In March 2020, protesters blockaded railroads across Canada in the name of stopping oil and gas development, claiming to defend the environment and indigenous rights. Prime Minister Trudeau offered to meet with them, and police did little to address the protesters’ clearly criminal behaviour. Less than two years later, thousands of Canadians, including many truckers, assembled peacefully in Ottawa to protest vaccine mandates. The prime minister refused to meet with them, declared a “national emergency,” and then the protesters were met by the force of armed police and had their bank accounts frozen.
The double standard in law enforcement in Canada is glaring. If the judge imposes any jail time on Lich, Barber, or both, it will bring the administration of justice into grave disrepute in the minds of millions of Canadians, and further tear our social fabric.