TORONTO —
The eyes of the world are on Canada amid the ongoing “Freedom Convoy” protests against vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 measures – and support for the movement continues to grow internationally, particularly in the U.S.
Politicians, conservative commentators and right-wing online communities south of the border and beyond have cheered on the convoys, while demonstrators continue occupy the streets of downtown Ottawa and block U.S. border crossings in at least three provinces.
“(The Canadian convoy) kind of speaks to a lot of the similar frustrations that are being shared in the United States,” Kayla Preston, a PhD candidate at the University of Toronto who has been studying Canadian far-right movements, told CTVNews.ca over the phone on Wednesday.
Like in Canada, U.S. President Joe Biden’s vaccine mandates for health care workers, the military and employees of large businesses have been a wedge issue there, sparking outrage from the Republican Party. Top Republicans like Texas Senator Ted Cruz and former President Donald Trump have signal-boosted the Canadian convoy’s cause — the latter going as far as calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau a “left-wing lunatic.”
“I think the Canadian truckers are standing up not just for the freedom of Canadians, but for the freedom of Americans,” Cruz told reporters on Wednesday.
Fox News and other conservative media outlets have also given the convoys extensive and glowing coverage. On Tuesday, Fox commentator Tucker Carlson, who hosts the most-viewed cable news show in the U.S., praised the convoys for protesting “the tyranny of Justin Trudeau’s government.”
“This is a peaceful, political protest. No one has shown any evidence to the contrary. It’s not a drug trafficking or human trafficking operation,” Carlson said on his show. “These are Canadian citizens who drive trucks for a living, but they’re being treated like a terror group.”
Trucking groups, including the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the Private Motor Truck Council of Canada, have distanced themselves and their members from the convoy protests, stating that nearly 85 per cent of truckers are vaccinated. These groups have also noted that many of the organizers and participants of the convoy have no connection to the trucking industry.
The convoy protests in Canada have also inspired similar protests against COVID-19 health measures internationally.
Officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have warned that a group of U.S. truckers and supporters are planning a similar convoy starting in Los Angeles, coinciding with the Super Bowl this weekend. From there, officials say the convoy will arrive in Washington, D.C. by March 1, when Biden’s State of the Union Address is scheduled.
In Europe, a convoy of approximately 200 protesters gathered in the south of France on Thursday, from where they plan to head to Paris and Brussels. Another convoy in New Zealand also rolled through the country’s capital of Wellington on Tuesday.
After GoFundMe removed the Canadian convoy’s fundraiser, organizers moved to GiveSendGo, a website which describes itself as the “#1 free Christian crowdfunding site.”
Some U.S. state Republican officials have also vowed to investigate GoFundMe for shutting down the fundraiser — while confirming that some Americans had indeed donated.
“Many Texans donated to this worthy cause. I am acting to protect Texas consumers so that they know where their hard-earned money is going, rather than allowing GoFundMe to divert money to another cause without the consent of Texas citizens,” Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said in a statement on Wednesday.
Before GoFundMe removed the fundraiser, the group raised more than $10 million on the platform. As of Thursday morning, the GiveSendGo fundraiser had raised more than US$8.2 million, equivalent to C$10.4 million.
It’s unclear how much of that money is from foreign sources. CTV News sampled some 6,500 donations on the platform, worth about $622,000 during a 12-hour period.
Of those, about 35 per cent were anonymous donations, or credited to obvious pseudonyms, such as “Justin Trudeau.”
Of the remainder, CTV News counted those who declared their location or made it clear what country they were from totalled about 10 per cent. Of those donations, 52.6 per cent were from the U.S. while only 36.8 per cent were Canadian.
“The obvious impact that this has is the ability of the protesters to continue with the occupation of downtown Ottawa,” national security researcher and Queen’s University professor Christian Leuprecht told CTVNews.ca on Thursday.
“As long as somebody is effectively paying them and providing for their livelihood while they’re there, they will be able to sustain that occupation,” he added.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino says the federal government will be in a position to act should law enforcement detect nefarious financial support of the convoy. He said on Monday that Canada has a “robust” intelligence community that will flag to the government concerns of national security, as well as a separate branch within the RCMP that looks into these types of issues.
“That’s why I’m certainly confident that wherever there’s foul play of the sort, that we’ll be in a position to act appropriately,” said Mendicino.
However, Leuprecht says that FINTRAC, Canada’s financial intelligence agency, has little to no enforcement mechanisms and only serves intelligence functions. He also notes that some countries, such as Australia, have foreign interference laws that would allow authorities to seize money – but such laws don’t exist in Canada.
“Even if we could investigate it, even if we could track it, we really lacked the instruments to be able to interfere in these financial flows,” Leuprecht sad.
On Tuesday, Liberal MP Taleeb Noormohamed proposed to expand the House public safety and national security committee’s study of the “Freedom Convoy” fundraising efforts to include a study on the rise of ideologically-motivated extremism.
If passed, it would see an investigation into the influence of foreign and domestic actors funding and supporting violent, extremist ideologies in Canada. It would also include an invitation to American crowdfunding platform GiveSendGo to appear before the committee
With files from CTV News Toronto’s John Woodward and CTVNews.ca’s Sarah Turnbull and Christy Somos.
PORT ALBERNI, B.C. – RCMP say the body of a second person has been found inside their vehicle after a road washed away amid pouring rain on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
Police say two vehicles went into the Sarita River when Bamfield Road washed out on Saturday as an atmospheric river hammered southern B.C.
The body of the other driver was found Sunday.
More coming.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
The B.C. Greens say Sonia Furstenau will be staying on as party leader, despite losing her seat in the legislature in Saturday’s provincial election.
The party says in a statement that its two newly elected MLAs, Jeremy Valeriote and Rob Botterell, support Furstenau’s leadership as they “navigate the prospect of having the balance of power in the legislature.”
Neither the NDP led by Premier David Eby nor the B.C. Conservatives led by John Rustad secured a majority in the election, with two recounts set to take place from Oct. 26 to 28.
Eby says in a news conference that while the election outcome is uncertain, it’s “very likely” that the NDP would need the support of others to pass legislation.
He says he reached out to Furstenau on election night to congratulate her on the Greens’ showing.
But he says the Green party has told the NDP they are “not ready yet” for a conversation about a minority government deal.
The Conservatives went from taking less than two per cent of the vote in 2020 to being elected or leading in 45 ridings, two short of a majority and only one behind the NDP.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.
The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio is making a difference, 4,175 kilometres away from home.
The 32-year-old Canadian international midfielder, whose parents hail from Colombia, has been working with the Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization, a charity whose goal is to help disadvantaged youth in the South American country.
Osorio has worked behind the scenes, with no fanfare.
Until now, with his benevolence resulting in becoming Toronto FC’s nominee for the Audi Goals Drive Progress Impact Award, which honours an MLS player “who showed outstanding dedication to charitable efforts and serving the community” during the 2024 season.”
Other nominees include Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter and CF Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois.
The winner will be announced in late November.
The Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization (CCCO) is run entirely by volunteers like Monica Figueredo and Claudia Soler. Founded in 1991, it received charitable status in 2005.
The charity currently has four projects on the go: two in Medellin and one each in Armenia and Barranquilla.
They include a school, a home for young girls whose parents are addicted to drugs, after-school and weekend programs for children in a disadvantaged neighbourhood, and nutrition and education help for underprivileged youth.
The organization heard about Osorio and was put in contact with him via an intermediary, which led to a lunch meeting. Osorio did his due diligence and soon got back to the charity with his decision.
“It was something that I wanted to be a part of right away,” said Osorio, whose lone regret is that he didn’t get involved sooner.
“I’m fortunate now that to help more now that I could have back then,” he added. “The timing actually worked out for everybody. For the last three years I have donated to their cause and we’ve built a couple of (football) fields in different cities over there in the schools.”
His father visited one of the sites in Armenia close to his hometown.
“He said it was amazing, the kids, how grateful they are to be able to play on any pitch, really,” said Osorio. “But to be playing on a new pitch, they’re just so grateful and so humble.
“It really makes it worth it being part of this organization.”
The collaboration has also made Osorio take stock.
“We’re very fortunate here in Canada, I think, for the most part. Kids get to go to school and have a roof over their head and things like that. In Colombia, it’s not really the same case. My father and his family grew up in tough conditions, so giving back is like giving back to my father.”
Osorio’s help has been a godsend to the charity.
“We were so surprised with how willing he was,” said Soler.
The TFC skipper has helped pay for a football field in Armenia as well as an ambitious sports complex under construction in Barranquilla.
“It’s been great for them,” Figueredo said of the pitch in Armenia. “Because when they go to school, now they have a proper place to train.”
Osorio has also sent videos encouraging the kids to stay active — as well as shipping soccer balls and signed jerseys their way.
“They know more about Jonathan than the other players in Colombia,” Figueredo said. “That’s the funny part. Even though he’s far away, they’ve connected with him.”
“They feel that they have a future, that they can do more,” she added. “Seeing that was really, really great.”
The kids also followed Osorio through the 2022 World Cup and this summer’s Copa America.
Back home, Osorio has also attended the charity’s annual golf tournament, helping raise funds.
A Toronto native, he has long donated four tickets for every TFC home game to the Hospital for Sick Children.
Vancouver’s Berhalter was nominated for his involvement in the Whitecaps’ partnership with B.C. Children’s Hospital while Montreal’s Sirois was chosen for his work with the Montreal Impact Foundation.
—
Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.
Sentencing hearing continues for University of Waterloo gender studies class stabber
Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio making a difference off the pitch as well as on it
Inequality has broad impacts on the health of Montreal children, report finds
Liberal majority victory shifts political landscape in New Brunswick
Thomson Reuters acquires AI accounting assistant developer Materia
Building Homes Faster with our Latest 3D Construction Printer
Legault ‘shocked’ by Montreal teacher scandal, pledges to toughen secularism measures
Susan Holt Breaks the Glass Ceiling in New Brunswick Politics
