Protesters chanted against the trade war and called for boycotts as tensions escalate over new tariffs and stalled military aid to Ukraine.
Hours after U.S. President Donald Trump levied 25 per cent tariffs on virtually all Canadian goods, hundreds of Canadians and Americans gathered outside the United States Embassy in Ottawa in protest.
Prominent were the many supporters condemning Trump’s pausing of military aid to Ukraine after a tense White House meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday. Waving Canadian and Ukrainian flags, the crowds chanted “not for sale,” “Donald Trump has got to go,” “F*** Trump” and “elbows up Canada.”
At 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, the federal government enacted 25 per cent tariffs against $155 billion of American goods — starting with tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods immediately, and tariffs on the remaining $125 billion on American products in 21 days’ time.
Protest organizer Antonia, who chose not to give her surname, is an American citizen living in Ottawa. She pinned the blame for the newly launched trade war on American politicians.
“The American people are absolutely fantastic,” she said. “They’re heroes… It is being hidden by media, but they’re marching. And we’re just marching in solidarity with them.”
“The representatives are the ones that are letting them down. The American politicians have to basically stand up and do something,” she said. “Everybody’s waiting for that, they’re not doing it.”
Louisa Fenner said a strong response is needed to “stand up to a bully.”
She and many other protesters said they’ve boycotted American products at the grocery store and have cancelled subscriptions to American streaming and commerce services in favour of Canadian alternatives.
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“I can’t say that I’m a fan of Doug Ford, but I like him when he bullies back and I think he’s standing up for us in this,” Fenner said. “Frankly, I’ve been more impressed with Trudeau than I’ve ever been in the whole time that he’s been our prime minister.”
Fenner said she feels a sense of Canadian solidarity emerging from the less-than-ideal circumstances.
“We spent a lot of time knocking each other down,” she said. “The pandemic was tough, the convoy was tough. I think there are mixed messages going out about who we really are, what kind of people we are, and I think that this response is a much better indication of who we are.”
James, another protest attendee who chose not to provide his surname, said he is proud of the Canadian response, which includes sweeping measures against a range of U.S. products.
“It’s the first time I’ve waved a flag in my life, I’m not really the kind of person that waves flags normally,” he said. “I’m proud of Canada for standing up to Trump and I’m proud of what Trudeau said this morning.”
Equally strong was protesters’ condemnation of Trump’s dealings with Ukraine.
Fred May, who demonstrates on a “semi-regular basis” at the Russian embassy, said Trump and U.S. Vice-President J.D. Vance’s meeting with Zelenskyy on Friday was “terribly shameful.” He commended Canada’s “measured, planned response” but said the government should increase military spending to move beyond “moral support.”
Olena-Kateryna Garbaruk is a Ukrainian who arrived in Canada two years ago. She said Canadians “maybe understand us a bit more” after the tensions with the U.S.
“For me, there is one message: Ukraine and Canada not for sale,” she said. “Canada definitely is not the 51st state. Ukraine is an independent country that needs support and nothing can be decided about Ukraine without Ukraine involved.”
Garbaruk said it was difficult to watch Zelenskyy’s treatment at the White House. Although she did not vote for Zelenskyy in Ukraine’s 2019 presidential election, she said he’s “more about values, that’s more about humanity, that’s more about rights and democracy that originally, at least in Ukraine, we believe that the U.S. is about.”
“The attitude that we got, and the messages that we received, I just don’t understand how a person who is not insane can say something like that,” Garbaruk said.
