TruckNews: James Menzies, Writes [Hit Piece] to Smear Freedom-Convoy-2022 GoFundMe Organizer

Editor of TruckNews: James Menzies, Writes [Hit Piece] to Smear Freedom-Convoy-2022 GoFundMe Organizer
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The murky matter of protests and the donations that drive them

by James Menzies
January 21, 2022
James Menzies

Much has been made of late on social media and in the mainstream media, about trucker protests that are in the works. Truckers are rightfully upset about a vaccine mandate that was clumsily applied to cross-border essential workers, including the professional drivers who’ve been keeping us supplied throughout the pandemic.

But such protests rarely deliver results, aside from angering the motoring public and casting shade on our industry. We will report on significant events that disrupt our industry and your businesses but do nothing to support this form of protest.

One disturbing trend is the amount of money being thrown at recent attempts to bring commerce to a halt. One initiative raised more than $900,000 via GoFundMe in less than a week.

This is fairly significant, and startling when you consider where that money is going. The fundraising initiative was started by Tamara Lich, who has a history of association with radical groups, including the recently formed federal separatist Maverick Party in Alberta. Yes, by this weekend, there is likely to be about $1 million in the hands of someone affiliated with a party that wants to break up Canada. (Plan B, mind you).

In her past, Lich was regional coordinator for Wexit in Southeastern Alberta and was a member of the board for Wexit Alberta. What’s Wexit Alberta? It was the provincial party whose co-founder wanted to exit Canada and join the Trump-led U.S.

Lich later took her ambitions federally and joined the federal Wexit Canada board, which would later become the Maverick Party.

She was also affiliated with the Yellow Vest movement, which was linked to death threats against our Prime Minister. Is that what we’ve become, Canada? To her credit, Lich attempted to distance her local chapter from those making the death threats. But think about that for a second…she was affiliated with an organization that threatened to kill our Prime Minister – and now has nearly $1 million of your money to distribute as she sees fit.

Curiously, she seemingly has no direct connection to the trucking industry. She worked in the oil and gas industry and was the singer for a local metal band. So where does this love for truckers come from?

And, where will that million or so bucks go? It will go into the organizer’s bank account, which we know. That’s how GoFundMe works. From there, who knows? Since the fundraiser is not an official charity or organization, there is no further accountability. (Incidentally, Trucknews.com chooses not to promote GoFundMe initiatives for this very reason).

Lich says the money will go towards reimbursing participating truckers for their fuel costs. That’s great, but hauling a load would pay more than bobtailing cross-country for the cost of diesel. Rates aren’t bad, these days. She’ll cover food and lodging too if you really need it.

The good news is, funds will be dispersed via e-transfer “(preferred).” Paper trail! Since GoFundMe wipes its hands of accountability once the dough is deposited into Lich’s account, we hope she will be forthcoming about how those funds are distributed.

As previously mentioned, we don’t think protests that disrupt cross-border – or any other – traffic are safe or productive. We don’t support these initiatives. We do, however, agree that government bungling of vaccination mandates (at state and provincial levels – looking at you, Quebec), has created frustrations and fueled the appetite for such initiatives.

If these protests do materialize (many fizzle out when it’s actually time to roll), we have concerns about the effect they will have on how the public perceives our industry, the safety risks posed to the motoring public, and how a substantial chunk of money collected from hardworking truckers will be spent. And very little optimism that the feds on either side of the border will reverse their vaccine requirements.

by James Menzies
@JamesMenzies
James Menzies is editor of Today's Trucking. He has been covering the Canadian trucking industry for more than 18 years and holds a CDL. Reach him at james@newcom.ca or follow him on Twitter at @JamesMenzies.

Link To Article: https://www.trucknews.com/blogs/the-murky-matter-of-protests-and-the-donations-that-drive-them/?fbclid=IwAR3Qib0mbzfSf5JLezYw7amSHI-726tbPxPzwHpzKRPT-wXsgixa34hreDE