84 Barrhaven Addresses Listed as GiveSendGo Donors To Freedom Convoy
By Charlie Senack, Barrhaven Independent
At least 84 Barrhaven residents donated in support of the Freedom Truck Convoy, leaked data shows.
The individuals donated through GiveSendGo, which identifies itself as the number one Christian crowdfunding site.
Contributions ranged from $15 to over $500, and 84 Barrhaven addresses were listed out of 93,000 total.
The leaked data included the names, home addresses, email addresses, donated amount, and comments of the individuals who financially supported the convoy’s efforts.
Many commented “hold the line” while others wrote they “support freedom.”
“I’m triple vaccinated but the government has gone too far and taken our freedoms away,” commented one Barrhaven donor. “It has to stop. Thank you to all the
truckers who are standing up for our freedoms. Trudeau is the fringe minority — not us.”
“For our children, we must fight this tyranny on our own soil today and in the words of the great PM Winston Churchill, “NEVER, NEVER, NEVER GIVE IN” to despots in Canada,” wrote another.
Others took the opportunity to quote bible verses and said they chose “freedom over fear” and “faith over fear.”
“God bless them all for kickstarting this worldwide Freedom Movement,” said one donor who contributed $100.
The Barrhaven Independent reached out to over half the names listed on the donors list. Some emails were returned undelivered, but most went unanswered.
One Barrhaven resident who didn’t want his name published in this story for fear of having his finances freezed, said he feels the government overstepped its powers.
“I support the elimination of vaccination mandates that unfairly penalize people who in good conscience think the risks of being vaccinated exceed the benefits,” he said. “This is a fundamental principle of public health, in my view. No person should be forced to accept a medication or other foreign substance into their body that he or she fears will do them harm; this is a matter of personal freedom and privacy.”
The Barrhaven resident also said he feels vaccines are proven to not be as effective as initially hoped, and “were rushed into distribution.”
Health officials have said repeatedly that while three doses may not prevent transmission of the virus, it offers substantial protection from becoming severely sick, potentially resulting in hospitalization.
“The penalties imposed on the unvaccinated have been excessive to the point of cruelty,” he said. “People have been fired from their jobs with no opportunity for appeal, no severance and loss of pension benefits. In addition, the federal government has cruelly deprived them of unemployment insurance benefits. The people who in other circumstances have defended the rights of labour have abandoned them for ideological reasons.”
The Barrhaven contributor also said he felt the truckers were peaceful in their demonstrations.
Not all would agree with that statement, though. The Rideau Centre was forced to close Jan. 29, after a large group of unmasked protesters entered the mall. Security and police were largely outnumbered, and therefore unable to force the mask mandates. Those who work in the mall feared for their health and safety.
The mall has 170 businesses, and employs about 1,500 people who were out of work and a paycheque for three weeks. In the first seven days the mall was closed, The Retail Council of Canada estimated $19.7 million in lost revenue. Now over two weeks in, that number is over $40 million.
Many nearby residents also reported being harassed, the national war monument was disrespected, and downtown was in chaos for weeks.
The data of who donated in support of the convoy was never supposed to be seen publicly. In a statement released Feb. 15, GiveSendGo said it was attacked “by malicious actors attempting to eliminate the ability of its users to raise funds.”
“There was a broadcasted breach showing one such actor illegally hacking into GiveSendGo and distributing the names and emails of the donors of the Freedom Convoy Campaign,” the company said. “However, no credit card information was leaked. No money was stolen.”
The GiveSendGo platform raised a total of roughly $8.7 million at the time of the leak. About 60 per cent of donors were from Canada, the remaining 40 per cent mostly coming from the United States.
The platform became widely accepted by the convoy after GoFundMe shut down their fundraising efforts.
A number of individuals who initially donated to GoFundMe wrote in their comments that they doubled their donation on the GiveSendGo platform.