trump protesters toronto

Pro-Trump protesters rally in Toronto as riots break out at U.S. Capitol

Shortly before armed Donald Trump supporters erupted into violent riots on Capitol Hill in Washington on Wednesday, supporters of the U.S. President living north of the border took to the streets of Toronto in the form of a convoy that made its way through the city honking and waving "Trump 2020," "Canadians for Trump" and "stop the steal" banners.

The small motorcade snaked down Yonge Street and various other thoroughfares across the city, also passing the U.S. consulate to show solidarity with Trump and his supporters after his recent loss to President-Elect Joe Biden, who is due to take office later this month.

The electoral vote certification debate was taking place at Congress today when the attempted coup began.

Like with other pro-Trump demonstrations that have taken place in Canada's most populous city as of late, bystanders were generally confused by and dismayed with the display, especially given how scary things have gotten in Washington as those thousands-strong protests continue following Trump's rally earlier in the day.

Multiple people on the hill have been injured, including numerous police officers and one woman who was fatally shot in the neck, per the CNN live broadcast at the time of publication.

The Capitol was locked down after being breached by civilians who broke windows to storm offices and the Chambers of Commerce.

Vice-President Mike Pence and members of Congress were evacuated and a citywide curfew of 6 p.m. was instituted as a result.

"At this hour, our democracy is under unprecedented assault, unlike anything we've seen in modern times... an assault on the rule of law, an assault on the most sacred of American undertakings, the doing of the people's business," Biden said in a delayed address on the topic made from Delaware this afternoon.

"Let me be clear: the scenes of chaos at the nation's capital do not represent a true America, do not represent who we are," he continued.

"What we are seeing is a small number of extremists dedicated to lawlessness. This is not dissent, this is disorder... America is so much better than what we're seeing today."

He called on the mob to cease, referring to their actions an "insurrection" that the entire world is watching.

Trump, meanwhile, had actually encouraged his supporters to rally in the capital and incited tempers with talks of a rigged election, though he has now asked them to remain peaceful.

In a video statement released just after 4 p.m., Trump called the fall election "fraudulent," said it was "stolen from us," and told his followers that he loves them but that they have to "go home now and go home in peace. We have to respect the people of law and order, we don't want anybody hurt."

Despite tensions being high amid the pandemic lockdown, Torontonians must feel pretty lucky not to be in America right now — though it's apparent that we've got some (thankfully tamer) people who share the same pro-Trump sentiments here in our city, as well.

Lead photo by

@Leilibazargan


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