on Parliament Hill, he was surrounded by convoy supporters and intimidated. This experience was frightening, given an earlier exchange he’d had with Ottawa police.
“The police stood idly by and did nothing,” he recalled. “The first night I went out to protest alone on the hill, a group of police officers came up to me and said, ‘We know you’re up here trying to speak your mind against all this. But if you stay here any longer, we can’t guarantee your safety.’”
He concluded, “In the end, it was [those] who took grassroots action in our community who did the most to inspire hope in this dark time. We had to pull together. And it wasn’t the City of Ottawa, and it wasn’t the Ottawa Police Service who did that. It was people in our community.”
More public hearings for the fall are set to be announced soon, with the OPC posting updates on its website.
Featured image by Kyra Vellinga.
