On Wednesday, September 20, 2023, a protest was held at Barrie City Hall by a group calling itself “One Million March For Children”.

Similar mobs formed in various cities and towns across the country as alt-right-wing and bigoted political groups joined forces to convince the ignorant and uneducated that action had to be taken to suppress the rights of transgender members of our society under the premise of protecting the children. They claimed, without evidence, that educators were working to indoctrinate innocent children into what they claimed was a world of sexual depravity.

It seemed clear that the mostly middle-class suburbanites attending the rally thought they were there to protect children from what they saw as indoctrination into the 2SLGBTQI plus community through education. They also claimed to be there to protest the new curriculum that they claimed they had no control over and that they could not decline consent for their children to participate in learning through it. This excuse to rage against transgender rights was a lie, as the “Education Act” already grants these rights to parents. This rally and the purported reasons behind it were a lie.

Of course, anybody with knowledge of the facts knows that you cannot use education to make a child gay or transgender, any more than you can use lies and religious rhetoric to convert a gay or transgender child to be straight. The fuel of this fiery debate was for the most part ignorance on the part of the protesters. However, beneath the surface, there was a much more sinister underflow.

From what we learned while trying to speak with the protesting parents and grandparents, very few of them had actually read the curriculum that they claimed they were there to protest. So, if they had not taken the time to review the reason for their rally, why were they really there? It was also abundantly clear that few of the protesters were willing to discuss the issue with counter-protesters from the 2SLGBTQI plus community and their allies, who were the best possible source of facts over fiction.

This mob of parents, who were claiming to be protecting children, was bolstered by groups like the self-entitled “Freedom Truckers” who were strongly represented. Also, anti-Trudeau flags and symbols of alt-right groups of various kinds were clearly visible throughout the mob. Some participants made no attempt to hide tattoos supporting white supremacy, and the logos and slogans of various groups known for bigotry against the 2SLGBTQI plus community were seen in various forms.

As is the case with most of the so-called “Save the Children” organizations, found in both Canada and the United States, this rally had little to do with protecting children and a lot to do with recruiting for organizations that foster hate against anybody who is not like them, while supporting alt-right causes.

It was also ironic and concerning that these parents, who claimed to be so concerned about the safety of their children, took their kids out of school, and put them in potential harm's way, as protesters repeatedly took physical action against the 2SLGBTQI plus community counter-protesters and tensions were high. They also put their children on a stage to sing hymns and give speeches about an adult issue they clearly knew little or nothing about.

These parents and grandparents, who claim to be so concerned about the safety of their children, freely mingled with those who publicly support the army of hoodlums who illegally occupied Ottawa for a month, using violence, while violating the rights of others. They also collaborated with religious zealots, who believe their religious beliefs supersede the rights of others, and who are known for hatred of and violence against the 2SLGBTQI plus community.

It became apparent, for the most part, that the genuinely concerned parents and grandparents were deceived, as they appeared to be unaware of the true intent of the group of protesters they had joined. Apparently, ignorance is bliss, as while these ignorant sheep wandered the grounds of City Hall, they also welcomed on blind trust for wolves to stand guard over the most vulnerable members of their flock.

Videography and Post-Production byby John Ironside.

This video is a service to the community donated by Five Points Media.

Produced at Big Blue Box Studios in Barrie, ON. Home of Five Points Media and 3B Solutions.

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