Protests in Ottawa

One does not usually associate Canada with raucous street protests yet this is what we are witnessing in Ottawa, with truckers and their supporters blocking the capital city and loudly protesting vaccine mandates and other COVID-related policies. The Wall Street Journal has good coverage.

Popular protests are not new and have been ubiquitous in numerous countries for decades if not centuries. What is newer however is the populist flavor of the wave of protests that seems to have hit the Western world in the last few years. In 2020, with some Anderson colleagues, we had a public discussion on this wave of protests. You can watch it here. The specifics of various protests differ - what people are protesting about, whether they are mostly left-winged or right-winged, etc. One common thread is a strong popular expression of discontent with ruling elites. 

The Ottawa protests strike me as closest in nature to the Yellow Vest protests that started in France in 2018 and are ongoing. It would be easy to dismiss these protests as manifestations of a small fringe of disgruntled people, but I think that would be a mistake. In concurrence with the tide of populist sentiments sweeping the world, I would be inclined to see them more as a manifestation of an incipient popular uprising against the elites. This uprising is not about the ostensible reasons for the protests (high gasoline prices in France, COVID restrictions in Canada), but rather more generally about "sticking it to the ruling class". In that sense, they reflect all the popular frustrations that we have discussed in Module 3 of the class - resentment over the decline of working class jobs, growing inequality, cultural grievances associated with modernity, etc.

How should governments respond to these protests? Again, dismissing them, sending the army to disband the protests (as is suggested in Canada), stigmatizing the protesters as extremists, etc., runs the risk of backfiring. The ruling elites should instead understand that, however repugnant some of the symbols and tactics used by the protesters, their actions are the reflection of broader, deep-seated discontent. Addressing the roots of this discontent with long run policies and attitudes that address the problem of inequality and lack of opportunity is a much better response than dismissing their concerns and forcibly curtailing their actions. Easier said than done, I know.

Update (2/9/2022): Politico reports on the possible contagion of this movement to the US. The Hill adds more on this issue and on how it could impact US politics.

Comments

[Allie Roda]

Addressing the protests with long-run policies directed toward inequality and lack of opportunity should be coupled with an overall open environment of communication. If the government and its representatives address these overall populist movement devotees with empathy and understanding, I think there would be less of an "us vs. them" attitude held by these protestors. The more understood the protestors feel, the more they'll believe that they are more similar to the "ruling elite" and they will be less inclined to further their populist beliefs and attitudes.

While not as potentially impactful as actually enacting policies that address inequality, the government having a general attitude of open communication and empathy with disgruntled protestors would help to tamper the many populist movement protests across the globe.

[Mareena Haseeb]

I agree with you Allie, that the government having a general attitude of open communication and empathy towards protestors is a much better mindset and approach than dismissing them and sending the army to disband the protests. When I was in undergrad at UC Berkeley, there were many instances of peaceful protesting that were met with violence from police and even SWAT teams being sent to campus. Innocent students were injured in the process of doing nothing more than expressing their first amendment rights.

Governments should work towards addressing the roots of the discontent and instituting policies to improve conditions. While I am pro-vaccine and therefore hold an opposing opinion to the Ottawa protestors, I do feel that they are within their rights and the Canadian government sending in an army to disband the protests can backfire. On the other hand though, we saw during the January 6th Capitol attack that having force there to disband protestors (using the term loosely here) doesn't always make a difference. If the "ruling elite" or whoever is in power agrees with the protestors, the push to dismantle the protest is much less forceful. This goes to show that either way, sending in the army to disband protests is likely not the answer. It is a short-term solution to a long-term problem. The protestors are not the problem (most of the time). Rather, unaddressed deep-seated discontent is the problem and only through dedicating time to addressing areas of discontent can governments reduce the "us vs. them" attitudes on both sides.