Businesses alleged to support the 'Freedom Convoy' protest face social media backlash – Ottawa Citizen

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An online list that names, without providing details, 15 Ottawa businesses that allegedly support the convoy protesters has created a social media uproar and prompted several of those businesses to issue lengthy denials.

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The Grand Pizzeria, Zak’s Diner and Zak’s Cantina, downtown restaurants under the same ownership, issued identical responses Monday on Instagram.

“It’s been a very difficult weekend for our city,” said the message. “The views displayed by some of the participants in this protest are quite frankly disgusting.”

Among thousands of protesters who ostensibly came last weekend to Ottawa from across Canada to decry COVID-19 vaccine mandates were individuals who flew racist flags, debased the National War Memorial and nearby Terry Fox statue and demanded food meant for the homeless from the Shepherds of Good Hope.

Some protesters ignored public health rules and antagonized passersby who followed them or workers who tried to enforce them.

The downtown restaurants stressed in their message that while they were open last weekend, being open was “in no way a sign of support for this protest.”

“We are dedicated to following all public health orders and will continue to provide a safe and welcoming environment for those who choose to follow those rules,” the message concluded.

Posted Sunday on Instagram, the list of restaurants soon migrated to Twitter, accompanied by a suggestion that the listed businesses be boycotted.

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The furor surrounding businesses alleged to have supported the protesters shows how intensely political and polarizing the convoy has been.

John Borsten, owner of Zak’s and The Grand Pizzeria, said in an interview: “We are surrounded by bullies on the left and right.”

The Sussex Avenue restaurant Metropolitain Brasserie responded on Instagram that its inclusion on the list was “completely false information… we continue to ask the original author of the post to remove it and apologize.”

The Lieutenant’s Pump on Elgin Street posted a detailed response on Instagram, stressing it did not support “the cause of those currently protesting in our city. This convoy is rooted from, and aligned with, white nationalism, racism, and extremists holding clear agendas other than vaccine mandates.”

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The business’s post illustrated its side regarding its outdoor display of an American flag, as well as some Canadian flags, on Friday and an incident that followed.

In an interview, John Couse, owner of the Lieutenant’s Pump, said he was “naive” when he displayed the U.S. flag, which he meant as a “hospitable thing to do. I honestly didn’t think there would be any concern over it or opposition.”

The bar, he added, had put up flags in the past, including Ottawa Senators flags and Irish flags on St. Patrick’s Day.

The Pump’s post said an individual tried to steal the U.S. flag and Couse went to retrieve it. “Regrettably, upon retrieval of his property, an altercation was had,” said the post. “We adamantly deny that any party was struck.”

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But Luka Eriksen, a resident of the apartment complex above the Lieutenant’s Pump, said she saw Couse pinning a friend of hers on the ground, shaking that person and screaming.

Couse said the altercation “was settled pretty quickly. I thought it was an amicable settlement. But social media got a hold of it and it’s been blown out of proportion.” All of the flags were removed Friday night, he said.

Vanessa Roy, who does social media work for the Lieutenant’s Pump, said the Ottawa Police Service was contacted not only about the altercation but also about subsequent threats of violence made against the Pump online.

While Art-Is-In Bakery did not post a denial after being listed as a convoy supporter, co-owner Stéphanie Mathieson told this newspaper in an email: “We’re all feeling very disturbed to be on that list. We haven’t promoted, donated or endorsed this initiative at all in any shape or form.”

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Meanwhile, the owner-operator of an Orléans burger joint that offered protesters free food on Saturday said he disagreed with extremist elements associated with the convoy.

“If you’re racist, if you’re sexist, if you’re homophobic, my core values do not align with yours. Never have and never will,” said Jessy Brethour, owner of Meatheads Grill, which was not among the businesses listed online.

Brethour said critics of his offer “looped me in with Nazi flags and confederate flags… They’re thinking in absolutes: ‘You must be a racist too.’ That kind of thought and mentality broke my heart. I figured I had earned the benefit of the doubt from the community.”

Brethour said he was “pro-choice — my body, my choice” when it came to vaccination and that he supported truckers “who have literally kept this country rolling.

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“I tried to support the good aspects of that group while denouncing the evil, the hate-fueled agenda,” Brethour said in an interview.

He said after announcing his offer of free food on Facebook last week, he received about 10 truckers Saturday, and all paid for their food. All but one wore masks, Brethour said, and the one who initially balked was convinced to follow public health measures.

During the pandemic, Brethour’s business has repeatedly supported front-line hospital workers with deliveries of free food meant to boost morale, and Brethour said he could simultaneously support hospital workers such as his wife and protesting truckers.

“I’m a good person. I love my city. I don’t want to see anybody get sick,” he said. “(And) I don’t like other people being forced into doing what they don’t want to do.”

“It’s a difficult line to walk,” Brethour said.

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