'They were directly in harm's way': Victoria businesses report threats amid COVID-19 protest
CTV
It’s not often a barista fears for their safety while they whip up a latte, but staff at two Victoria coffee shops say that was the situation on Saturday.
As thousands of anti-mask and anti-COVID-19 vaccine mandate protesters voiced their views on the lawn of the legislature, several businesses say they were intimidated and harassed by members of the crowd.
“They were directly in harm's way," said Rich Becker, general manager of the Steamship Grill and a Starbucks in the area, referring to his employees.
Becker says throughout the day his staff were subject to countless protesters refusing to wear masks inside.
On his day off, he drove downtown to help his management team, who he said were scared and intimidated by anti-maskers storming the small shop and refusing to leave.
"[A protester] said, 'I'm not leaving and I can get 100 other guys in here,'” Becker told CTV News.
Separating his staff from the aggressive protesters, Becker was able to get the men to leave.
He then locked the Starbucks location's doors and shut down early as he feared reprisal from the group.
The Starbucks situation was not a one-off.
