![]() 26 when she snapped the photo of a sign from the ‘Freedom Rally’ (right). Tanya Pacholok was at a support rally on Feb. Solidarity marches in support of Ukraine have taken place across Canada, including in Vancouver (left). The physical juxtaposition of the freedom fight for Ukraine against what organizers called the Freedom Convoy and its grievances made me reflect on the use of such loaded words: freedom and tyranny. I walked clutching my own cardboard sign: "Мир Yкраїні" (Peace for Ukraine) beneath which I had drawn part of Ukraine's coat of arms - a тризуб - a symbol of freedom for Ukraine. Meanwhile, we stood nearby at a rally in solidarity with Ukraine, a country and people who have been fighting a creeping tyranny that has escalated into a full-scale invasion and compromised their right to statehood and self-determination. At the other protest, two women carried Canadian flags on hockey sticks and a man waited at a hot dog stand with a sign that read "NO MEDICAL TYRANNY!!" This was clearly part of the protest convoys across the country against what many participants feel is government overreach in imposing vaccine and masking rules during the pandemic, and restricting their choice to not follow those mandates. I was at Vancouver's solidarity rally with Ukraine when I realized there was another protest a few blocks down.īoth groups claimed they were fighting for freedom, but I was struck by how different their understandings were of that word. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ. ![]() This First Person column is the experience of Tanya Pacholok who is a third-generation Ukrainian Canadian.
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