Dear John & Patrick
Several major French and international actors of the civic-tech, European NGOs and French bank operators are addressing Stripe in an Open Letter to inform the public that Stripe is currently processing donations for the anti-refugees organisation Génération Identitaire in France.
The ultra-right-wing group Generation Identitaire is using Stripe, a PayPal’s competitor, to collect money and organise anti-refugee militias in France. They are physically blocking migrants from crossing the border between France and Italy. In late April, they raised enough money to charter helicopters and send a strong message of hate towards refugees.
We have approached Stripe asking them to stop process payments for Generation Identitaire but no reaction so far, even though promoting hate is counter to their TOS. Also Patrick and John Collison, Stripe’s founders, publicly opposed the Muslim Ban last year.
So we decided to write this kind letter, hoping that this will help them getting back to us !
It has already been published in the French newspaper L’Opinion.
Dear John & Patrick,
We came together today because we care. We care about society, and a global community focused on what we have in common, rather than what divides us. We know you do too.
We are fierce admirers of what you’ve built at Stripe. We love that as Stripe’s founders, you defend progressive values. We were so impressed when you stood against Donald Trump to fight the Muslim Ban. That was an inspiring example of what the tech community should contribute to the world.
But today we are worried, and we think you should be too. An ultra-right wing movement is using Stripe to collect money and organise anti-refugee militias in France. The group is called Génération Identitaire. They are physically blocking migrants from crossing the border between France and Italy. In late April, they raised enough money to charter helicopters and send a strong message of hate towards refugees. Stripe is making it possible. It is the only payment platform they have left, as even Paypal and all other banks decided to ban them.
We are asking you to take a stand again. This time against Génération Identitaire. We are asking you to close down their account with Stripe. Not only do they not deserve you, they are threatening the values you, and all of us, believe in. Patrick, John, this is a no brainer. You need to let them go.
Friendly,
The internet
First signers
- ~ le mouvement, France
- Ulule, France
- Ombline le Lasseur, Vincent Ricordeau & Adrien Aumont, founders of KissKissBankBank, France
- MakeSense, France
- Bayes Impact, France
- Alice Barbe, director of Singa, France
- Liberté Living Lab, France
- Jeremy Heimans, director of Purpose, USA
- Personal Democracy Forum France, France
- f0rk (ex-Open Democracy Now), France
- Social Good Accelerator EU, Europe
- SumOfUs, Europe
- WeMove.EU, Europe
- Uplift, Ireland
- aHang, Hungary
- #aufstehen, Austria
- declic, Romania
- Skiftet, Sweden
- Campax, Switzerland
- Le Réacteur, France
- Phoenix Paris, France
- Digital For The Planet, France
- Jobmaker, France
