The People’s Convoy is nearing the end of its journey as it edges ever-closer to Washington D.C. and is due to arrive on Saturday morning.
On Friday, the convoy arrived at Hagerstown, Maryland – the final stop before one last stretch to the nation’s capital on Saturday morning which is now around 75 miles away or about 90 minutes drive.
Onlookers cheered from overpasses as a string of vehicles edged ever close to the nation’s capital as part of a ‘Freedom Convoy,’ in protest of COVID-19 restrictions.
Some of the the trucks have travelled from across the country from as far away as California and Oregon with dozens of people gathering on overpasses to cheer them on.
The convoy is a spinoff from a protest in Canada started by truckers upset at vaccine requirements to cross the Canadian border.
Many attendees said they supported ‘medical freedom’ and wanted mask mandates to end.
The People’s Convoy, as they like to be called, demands President Joe Biden to end the national emergency originally declared at the start of the pandemic, as well as scrapping any remaining coronavirus mandates. The truckers allege the government has infringed upon their constitutional rights with the mandates.
Trucks traveling eastbound on I-70 pass under the Wanamaker Road overpass, Friday in Topeka, Kansas. Supporters placed American flags in support of the Freedom Convoy
Friday, the People’s Convoy is leaving the Shenandoah Travel Plaza in Lore City, Ohio and headed to Hagerstown,Maryland their last stop before heading into Washington,DC. Pictured The People’s Convoy parked at the Shenandoah Travel Plaza in Lore City, Ohio
The People’s Convoy, which began its 11-day cross-country trek in California, will arrive in D.C. on Saturday, March 5
Jessica Loy holds a sign in support of the Freedom Convoy on Rice Road, Friday, March 4, 2022, in Topeka, Kansas
Trucks stage to join The Peoples Convoy, an anti vaccine mandate truck convoy originating on the west coast, at Hagerstown Speedway in Maryland
The Southeast American Freedom Convoy grew from one truck to 50 vehicles this afternoon at the James E Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee. The group plans to head to Virginia for Saturday
The convoys stated mission is to see the end of the declaration of the national emergency concerning the Covid-19 pandemic and to restore the Constitution
One group of truckers and their supporters are already gathering at the Hagerstown Speedway as they wait for more to come
Friday, the People’s Convoy is leaving the Shenandoah Travel Plaza in Lore City, Ohio and headed to Hagerstown, Maryland
The People’s Convoy, according to its media release, is a peaceful and unified transcontinental movement that left from Southern California, on February 23, with plans to arrive in the Washington D.C. on Saturday
The beginning of convoy arrived in Old Washington at the Shenandoah Truck Plaza (Speedway) where they planned to spend the night at about 5:40pm where they were greeted by supporters
The Southeast American Freedom Convoy grew from one truck to 50 vehicles this afternoon at the James E Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee
Mask mandates already are ending across the country after new guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week removed strong mask recommendations for much of the country. Washington State’s indoor mask mandate is set to end on March 12, for example.
But there is also a political angle to the U.S.-based version of the convoy. One semitruck driver, Chris Musey of Spokane, Washington told The Spokesman-Review that he decided to join the convoy because he believes the 2020 election was fraudulent.
Courts have found no evidence of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election.
Organizers Heidi and Gene Westgate said they planned the convoy in about a week from their Renton, Oregon home. The real estate agents said they’re against both government and private company mandates.
The convoy – which has raised more than $1.5million in donations made through its own website – started their journey in California last week on an 11-day trek to Washington D.C.
The group plans to hold a peaceful protest near the capital city on Saturday and has sworn not to disrupt roads or bridges like their Canadian counterparts did. Organizers have promised a ‘100% safe, lawful and peaceful journey’ that will ‘terminate in the vicinity of the D.C. area, but will NOT be going into D.C. proper.’
Pictured, The People’s Convoy parked at the Shenandoah Travel Plaza in Lore City, Ohio on Friday
A number of people came out to wave flags and support the truck drivers
The People’s Convoy was greeted by local and out-of-state residents who came to show their support
Supporters of the Freedom Convoy wave their arms and flags from the Rice Road overpass, Friday in Topeka, Kansas
The convoy, modeled after the Canadian trucker protests, is one of many on the way to the nations capitol region in protest of COVID-19 mandates and a variety of other issues
Trucks sit in the parking lot of a rest stop as part of The Peoples Convoy, an anti vaccine mandate truck convoy originating on the west coast, seen here at Hagerstown Speedway in Hagerstown, Maryland on Friday
An anti-Biden protest vehicle drives past the Hagerstown Speedway as people gather and await the arrival of the Peoples Convoy of truckers in Hagerstown, Maryland
Signs were posted asking attendees to ‘adopt truckers’ for dinner at the James E Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee
Attendees listen to music and speakers whils showing support for the truckers convoy at the James E Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee
Laurie Larson, singer Karen Staley, 99.7FM conservative DJ host Brian Wilson and Tony Ellison show support for the convoy at a large gathering at the center this evening to show support for the truckers
Singer Karen Staley who wrote Tennessee’s official state song ‘I’ll Leave My Heart in Tennessee’ with Laurie Larson attends a festival in support of the American Freedom Convoy at the James E Ward Agricultural Center
Tom Pappas, of Nashville, TN, Desmond Smith, of Madisonville, and Jennifer Swaim, of Franklin, TN, show support for the truckers convoy
The People’s Convoy is pictured leaving Lore City, Ohio for Hagerstown, Maryland, just one stop away from Washington, D.C.
Friday, the People’s Convoy is leaving the Shenandoah Travel Plaza in Lore City, Ohio and headed to Hagerstown, Maryland
The People’s Convoy arrived in Monrovia, Indiana on Tuesday evening for a two-day layover before continuing to its trek to D.C. on Thursday.
The group is the largest of the trucker caravans traveling to D.C. for Saturday’s protest.
At least 25 other cavalcades had indicated they were heading to the nation’s capital, but participation has remained low; at least two of the announced trucker convoys, including Freedom Convoy USA 2020, have disbanded. The leaders of those campaigns have encouraged their members to join the People’s Convoy.
Washington D.C. was placed on high-alert ahead of the anticipated trucker protests as law enforcement officials have cited concern of an event similar to that of January 6, 2021, when a mob of supporters of former President Donald Trump successfully stormed the Capitol, briefly disrupting the certification of the 2020 election.
The fencing around the U.S. Capitol has been put back up ‘out of an abundance of caution,’ U.S. Capitol Police Chief Thomas Manger said Sunday. The fencing was last erected after the Capitol insurrection and remained up for several months.
The convoys have been moving through communities quickly and have said to have been ‘largely non-violent’
The convoy is pictured setting off from Lore City, Ohio at it embarks on its final stage of the cross-country convoy
A small caravan of truckers and supporters gather at the Hagerstown Speedway on Friday
A man climbs atop his truck at the Hagerstown Speedway as people await the arrival of the Peoples Convoy of truckers on March 4, 2022 in Hagerstown, Maryland
Vehicles arrive at the Hagerstown Speedway as they await the arrival of the Peoples Convoy of truckers on Friday
People in support of The Peoples Convoy, an anti vaccine mandate truck convoy originating on the west coast, suspend an American flag at the entrance to Hagerstown Speedway to welcome the truckers in Hagerstown, Maryland
Truckers and volunteers load donations and supplies for truckers to take north to Virginia or D.C. at the James E Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee
Truckers and volunteers load donations and supplies for truckers to take north to Virginia or D.C.
It was a festive atmosphere at the Shenandoah Travel Plaza in Lore City, Ohio where the People’s Convoy had an overnight stay before heading out to Maryland for the last leg of there eleven day journey across the United States
Pictured, People’s Convoy trucks with festive lights turned on and displayed for spectators and fellow truckers
Truckers and their supporters are pictured holding flags as the convoy hits a rest stop for the night
Capitol Police also requested additional assistance from outside law enforcement agencies and the National Guard. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee said Monday that his department is closely monitoring the shifting information and would be devoting additional policing in a rolling state of heightened alert over the next few weeks.
It remains unclear how many will attend Saturday’s rally in D.C. but a significant turnout is expected, given the large welcome the People’s Convoy has been met with nationwide.
A rally was held in D.C. Tuesday – the same day as Biden’s State of the Union address – in honor of the truckers, however the event was poorly attended.
The trucker protests come as nearly every state in America either has lifted mask orders or has scheduled a day to do so in the near future, with the exception of Hawaii.
Even the U.S. Capitol, which has had a controversial mask mandate since legislators returned in Summer 2020, lifted mask orders over the weekend.
Vaccine mandates, possibly the most controversial COVID-related mandates, are starting to become a thing of the past as well as New York City aims to drop them for businesses like bars and restaurants in the coming week.
The policy changes are in response to case loads across the country having dropped precipitously since their early January peak, with the omicron variant proving to be less likely than earlier strains to cause death or serious illness, especially in vaccinated and boosted individuals.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also issued new coronavirus guidelines on Friday that resulted in the lifting of mask recommendations for 70 percent of Americans.
Activists rally at the Hagerstown Speedway as they await the arrival of the Peoples Convoy of truckers
Hundreds of truckers have spent the past week traversing the country from the west coast headed to the nation’s capital to protest COVID-19 mask and vaccine mandates put in place by the federal government since the pandemic began
All kinds of vehicles plan to join the trucker convoy when it arrives in Washington D.C.
Signs were posted asking attendees to adopt truckers for dinner earlier in the week in Lebanon, Tennessee
A sign advetises a hotline where people can find conservative news at the James E Ward Agricultural Center in Lebanon, Tennessee
A pickup truck sits atop a hill at the Hagerstown Speedway in Hagerstown, Maryland on Friday, before heading to Washington, DC on Saturday morning
