FACT CHECK: Does This Video Show Italian Truckers Supporting The Canadian Convoy?

Elias Atienza | Senior Reporter

A video shared on Facebook allegedly shows Italian truckers organizing a convoy in an effort to show support for the Canadian truck protest.

Verdict: False

The video first appeared in September 2021 and shows Italian truckers celebrating the feast of Saint Michael. The gathering is not associated with any protest.

Fact Check:

A large convoy of Canadian truckers, referred to as the “Freedom Convoy,” traveled to Ottawa in January to protest a COVID-19 vaccine mandate aimed at the trucking industry, according to BBC News. The loosely-affiliated groups have raised over $7 million and have caused disruption to the downtown Ottawa area, the outlet reported.

Social media users have recently shared a video of trucks slowly driving down a road, claiming it shows truckers in Italy displaying support for the Canadian convoy as well as other anti-vaccine mandate demonstrations around the world.

“Italian truckers now mobilising with reports Aussies are on the go and UK and Europe truckers as well,” reads the part of the text accompanying the Facebook video. “This is a GLOBAL Uprising!”(RELATED: Did The Supreme Court ‘Cancel’ Universal Vaccination?)

The Italian trucks in the footage are not part of a global demonstration. A reverse image search revealed the video appeared on YouTube in September 2021, months before the Canadian convoy. The description purports it shows Italian truckers protesting the Green Pass at the time. The Green Pass is the country’s COVID-19 digital certificate that allows vaccinated individuals access to places such as restaurants and museums, according to the U.S. Embassy in Italy’s website.

The YouTube video’s description is inaccurate, however. The footage actually shows a gathering in the municipality of Carmagnola, Italy for the feast of Saint Michael, according to the Italian fact-checking website Facta. A convoy had been scheduled for the day’s celebration, which was the seventh annual truck rally for the feast, the outlet reported.

The municipality confirmed to the fact-checking website that it was “a procession of trucks on the afternoon of Saturday 25 September 2021” for Saint Michael, not a protest against the Green Pass.

Check Your Fact reached out to the Municipality of Carmagnola for comment and will update this article if a response is provided. 

Elias Atienza

Senior Reporter
Follow Elias on Twitter Have a fact check suggestion? Send ideas to [email protected].

Trending