While the initial protests saw vehicles blocking roads, installing a speaker’s platform and a hot tub on Wellington Street in front of Parliament, last weekend’s protests saw measures such as security checks for visiting the Hill and a ban on vehicles in the area. A few hundred people marched downtown to express their opposition to the federal government and public health restrictions, compared to thousands who came on weekends during the winter. Howard Ramos, chair of the sociology department at Western University, said the context of last weekend’s protest was different, while over the winter there had been a “perfect storm of reinforcements”, including Conservative MPs, people on social media and of mainstream media coverage. Ramos said the Ottawa Police Service and parliamentary security learned from the winter protests, as evidenced by the fact that vehicles could not get as close to Parliament as in the past. He said it’s also important to note that many of the mandates from the winter have since been relaxed or removed, making it harder to get the “broad coalition” that happened in the winter. Somerset Ward Coun. Catherine McKenney said in an interview that last weekend was unique because it was Canada Day, so the city wasn’t just expecting protesters but also knew there would be thousands of people enjoying the holiday. “So the threat of any type of conflict concerned me a lot, it concerned my colleagues a lot,” said McKenney, who uses the pronouns they and them. Bylaw officers issuing tickets was also critical to maintaining order, McKenney said, since people are not allowed to set up tents, speakers or structures without a permit. “Bylaw’s response on these aspects was critical in ensuring that we didn’t have midnight concerts on Wellington Street, we didn’t have tents, we didn’t even have tables set up where that focal point is,” McKenney said. Feedback from residents was generally positive, but the significant number of armed police caught people a bit by surprise, they said. “We’re just not used to it.” A balance needs to be struck between community safety and excessive policing, McKenney said, unlike in February when police were “begging” to come into residential neighborhoods that were “essentially lawless” and as traffic around the convoy begins to dissolves somewhat. Asked what Ottawa police thought they did differently this time, the agency in a statement pointed to interim police chief Steve Bell’s speech notes from June 27. Police were gathering information, talking to organizers and observing open-source comments online, he said, adding that the agency took “an enhanced and extended stance” that began well before Canada Day and extended “well past” to ensure that properly protects the city. “Strong police planning, deployment and response met the challenges presented by this major event and the protests,” a police spokesman said, adding that estimates of policing costs for the weekend were not yet available. The city of Ottawa worked closely with Ottawa police and other law enforcement officers to implement a public safety plan, which included traffic management and enforcement of all applicable city regulations, said Kim Ayotte, director general of emergency services and protection of the city, in a statement. The city also communicated with residents through various channels leading up to the weekend and during Canada Day weekend, Ayotte said. The response was reminiscent of the handling of the “Rolling Thunder” protest in late April, when Ottawa police called in more than 800 reinforcements from the RCMP and other forces to help, including blocking freeway exits and streets in the downtown core to prevent camp formation. This event cost the police an estimated $2.5 to $3 million. This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 4, 2022. — This story was produced with financial assistance from Meta and the Canadian Press News Fellowship.
