Didulo, shown here on Parliament Hill during convoy protests on Feb. 3, 2022, started as a QAnon conspiracy theorist, but some anti-extremism experts believe she may have turned into something else. (REUTERS/Patrick Doyle)
Hospital locked doors, SHA confirms
The Canadian Anti-Hate Network started keeping tabs on Didulo after receiving reports of people delivering “cease and desist” notices, following her decrees, to various agencies and institutions. The notices threatened execution, Balgord said.
Didulo’s rhetoric escalated when she urged her followers to “shoot to kill” anyone who administers vaccines to children.
“The concern is that somebody might actually think … it’s a legit order, from a person who has legitimate power — which is not true,” said Christine Sarteschi, a professor of social work and criminology at Chatham University in Pittsburgh, Pa., who has studied Didulo extensively.
Health-care facilities and professionals have been a particular target because of conspiracies regarding the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Saskatchewan Health Authority spokesperson confirmed to CBC News that, on Wednesday afternoon, the Kamsack Hospital’s doors were locked and monitored by security to manage public entry.
The measures, which did not prevent locals from accessing hospital care, were implemented to ensure the facility was safe, the spokesperson said.
Town bands together
Word spread. Nina Cote was among the Kamsack residents who learned what was happening and started researching Didulo.
Cote was sickened by her rhetoric and scared for the safety of her children, two of whom were in school that day.
“We can’t have someone like that in our community,” she said.
As the town hall meeting neared, more people streamed to the downtown to protest the presence of Didulo and her followers. Town officials told CBC News that there were a couple hundred people, including some with picket signs.
Cote, her husband, mother and two-year-old son were in the crowd. Didulo sat in the front of her RV, but that was the only time they could see her, she said.
“It made me feel good knowing that our community actually came together,” Cote said.
Town officials Fountain and Thompson went to the RV around 3 p.m. CST to invite Didulo to the meeting, but the convoy was already starting to pack up, Fountain said.
Didulo never left her vehicle. The convoy was packed and escorted out of town just before 4 p.m. CST, Fountain said.
An RCMP spokesperson confirmed officers provided “a courtesy accompaniment to one party” as they left Kamsack.
An investigation into the issue found the matter was not criminal in nature and no safety risk existed, the spokesperson said.
CBC News tried contacting Didulo for comment, but did not receive a response.
Balgord, of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, told CBC News that Wednesday’s events in Kamsack are “quite encouraging,” as other Canadian communities have been unable to get her to leave so quickly.
The town feels some relief that the potential threat is gone, officials and residents said, but knowing someone like Didulo is out there has shaken them.