Organizer behind anti-vaccine mandate convoy says it won't tolerate extremists as online rhetoric heats up

A key player behind a convoy travelling to Ottawa to protest a vaccine mandate for truckers is warning that those planning to use the event for acts of violence or vandalism won't be tolerated.

Addressing her Facebook followers in a video posted on the Freedom Convoy 2022 Facebook page, Tamara Lich said the convoy is expected to arrive at Parliament Hill in Ottawa over the weekend to protest what she calls infringements of personal liberty caused by public health orders.

"If you see participants along the way that are misbehaving, acting aggressively in any way or inciting any type of violence or hatred, please take down the truck number and their licence plate number so that we can forward that to the police," she said.

Lich said that everyone participating in the convoy must be registered with their "road captains" and that anyone who does not behave in an orderly fashion "will be immediately removed."

"The only way that we are going to overcome this is through love and light, not hate and division," she said. "I think as Canadians we've all seen enough of that. It's time to move past that."

The federal government announced in mid-November that by Jan. 15, all foreign nationals working as truckers would have to be fully vaccinated to enter Canada. Those not fully vaccinated are to be turned back to the U.S. 

All Canadian cross-border essential workers — including truckers — must show proof of vaccination at a port of entry to avoid stringent testing requirements and quarantine.

Truckers travelling within Canada are not affected by these new measures. The United States has implemented a similar mandate requiring that all U.S.-bound travellers show proof that they've had the required shots.

A GoFundMe campaign organized by Lich — who has ties to the Maverick Party, a federal party with roots in Alberta separatist circles — has so far collected more than $4.7 million in donations to support the convoy.

The fundraising platform issued a statement Tuesday saying that the funds are being held back until GoFundMe receives more details about the group and its financial management.

"We require that fundraisers be transparent about the flow of funds and have a clear plan for how those funds will be spent," the GoFundMe statement said.

"In this case, we are in touch with the organizer to verify that information. Funds will be safely held until the organizer is able to provide the documentation to our team about how funds will be properly distributed."

In her Facebook video, Lich said she launched the page to raise money to support the truckers on their trek across the country but was quickly overwhelmed by the volume of donations.

"When I started this … I was expecting a few thousand dollars, which I was very happy to manage. But wow, did you guys come through," she said. "We were not expecting this, put it this way, so we've had to get prepared in a very short period of time."