By Alena Naiden
Updated: 8 hours ago Published: 9 hours ago
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Hundreds of truckers and personal vehicles participated in the Alaska Freedom Convoy 2022 en route to Eagle River on the Glenn Highway on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, to support Canadian truck drivers opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates. (Bill Roth / ADN)
More than a 100 Alaska truck drivers rallied from Anchorage to Eagle River on Sunday to support Canadian truck drivers opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
Anchorage Assembly member Jamie Allard organized the event to support the truckers who have rallied in Ottawa since last weekend to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Since Jan. 15, truck drivers and other essential service providers are allowed to enter Canada only if they are fully vaccinated. The U.S. required vaccinations from essential non-resident travelers on Jan. 22.
The participants Sunday – including truckers and drivers in personal vehicles – filled the Cabela’s parking lot in South Anchorage before 1 p.m. and started driving to their final destination, the Eagle River Lions Club, after 1:30 p.m. Another convoy drove to Eagle River from the Mat-Su.
“We have to have the shot stamps on our medical cards in order to go out of state, and we don’t want them,” said Jeremy Speldrich, a truck driver with GMG General, Inc. “Mandates should be our choice, whether you want the shots or not.”
[Ottawa declares state of emergency over COVID-19 protests]
A similar event took place in Fairbanks on Sunday and in Juneau earlier this month.
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Participates in the Alaska Freedom Convoy 2022 gathered in the Cabela’s parking lot in South Anchorage before driving to Eagle River on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, to support Canadian truck drivers opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates. (Bill Roth / ADN)
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Participates in the Alaska Freedom Convoy 2022 gathered in the Cabela’s parking lot in South Anchorage before driving to Eagle River on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, to support Canadian truck drivers opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates. (Bill Roth / ADN)
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Hundreds of truckers and personal vehicles staged at Cabela’s in South Anchorage before driving to Eagle River on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, to support Canadian truck drivers opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates. (Bill Roth / ADN)
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Shane Olson and Michael Hardon prepare a concrete pump truck for the Alaska Freedom Convoy in the Cabela’s parking lot on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022. (Bill Roth / ADN)
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Supporters wave flags at the JBER-Richardson overpass as truckers and personal vehicles participated in the Alaska Freedom Convoy 2022 on the Glenn Highway on Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, to support Canadian truck drivers opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates. (Bill Roth / ADN)
