ONTARIO, CA – According to reports, the GoFundMe account allocated for the Freedom Convoy in Canada has been temporarily suspended by the platform after the fundraiser had surpassed $10 million in amassed funds.
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Representatives for GoFundMe have claimed that the pausing of the campaign is “ensure it complies with our terms of service” as well as “applicable laws and regulations.”
Back in late January, Red Voice Media reported on this very GoFundMe campaign after donations had garnered roughly $6 million following the January 14th launch.
In that January 27th report, GoFundMe had withheld the funds at the time, with spokesperson Rachel Hollis explaining that all fundraisers must “be transparent about the flow of funds and have a clear plan for how those funds will be spent.”
However, at the time, there wasn’t any indication of the GoFundMe page running afoul of any policies or laws – company officials at the time were just making sure there was a clear path for disbursement of funds considering how large the campaign had become.
As of February 3rd, the fundraiser has now attained $10,096,200 in donations – and has also been temporarily suspended by GoFundMe. Per a statement attached to the fundraising page, GoFundMe claims the fundraiser is “under review” to “ensure” compliance with company policies and various laws.
“This fundraiser is currently paused and under review to ensure it complies with our terms of service and applicable laws and regulations. Our team is working 24/7 and doing all we can to protect both organizers and donors. Thank you for your patience.”
On February 2nd, GoFundMe posted a blog specifically about the Freedom Convoy fundraiser, it appears that GoFundMe is reiterating concerns about how these funds will be doled out – which likely stems with just how considerably large this fundraiser has gotten.
GoFundMe emphasized that the Freedom Convoy “organizer met our requirements and the fundraiser did not violate our Terms of Service at the time of creation” but as “the activity surrounding the protest evolves, we have been monitoring the fundraiser to ensure the funds are going to the intended recipients and that the fundraiser remains within our Terms of Service.”
What is hard to ignore in this timing of the pause are the comments delivered Ottawa City Councillor for Ward 10 Diane Deans prior to GoFundMe pausing the campaign.
As Red Voice Media previously reported, Deans named the GoFundMe account supporting the protesters and talked about suing the platform during an online press conference.
“I want to ask the mayor if he will pick up the phone and call GoFundMe in the states directly and demand they cease and desist sending money to these unlawful protesters. And perhaps while he’s at it he can pick up the phone and ask the Prime Minister to do the same.
We had some conversations about perhaps suing GoFundMe, but legal action takes time. And this is urgent, we need to cut off the pipeline of funding to these people that are unlawfully – mercenaries, if you would – that are unlawfully protesting and occupying our communities.”
Despite the blog post by GoFundMe not mentioning the comments made by Deans, it is again hard to ignore the timing of the campaign suspension.
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