An online petition has been created, asking Barrie City Council to do more to prevent the weekly anti-lockdown protests downtown.
It says what began as local businesses protesting certain lockdown measures has shifted to “freedom” protests, involving maskless protestors, who have made it unsafe to be and shop downtown – as many of our business owners have stated.
The petition states these protestors clearly do not care about the health of our community.
It is calling on Barrie City Council to work with the Barrie Police to ensure these events are shut down and that the people breaking the law are properly sanctioned.
Police say one arrest was made and about a dozen tickets were handed out at the latest “Freedom Rally” in downtown Barrie.
Police say about 3-4 hundred protesters gathered on Saturday at Meridian place, which was covered in the names of people who died from COVID-19, which were written in chalk as part of a counter protest.
Officers charged between 10 and 15 individuals under the Reopening Ontario Act, including event organizer Tyler Nicholson, who now faces another 880 dollar fine.
Police say one woman was also taken into custody for obstruction, after refusing to provide her name.
For more details on the petition, please click here.
