I Fully Supported Them
Native elder says the trucker convoy was about freedom.
Michael’s film: Part 1 here. » Part 2 here.
Michael Grandlouis begins his 80-minute love letter film to the Freedom Convoy by showing us a photo of 75-year-old Robert Young, who’s described as an “elder statesman” of the Wolf Lake First Nation.
We also hear an audio statement from Robert:
When the truckers came to Ottawa in a convoy, it was to help the people. To show the people the freedom. That is the most important thing that they did for us.
So I fully supported them. It was a convoy of freedom that came to Ottawa.
On the first Saturday, police tried to prevent vehicles from reaching downtown, so Robert arrived on foot. Michael explains:
By this time they’d closed two of the bridges…he had to walk across that bridge…with a cane. He was on the Quebec side and he walked across that bridge over the Ottawa River.
And it was blowing cold, man, really cold. And he would, you know, he'd come a little ways and he'd stop and he'd rest his legs. And Bobby kept coming and he made his way.
Big picture, says Michael, the truckers were enthusiastically supported by many aboriginals:
There were a lot of Indians here. A lot of Métis, a lot of warrior flags, Métis flags, ‘Every Child Matters’ flags.
There was a strong Indian component to the convoy. A lot of support.
A lot of support from the native community.
You can watch Michael making those remarks by clicking the video above, which is set to start rolling at the 6:07-minute mark.
It’s also worth noting the Mohawk warrior flag on Michael’s hat.
Love Letter to the Truckers - Ottawa resident celebrates the Freedom Convoy in an 80-minute film
