GoFundMe Statement on the Freedom Convoy 2022 Fundraiser
GoFundMe is an open platform with a clear mission to help people help each other. We take our responsibility to organizers and donors very seriously and are proud of the hundreds of thousands of ways our community has made a positive difference in the world around us.
We are deeply committed to operating with integrity, honesty and full accountability — as such, we are guided by Terms of Service and applicable laws and regulations.
Recent events in Ottawa, Canada, have generated widespread discussion about the Freedom Convoy 2022 fundraiser on GoFundMe. We wanted to provide clarity around the actions that our global Trust & Safety and Customer Care teams take every day, just as they have with the Freedom Convoy fundraiser:
- We identify the organizer, who they are raising funds for, the organizer’s relationship to the recipient of the funds, and how the funds will be used.
- If the organizer is raising funds on behalf of someone else, we safely hold all or some of the funds raised until the recipient is added to the fundraiser to withdraw, and their identity has been confirmed.
- Fundraisers must be transparent about the flow of funds and have a plan for how the funds will be spent. Prior to withdrawal of funds, we conduct a thorough review of information provided by the organizer.
We strictly prohibit user content that reflects or promotes behavior in support of violence — in this case, the organizer met our requirements and the fundraiser did not violate our Terms of Service at the time of creation.
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. Our monitoring includes maintaining close communication with the organizer as well as collaborating with local law enforcement. This process takes time and may slow down the withdrawal process. If the fundraiser does violate our Terms of Service or does not directly benefit the intended beneficiary, we will remove it from the platform.
As part of our information gathering process, we also requested more information from the organizer regarding the use of funds to ensure the fundraiser is still compliant with our Terms of Service. When we do not receive required information, we may put a pause on donations as we did in this case.
To learn more, see below.
