Canadian Judge Gives Green Light to Remove Protesters From Bridge

A Canadian judge said he would grant police permission to forcibly remove protesters who have choked off most access to a U.S.-Canada trade corridor, disrupting pockets of the auto industry and stirring concerns among North American business leaders.

Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz of Ontario’s Superior Court said Friday the injunction would take effect at 7 p.m. ET, to give protesters—who oppose Covid-19 vaccine mandatesand other social restrictions—an opportunity to leave. 

It is unknown whether all of the roughly 150 protesters assembled late Friday afternoon near the mouth of the Ambassador Bridge would move voluntarily, with at least one group of drivers advocating that protesters resist the police. Along with the protesters, roughly 50 vehicles were parked to prevent north-south traffic. 

The decision caps a day where Canadian authorities ramped up efforts to end the protest at the bridge, which connects Detroit with Windsor, Ontario and which had been closed since Monday for traffic from the U.S. to Canada. Protesters tried to dissuade the court from issuing an injunction by agreeing Friday morning to open one lane for U.S. traffic into Canada.

Read More (...)