Some anti-vaccine passport rallies are planned around B.C. Wednesday afternoon, but it’s unknown if they will draw the same size of crowds seen last week.
An event called Uniting Businesses for Freedom of Choice has advertised the events, saying they will start at 1 p.m. with the goal of “empowering businesses, employees and shoppers.”
It says rallies are set for city halls across Canada, including Vancouver, Nanaimo, Kelowna, Penticton, Kamloops and Fort St. John.
There are also city halls mentioned in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Quebec.
The event posted states everyone should “stand together” to “reject the tyranny of vaccine passports.”
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In Vancouver, there is also a climate rally happening at 11:30 a.m.
Similar events are set for about 60 communities around the country.
Vancouver police told Global News they are aware of both events in the downtown core and will have officers on hand.
Last week, it was estimated about 5,000 people showed up outside Vancouver General Hospital, demonstrating for “health freedom.”
The crowd was voicing opposition to COVID-19 protocols and vaccine mandates and causing traffic disruptions, including forcing ambulances to slow down.
No arrests were made, but Doctors of BC president Dr. Matthew Chow told Global News the next day that it was a very distressing event for health-care workers.
“People were spat at, cursed at, yelled at, women had misogynist comments directed at them, people were being yelled at through megaphones,” he said. “It just compounded the sense of fatigue and burnout people have been having.”