Editor:
As a Sunshine Coast resident, I’m proud of everyone’s efforts to keep our corner of B.C. coronavirus free. Even my neighbours who came from the mainland to their cottages for the Easter weekend generally stayed on their properties and respected physical distancing.
I can sympathize with the “angry locals” who thought those visitors might increase our risk of contracting COVID-19. However, in all of the protesters’ rhetoric (and also that coming from some of our local elected officials), one thing seemed to be missing: I have heard nothing from them about the Coasters who used the Langdale ferry at the start of the Easter long weekend for non-essential travel to Vancouver. Surely upon coming home, those people could have exposed the rest of us to extra COVID-19 risk as much the mainlanders travelling here did.
If some Sunshine Coast residents honestly believe that visitors from the mainland on the May long weekend will pose a significant risk to the rest of us, then they certainly have a right to protest at the Langdale ferry dock. However, if they plan a blockade of visitors’ vehicles, I hope they will also blockade Coast people wishing to leave for Vancouver, and that they will have a foolproof way of identifying non-essential versus essential travellers. Otherwise, their protest may be viewed as hypocritical and their efforts unworthy of respect.
Ron Knight, Garden Bay
