Video of tractors and trucks shows German protest, not Texas convoy | Fact check

Hannah Hudnall, USA TODAY
·2 min read
73

The claim: Video shows 20-mile-long trucker convoy in Texas

A Jan. 26 Instagram video (direct link, archive link) shows a large gathering of tractors, trucks and cars flashing their lights at night.

"Thank you, Texas!" reads on-screen text. "The farmers and Truck drivers lining up. The Convoy is here. Well, over 20 miles long now!"

The post was liked more than 20,000 times in six days. Similar versions of the claim were shared on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X, formerly Twitter.

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Our rating: False

The video was filmed in Germany, not Texas. It is unrelated to the convoy of trucks that departed for Texas in late January.

Video shows German farmer protest, not Texas rally

A convoy of vehicles called the "Take Our Border Back" convoy set out from Virginia on Jan. 29 and drove to Eagle Pass, Texas, where they held a rally against illegal immigration on Feb. 3.

But the Instagram video is unrelated to that convoy and was not filmed in Texas.

The footage was posted online on TikTok as early as Jan. 6, more than three weeks before the convoy set off. The user who shared it on TikTok linked the footage to Deggendorf, a town in Bavaria, Germany.

The Associated Press captured a photo of a similar-looking event held in the town on Jan. 5. The picture of the protest, which the caption says was held by a large group of farmers at a fairground called the Volksfestplatz, shows the same group of tractors and trucks flashing their lights at night.

The demonstration was in response to agricultural budget cuts by the German government and was attended by about 850 vehicles, according to a Google translation of an article by the German outlet PNP. The article includes a photo of tractors lit up at night carrying signs with slogans – written in German – such as, "Nobody should ever forget that without farmers there is no food."

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The "Take Our Border Back" convoy did not reach the size estimated by the Instagram post either. Group organizers said by the time it reached Texas, there were about 200 vehicles in the convoy, according to NBC News.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

AFP also debunked the claim.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Video shows German protest, not Texas border rally | Fact check