By Omar Younis

ADELANTO. Calif. (Reuters). Taking cues from the protests that have paralyzed Canada’s capital for weeks, U.S. trucks will take a 2,500-mile, 4,000-km, cross-country journey to Washington on Wednesday to demonstrate against coronavirus restrictions.

The organizers of the People’s Convoy claim they are trying to jumpstart the economy and open up the country. A statement said that the eleven-day trip will begin at the Beltway, which will take them around Washington DC on March 5. However, they will not travel into D.C. proper.

The Pentagon said Tuesday that 400 D.C. National Guard troops were approved by it to support designated traffic post, command and manage, and provide sustainment from February 26-March 7.

A total of 50 large, tactical vehicles have been approved for placement at traffic lights.

Brian Brase (a truck driver) is one of organizers. Brase stated that regardless of where trucks stop, they won’t go anywhere unless the group meets their demands. They also demand that the mask and vaccine requirements be eliminated.

Pandemic-related protests in Canada choked the streets of Ottawa, the capital, for over three weeks. They also blocked the Ambassador Bridge linking Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario for six days.

Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada invoked rare emergency powers to stop the protests. The Canadian police also restored an air of normalcy over the weekend.

Brase spoke about Adelanto in California where the convoy would begin. It is approximately 80 miles (130km), northeast of Los Angeles.

Brase indicated that he expected many thousands to participate, perhaps even tens or thousands.

The organizers describe the convoy to be nonpartisan and trucker-led and supported by many ethnic minorities as well as religious faiths.

The imposition of coronavirus lockdowns in order to stop the spreading of the virus halted economic growth in America. Since the government provided trillions of dollars in aid, the economy has seen a boom – in fact, it increased 5.7% in 2021, which is the highest growth rate since 1984, according to the Commerce Department report in January.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that unemployment is at 4%. That’s close to the 3.5% rate in February 2020. There are however still headwinds from strained supply chain and high inflation.

The protest organizers stated in a statement that “it is now time for the country to be reopened.”

Many states have already relaxed restrictions. California is the location where the convoy starts. Last week, all universal mask requirements were removed. Vaccinated people can only use masks in high-risk places like schools, public transportation, and healthcare facilities.

Protesters demand an end to Governor Gavin Newsom’s two-year-old emergency.

Nationally, COVID-19 hospitalizations and new cases have fallen from record highs reached a month ago. However, nearly 2,000 people are still dying every day and the total number of deaths has risen to over 1 million since then.