Canadian truckers protesting COVID-19 rules said they are lawyering up after GoFundMe suspended their fundraising page.
The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, a Calgary-based firm, confirmed it is representing the Freedom Convoy 2022 in Ottawa and “has a team of lawyers on the ground providing legal assistance and advice.”
The truckers have been clogging the streets of the Canadian capital for a week in protest of a rule that requires Canadian truckers to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 if they want to avoid a 14-day quarantine when they cross the border from the U.S.
Tamara Lich, leader of Canada’s Maverick Party, and other organizers said they set up the GoFundMe page to support the truckers, who traveled from Vancouver to the capital, starting with fuel expenses and moving to food and shelter costs if needed.
The page surpassed its $10 million goal, but GoFundMe pulled the plug as it investigates the effort for potential violations.
Critics of the convoy have targeted its tactics and what they say are links to more extremist groups unrelated to the original trucking protest.
“This fundraiser is currently paused and under review to ensure it complies with our terms of service and applicable laws and regulations,” read a notice at the top of the convoy’s GoFundMe page. “Our team is working 24/7 and doing all we can to protect both organizers and donors. Thank you for your patience.”
The trucker fervor slipped south of the border this week.
American truckers planning a “Convoy to D.C. 2022” said Facebook removed their planning page. A spokesperson for Facebook’s parent company, Meta, told Fox News that it removed this group “for repeatedly violating our policies around QAnon.”
For more information, visit The Washington Times COVID-19 resource page.
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.