Protestors blocked the intersection of Main Street and Hastings Street in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside Tuesday evening.
Vancouver Police Deputy Chief Howard Chow tweeted about the protest, noting that there were reports of cars being stuck. He added that there were also reports of confrontations with motorists.
In addition to the protest, Chow reports that, "Two other calls come in, same time & area: man with an axe and a man holding a knife to the throat of another."
A group taking Main & Hastings. Reports of cars being struck and confrontations with motorists. While dealing with this protest 2 other calls come in, same time & area: man with an axe and a man holding a knife to the throat of another. #anotherbusynight #NuffAlready #StayHome pic.twitter.com/frIjZ0MKF0
— Howard Chow (@DeputyChow) April 22, 2020
VPD Spokesperson Sergeant Aaron Roed told Vancouver Is Awesome in an email that Vancouver Police responded to a short protest at Main and Hastings, which lasted from 5:25 to 6:00 this evening. He notes that the protest did disrupt traffic for a short time, and people in traffic become agitated with the protesters. However, there was no assaults and no one was arrested.
"VPD officers spoke with protest organizers who stated they would only be there for 30 min and then move along," explains Roed. "Officers did monitor the protest and made sure that they did leave the area."
Roed adds that the the protest was over Indigenous rights and reconciliation. He states that the protestors conducted a few cultural traditions and ended their protest peacefully.
