How did this ‘grassroots’ rebellion paralyse the Canadian capital? With funding from the far right and a boost from Facebook misinformation

What the truck is going on in Canada? No offence to Ottawa, but it’s not the most exciting place in the world. Over the past couple of weeks, however, the Canadian capital has been embroiled in drama: hundreds of truckers, ostensibly protesting against vaccine mandates, have brought the city to a standstill. Members of the so-called “Freedom Truck Convoy” have been blaring horns, desecrating war memorials and setting off fireworks. Residents are being driven to distraction. The police chief has called the situation a “siege”; the Ontario premier called it “an occupation”. On Monday, the city’s mayor, Jim Watson, declared a state of emergency.

There’s a lot going on in the world right now. If you’re not Canadian, then the protest in Ottawa might not be top of your list of things to worry about. But I’m afraid you should be worried. You should certainly be paying attention. What’s unfolding in Ottawa is not a grassroots protest that has spontaneously erupted out of the frustration of local lorry drivers. Rather, it’s an astroturfed movement – one that creates an impression of widespread grassroots support where little exists – funded by a global network of highly organised far-right groups and amplified by Facebook’s misinformation machine. The drama may be centred in Canada, but what is unfolding has repercussions for us all.

GoFundMe blocked fundraising after Canadian city declared emergency over protests against vaccine mandates

A trucker-led protest against vaccine mandates in Canada has raised several million dollars on a Christian crowdfunding site after being removed from GoFundMe, sparking debate over how online platforms moderate campaigns.

The mayor of Ottawa declared a state of emergency over a week-long protest led by truck drivers over Covid-19 restrictions, three days after GoFundMe blocked fundraising for the “Freedom Convoy”.

Faced with benefit cuts, illness and soaring bills, people are raising funds on sites such as GoFundMe

Faced with cuts to her universal credit and crippling bills, in September last year Amy Cook, 27, decided to do something she had never done before to help her family: she set up a crowdfunding campaign to help alleviate their financial situation.

Cook, a full-time carer to her partner, Jordan, 37, who has learning difficulties, set a £2,000 goal on the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe. On her profile she explained to potential donors that the family had “hit a brick wall” with a bedbug infestation followed by cuts to their universal credit, adding that it would be “10 times harder to survive let alone live”.

LendInvest co-founder Christian Faes has corralled tens of millions of dollars for a new crypto mining venture.

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As local bookshop numbers grow, readers have come together to back them in Crickhowell, Brighton and Buckley

Booksellers have kept readers around the UK going throughout a series of lockdowns. Now the reading community is coming together to back their local bookshops, with tens of thousands of pounds donated to support stores in Crickhowell, Brighton and Buckley.

The Booksellers Association said that independent bookshop numbers have actually grown over the past 22 months, with its independent membership up by 12% since the pandemic started to 1,026 stores, the highest since 2012. Fifty-two new bookshops, including chain branches, opened last year, and 57 have opened this year to date.