Since 2020, governments around the world have taken measures that were marketed to the public as designed to mitigate COVID. However, the issues arose when governments’ measures began to encroach on people’s freedoms.
For a while, some folks were willing to go along with certain measures in the name of beating the virus and getting back to normal. However, the goalposts for when various restrictions would end continued to move. This is when citizens began pushing back.
Even to this day, certain efforts to pass decrees infringing on people’s individual rights aren’t totally eradicated. However, as seen in France, people are not standing for these restrictions as they once did, per Washington Examiner.
COVID Vaccine Passports in France?
Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, submitted a proposal that would mandate anyone who enters his country to supply proof they’ve been vaccinated against COVID.
However, in an interesting twist, both the left-wing and right-wing parties in France put their heads together to ultimately stop this proposal from becoming law.
The fact that it took the so-called extreme left and the so-called extreme right to defend basic civil liberties in France should be cause for much sole searching in the so-called center, writes JOHN MCGUIRK:https://t.co/pfjDj5Fbv4
— gript (@griptmedia) July 14, 2022
Franch’s right-wing party (National Rally), its left-wing party (France Unbowed), and moderate Republican party (The Republicans) put their heads together and successfully blocked Macron’s proposal with 219 nay votes, compared to 195 yay votes.
After Macron’s bid met its demise, the National Rally, France Unbowed, and The Republicans were seen cheering and celebrating what they accomplished.
Naturally, supporters of Macron’s COVID vaccine passport program weren’t too pleased.
A Sign of the Times
France is not an outlier.
Across various nations, citizens and everyday people have been standing up. They’ve been deciding that enough is enough when it comes to governments trying to impose these steep restrictions while claiming it’s for the greater good.
What happened in France is merely a testament to the power that comes when people put their heads together to make a difference.
In France the populist right and the populist left just banded together to successfully defeat a Covid travel passport.
Marine Le Pen's National Rally and Jean-Luc Melenchon's La France Insoumise can be seen celebrating together in the National Assembly.pic.twitter.com/lGQDSANszh
— Cosmin Dzsurdzsa 🇷🇴 (@cosminDZS) July 12, 2022
Had National Rally, France Unbowed, or The Republicans been working alone (rather than collaboratively) to stop Macron’s vaccine passport proposal, their efforts might not have been effective.
One factor that makes a huge difference when pushing back against tyrannical measures (regardless of how leaders try to justify them) is numbers. Numbers matter; numbers can vote en masse and send a clear message when leaders or policies veer off course.
Across the world, leaders would do well to reconsider their efforts to implement these tight, high-handed measures in the name of COVID. Such decrees continue to prove as globally unpopular, with most people desiring to live their own lives freely.
What do you think about France’s right-wing and left-wing parties joining forces and successfully shutting down a proposed COVID vaccine passport program? We’d very much love to know where you stand on this matter in the comments section down below.
