“Almost everyone I talked to about it, (the march) was a very positive experience for them,”
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The soldier who walked from Vancouver to Ottawa to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates says he will continue to make his point by marching all summer and fall to reach Newfoundland and Labrador.
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James Topp, whose arrival in Ottawa on June 30 for a ceremony at the National War Memorial drew some 1,300 supporters, has become a key figure in a protest movement that began with the “Freedom Convoy” that occupied the downtown Ottawa last winter.
Topp was not part of that convoy, although he has said that he was inspired by it. Many of the people and organizations that supported the “Freedom Convoy” are promoting their march.
In an interview Wednesday, Topp said she was encouraged to continue by the reaction she’s encountered from thousands of people since she began her march in Vancouver in February.
“Almost everyone I talked to about it, (the march) was a very positive experience for them,” Topp said. “They were happy to be there. They told me it meant something. It had given them hope and they felt connected to something, they felt they were connected to something bigger. And I want to continue with that, going east…
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“I don’t want to exclude the rest of the country.”
Topp added that he would resume the march in mid-July and hoped to reach St. John’s by October 30.
He said he was speaking on behalf of himself and other federal public servants who have been placed on leave for refusing to be vaccinated. “I experienced a lot of despair and realized there were other people experiencing this.”
From Hope, BC, Topp is suspended without pay from his civilian job with the RCMP for refusing to disclose his vaccination status and is in the process of being released as a reservist from the Canadian Armed Forces. He, too, is facing a court-martial trial after speaking out against the federal government’s COVID-19 vaccine rules in online videos while wearing his uniform.
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Topp said he often doubted during his march whether he was doing the right thing, but was buoyed by the appreciation from fans.
As he describes it, the march has appeal beyond a protest against pandemic rules such as mandatory vaccinations and the wearing of masks.
The march is also a “celebration of country” and gives a voice to people who are disillusioned and angry and feel that political leaders are not listening, he said.
“A lot of them feel like they don’t matter, that they’re being ignored.”
The protests around the “freedom” flag have encompassed people with a wide variety of grievances, including hatred of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, distrust of the government, the courts, the police and the media.” major” and conspiracy theories about global elites.
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On social media, some “freedom” advocates brand Canada a “tyranny,” Trudeau a “traitor” and a “communist,” and jail convoy leaders awaiting trial of political prisoners.
In his videos, Topp does not use extreme terminology. He urged people attending his National War Memorial event to leave “Fu**Trudeau” flags at home. In person, he speaks softly, at one point describing himself as a guy who would normally live alone in a cabin in the woods.
Your organization calls for an end to vaccination mandates or requirements for COVID testing, quarantines or isolation, as well as the reinstatement of people who lost their jobs due to the mandates and compensation for them, in addition to the ban of the closures.
The federal and provincial governments have suspended most pandemic mandates and rules, leading some to question why he continues to protest. Topp said some restrictions remained, including around travel and masking.
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He said he wanted to make it clear that he was not opposed to all vaccines. During his career as a soldier in the Canadian Armed Forces, Topp was required to submit personal medical information, keep vaccinations up to date and take prescribed medications when he shipped overseas.
However, he said he had questions about the COVID-19 vaccine and how quickly it was approved and ordered.
“It didn’t seem right, it didn’t seem right the way we were treated, those who wanted to get a waiver, those who wanted to wait longer and so on,” he said. “I know there are members of the military who are six or seven months away from completing a 20-year contract and getting that pensionable time, who are being released and not even allowed to complete the last six or seven months. And I think that’s wrong.”
Topp said he was not sure when his court-martial trial would take place. He faces two counts of conduct detrimental to good order and discipline in connection with videos he made.
Soldiers may not criticize government policies while in uniform to protect the military from the appearance of being politicized.
Topp said his actions reflected his military training.
“If you see something wrong, you say something about it.”
