At least $1.1M donated by British Columbians to 'Freedom Convoy'

Thousands of British Columbians opened their wallets to support the truckers of the so-called “Freedom Convoy,” according to data leaked when an American fundraising platform was hacked.

With donations ranging from $6 to $23,000, about $1,162,761 CAD total was contributed by 7,326 British Columbians, according to the leaked donor information.

After a GoFundMe account that raised more than $10 million was shut down by the company, convoy organizers turned to the Christian fundraising website GiveSendGo, where they collected more than $10.7 million ($8.4 million USD) in donations before the website was frozen and the data posted online by hackers.

The postal codes, names, emails and messages from the donors are included in the leaked data, painting a picture of support strongest in rural areas of British Columbia, but found across the province, with praise for truckers themselves and condemnation for vaccine mandates and often the government.

• A $3,175 ($2,500 USD) donation from Richmond came with the message, “I do not support a segregated society. This cannot stand.”
• A $63 ($50 USD) contribution from Abbotsford read, “With you. Common sense will prevail.”
• A $1,270 ($1,000 USD) gift from Prince George told convoy participants, “This movement is the People's last hope from being driven into complete servitude to corrupt governments.”

Most Canadian donations were from southern Ontario and Western Canada.

LANGLEY COMPANY B.C.'S BIGGEST SINGLE DONATION

At the top of the list of B.C. donors to the GiveSendGo campaign is The Range Langley. CTV News called the company and asked to speak to the donor, who a staffer identified as an owner, to verify he’d donated $23,000 ($18,000 USD).

He has still not responded to an email request for an interview, but the company has posted an extensive public statement on its website.

“Since our founding in 2015, The Range Langley has humbly donated to many charities, particularly those supporting the brave Souls facing danger while protecting and upholding the Rights and Freedoms of all Canadians,” it begins, going on to emphasize its support for military and law enforcement members.

“We do not support those that promote hate, violence, lies or those that wish to damage and divide our families, faith systems, businesses, communities or our country,” it goes on to say, quoting from the national anthem in one part. “Our donation to the Freedom Convoy 2022 is our way of peacefully participating in democracy.”

LEGAL IMPLICATIONS FOR DONORS?

On Monday, the federal government announced a crackdown on crowdfunding as part of its establishment of the Emergencies Act, going so far as to authorize banks to freeze accounts they suspect may be involved with “illegal blockades.”

But that doesn’t mean Joe Public has to necessarily worry about sending a few dollars towards supporting truckers in their goal to overturn public health measures like vaccine mandates.

"Most people who are donating wanted to support legitimate protest against what they consider to be government overreach and that is entirely not only legal, it is defensible, it is part of our traditions, and I do not see the federal government moving on this at all," said former B.C. Crown prosecutor, Sandy Garossino.

She believes the crackdown is intended as a deterrent rather than a move to prosecute, and believes the real target is the majority of donors to the cause who are American; a CTV News analysis found 56 per cent of GiveSendGo donors were American, compared to 39 per cent Canadian.

“The organizers had as a stated objective to overthrow the Canadian government,” said Garossino, who pointed out a slew of right-wing American politicians have expressed support for the cause, while the GoFundMe account had skyrocketed to the top ten of its fundraisers in a matter of only two weeks.

"What all of this says is something else is going on here and Canadians have every right to know, ‘What is going on here and what is your real interest?’"