Several media reports, including those by the Calgary Herald and Toronto Star, have reported on the Yellow Vests Canada Convoy, also calling itself 'United We Roll', without making any reference to the overt racism and death threats which have come to characterize the movement.
In response the Canadian Anti-Hate Network sent a press release to every newsroom in Canada. We hope this will contribute to more factual reporting on the movement and convoy as it continues towards Ottawa, arriving on February 19th.
Important context about the Yellow Vests Canada (YVC) convoy, aka ‘United We Roll’
For immediate release
February 14, 2019
• Convoy organizer Glen Carritt says his group still “identifies with the yellow vests” and are welcoming them to the convoy. YVC organizer Tyler Malenfant calls it a Yellow Vests convoy on their main Facebook page.
• The organizers of the convoy express support for anti-Muslim hate groups including Canadian Combat Coalition, Soldiers of Odin, and Worldwide Coalition Against Islam.
• The rebrand from a Yellow Vests Convoy to ‘United We Roll’ is diverting attention from the overt racism and death threats that have come to characterize the Yellow Vests Canada movement. We, Yellow Vests Canada Exposed and Anti-Racist Canada have documented hundreds of examples.
• The hate is mostly directed at Muslims, left-leaning individuals, government, media, and, occasionally, law enforcement. They share conspiracy theories such as: Muslims are behind the Fort McMurray wildfire so they could build a super-mosque. Oil and economic concerns are an issue, but not their primary concern.
• The Yellow Vests movement has been entirely co-opted by the far-right including most extreme anti-Muslim groups in Canada. Their rallies are attended by neo-Nazis like Paul Fromm and Brian Ruhe. Faith Goldy, a self-proclaimed propagandist for the alt-right neo-Nazi movement, spoke at the first Toronto rally and promotes the convoy on Twitter.
• Tony Green, a YVC supporter, was arrested on January 28th after allegedly pointing a firearm at an off-duty RCMP officer. They seized over 100 guns and explosive materials from his house.
• Gregory McNeil, who made death threats towards law enforcement on the YVC page, was sentenced to over five years in prison after pulling a weapon on RCMP officers in 2010. The RCMP found a hidden room full of illegal weapons at his house.
• Yellow Vests Canada represents a public safety threat, according to a briefing note authored by the Canadian Association for Security & Intelligence Studies – Vancouver.
• For more, please see
https://twitter.com/VestsCanada
https://www.facebook.com/Yellow-Vests-Canada-Exposed-594384430992962/
https://anti-racistcanada.blogspot.com/search?q=yellow+vests
https://www.antihate.ca/yellow_vests_canada_member_threatens_to_kill_law_enforcement_claims_to_have_cache_of_weapons
https://www.antihate.ca/factcheck_cbc_misrepresents_yellow_vests_canada_movement_makes_no_mention_of_death_threats
https://casisvancouver.ca/1_19_fifth-generation-warfare.html/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/Yellow-Vests-RWE-and-the-Threat-to-Canadian-Democracy.pdf
https://twitter.com/VestsCanada/status/1092931570359504899
This context is important. Thank you.
For more information:
Evan Balgord
[email protected]
Using a wire service to send this news release across Canada cost the Canadian Anti-Hate Network $520. If you agree that this was a worthwhile effort, please consider helping us recoup that cost by giving at antihate.ca/donate.
Correction 2019-02-19: We originally reported that Faith Goldy "held" the first Toronto rally. In fact she was a speaker. We regret the error. Goldy continues to promote the Yellow Vests Canada movement and convoy.