Independent MPP Randy Hillier will be taking the podium at a pair of anti-lockdown protests in northern Ontario this coming weekend.
According to his official Facebook account, the Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston MPP will speak about the "mental health impacts and concerns" arising from provincial lockdowns and emergency measures during scheduled appearances at Bellevue Park in Sault Ste. Marie Saturday and Sudbury's Bell Park Sunday.
"Bring your friends, family and neighbours," reads social media posts promoting his appearances in the north. "We much (sic) gather together in defiance of these unjust lockdowns and resist."
Hillier, who was suspended from the Ontario PC Caucus indefinitely in 2019 for comments made toward parents of autistic children, has openly defied provincial pandemic measures in the past. The Ontario legislator has also come under fire from the Canadian Anti-Hate Network for appearing on what the website refers to as an "openly anti-Semitic conspiracy live stream."
Sault Ste. Marie Police Service told SooToday Friday that anyone who attends an illegal organized gathering is subject to charges under the Reopening Ontario Act and/or the Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act.