As we look back at the recent pro-vax and anti-vax demonstrations, the trucker convoys, the blockades, the protests in Ottawa and elsewhere (including the slow-roll convoys in Peterborough) and the Emergencies Act invoked then revoked by Justin Trudeau, what do we see? What does our country look like?  The Ottawa Occupation started on January 28th and ended on February 20th. The slow-roll protests in Peterborough have been a disturbing feature of our Saturday afternoons. What will be the legacy of this winter of discontent? What is causing these rifts and injuries to our social fabric? How deep are these wounds? And what might be the solutions?  How might the healing start? Are we ready for what comes next?

Panellists Jilly Tilley, Dane Bland, Annie Jaeger and Stephen Wright evaluate the damage of these weeks of civil unrest and measure the potential political impact of these events on future elections. In assessing the comparative performance of our federal political parties in responding to these protests, Dane Bland concluded, “We all lost”. The panel explores the impact of social media on supporters and the general population. They also look at the policing of these protests across the country. This discussion was recorded online on February 27.