Neil Young Gives Spotify Workers 

A Blunt Warning About Their Employer

Ed Mazza

Mon, February 7, 2022

Rock icon Neil Young stepped up his war on Spotify on Monday by urging those who work for the company to quit.

“Get out of that place before it eats up your soul,” he warned in an open letter on his Neil Young Archives website.

Young pulled his music from the service last month to protest the disinformation spread by podcaster Joe Rogan, who is exclusively available on the platform.

“They can have Rogan or Young,” Young wrote at the time. “Not both.”

Several other artists ― including legendary singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell and four-time Grammy winner India Arie ― followed suit.

In his new letter, Young urged more artists to join them.

“To the musicians and creators in the world, I say this: You must be able to find a better place than SPOTIFY to be the home of your art,” Young wrote.

He told the company’s workers that their biggest problem isn’t Rogan... but CEO Daniel Ek, who has doubled down in his support of Rogan even after resurfaced clips highlighted the podcast’s extensive history of racism.

Rogan has repeatedly used racial epithets and in one episode compared being in a Black neighborhood to being on “Planet of the Apes.”

Rogan said he is not racist and pulled those episodes from Spotify.

“There are many things that Joe Rogan says that I strongly disagree with and find very offensive,” Ek claimed, while insisting that Rogan’s show belonged on Spotify. “I do not believe that silencing Joe is the answer.”

Spotify is paying Rogan a reported $100 million to be the exclusive home of his podcast, which has come under fire from medical professionals for its persistent misinformation about the coronavirus and the COVID-19 vaccine.

Young didn’t limit his criticism to Spotify.

He urged everyone to move their money away from companies that promote misinformation as well as those that are destructive to the environment.

“Find a good clean place to support with your monthly checks. You have the real power,” he wrote. “Use it.”

Read his full letter here.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.

Related...



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New Zealand convoy protesters clog streets near Parliament



A convoy of vehicles block a road near New Zealand's Parliament in Wellington Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022. Hundreds of people protesting vaccine and mask mandates drove in convoy to New Zealand's capital on Tuesday and converged outside Parliament as lawmakers reconvened after a summer break. 

(Mark Mitchell/New Zealand Herald via AP)

NICK PERRY
Mon, February 7, 2022

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Hundreds of people protesting vaccine and mask mandates drove in convoy to New Zealand's capital on Tuesday and converged outside Parliament as lawmakers reconvened after a summer break.

The mostly unmasked protesters had driven from around the country, and their vehicles clogged the central Wellington streets for hours as they got out to meet and speak on Parliament's forecourt.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern elected not to meet with them as she delivered a speech to lawmakers outlining her priorities for the year.

Among the protesters' grievances is the requirement in New Zealand that certain workers get vaccinated against the coronavirus, including teachers, doctors, nurses, police and military personnel.

Many protesters also oppose mask mandates — such as those in stores and among children over about age 8 in school classrooms — and champion the ideal of more “freedom.”

New Zealand was spared the worst of the pandemic after it closed its borders and implemented strict lockdowns, limiting the spread of the virus. The nation has reported just 53 virus deaths among its population of 5 million.

But some have grown weary of the restrictions. Ardern last week said the country would end its quarantine requirements for incoming travelers in stages as it reopened its borders.

With about 77% of New Zealanders fully vaccinated, Ardern has also promised she won't impose more lockdowns.

Health officials have been reporting about 200 new virus cases each day as an outbreak of the omicron variant grows. Fourteen people are currently hospitalized because of the virus.

Police said Tuesday afternoon they hadn't made any arrests and that protest organizers had asked protesters to move their cars and trucks by 5 p.m., ahead of the evening rush hour.

Wellington council officials had earlier indicated they were reluctant to issue tickets or order motorists to move, saying on social media, “We must consider the safety of our staff and do not want to put them in harm’s way.”

In her speech, Ardern told lawmakers that her government's guiding principles during the pandemic had been to protect lives and livelihoods, and it had done that with its strong health response which helped cushion the blow to the economy, leading to record-low unemployment and strong GDP growth.

GoFundMe Is Going To Refund Millions Of Dollars In Donations Made To The Viral Canadian Trucker Protest

Right-wing and conservative figures have blasted GoFundMe after it decided to shut down the fundraising effort for the massive anti-vaccine-mandate protest in Canada on Friday.

by Salvador Hernandez

BuzzFeed News Reporter

by Brianna Sacks

BuzzFeed News Reporter

Posted on February 5, 2022, 

Olga Samotoy / Sputnik via AP

GoFundMe will automatically refund all donations made to a multimillion-dollar campaign for a group of Canadian truckers protesting vaccine mandates, the fundraising platform announced Saturday after it started to face fierce backlash from right-wing figures and Republican politicians over its decision to remove the online campaign.

The decision to remove the campaign page from its platform came Friday after the company said the demonstrations being funded by the campaign had become an occupation, sparking incidents of violence and other illegal activity.

On Friday, the company said donors could submit a request for a refund until Feb. 19. It had already released $1 million of the funds to organizers but said that any remaining funds would be distributed to verified charities selected by the Freedom Convoy 2022 organizers.

However, hours later, the company said that due to "donor feedback," it would automatically refund all contributions directly to donors.

Twitter: @gofundme

GoFundMe's decision to end the campaign and direct funds to charities sparked ire from right-wing and conservative figures who urged people not to use the fundraising platform. Former president Donald Trump's son Donald Trump Jr. urged Republican attorneys general to launch investigations into the site.

Twitter: @DonaldJTrumpJr

Some Republican officials heeded the call, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who tweeted that he planned to investigate the fundraising site's "potential fraud & deception."

Twitter: @KenPaxtonTX

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also said he was working with the state's attorney general, Ashley Moody, to investigate GoFundMe.

DeSantis appeared to incorrectly tweet that GoFundMe was "commandeering" the money donated for the demonstrations and directing it to "causes of their own choosing." (GoFundMe had said it would distribute the funds to charities selected by the organizers.)

DeSantis's office did not immediately respond to requests for comment or clarification on the statement.

Twitter: @GovRonD

GoFundMe's decision to refund the money was the latest attempt by the company to address the growing anti-vaccine movement that has become one of the largest fundraising efforts on the platform.

The company had originally decided to let the fundraising effort stay on its platform, despite its vow to remove campaigns that contribute to vaccine misinformation. More than $7 million had been raised earlier this week.

The Canadian caravan had originally seen truckers protesting vaccine mandates and pandemic restrictions, but the effort has quickly grown thanks to the support of the alt-right, fringe groups, and pro-Trump supporters.

Supporters of the protest were also reported to have harassed people at a homeless shelter, vandalized war memorials, waved racist flags, and forced businesses to shut down because of maskless protesters.

GoFundMe told BuzzFeed News on Wednesday it was reviewing the campaign to ensure it was complying with its rules. On Friday, the company announced it was removing the page for violating its rules.

"We now have evidence from law enforcement that the previously peaceful demonstration has become an occupation, with police reports of violence and other unlawful activity," the company said in a statement.

The Ottawa Police Service thanked GoFundMe for its decision.

Twitter: @OttawaPolice

MORE ON THIS

• GoFundMe Says The Viral Campaign For Canada’s Trucker Protest Hasn’t Violated Its Rules Even Though It Sure Seems Like It DoesBrianna Sacks · Feb. 3, 2022
• GoFundMe Has Removed The Viral Canadian Trucker Protest Campaign For Violating Its Rules On ViolenceBrianna Sacks · Feb. 5, 2022

• 

  Salvador Hernandez is a reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in Los Angeles.

  Contact Salvador Hernandez at salvador.hernandez@buzzfeed.com.

  Got a confidential tip? Submit it here

• 

  Brianna Sacks is a reporter for BuzzFeed News and is based in Los Angeles.

  Contact Brianna Sacks at brianna.sacks@buzzfeed.com.

GoFundMe Says The Viral Campaign For 

Canada’s Trucker Protest Hasn’t Violated

Its Rules Even Though It Sure Seems 

Like It Does

The “Freedom Convoy” campaign has become one of the largest in

 the platform's history and is funding the massive trucker protest despite concerns from Canadian law enforcement.

by Brianna Sacks

BuzzFeed News Reporter

Posted on February 3, 2022,

Anadolu Agency / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Truck drivers and supporters protest against vaccine mandates in the trucking industry in Ottawa,

 Canada, Jan. 31, 2022.

GoFundMe says a fundraiser that’s collected millions of dollars for vaccine mandate protesters is “still compliant” with its terms of service despite vowing to remove campaigns that contribute to vaccine misinformation, support travel to political events where there’s a risk of violence, or otherwise violate its rules.

In the past two weeks, supporters of a group of Canadian truckers protesting vaccine mandates have raised more than $7.8 million on the crowdfunding platform, one of the biggest campaigns in its history. Known as the “Freedom Convoy 2022,” the campaign has supported a network of truckers traveling across Canada protesting what they describe as authoritarian government overreach in the form of COVID rules, despite concerns and warnings from law enforcement and business owners. The cause has quickly become a boon for right-wing media in Canada and the US, which have helped amplify the campaign across social media.

The caravan started in January as a small protest against a recent vaccine mandate that requires truckers entering the country to be fully vaccinated or to follow testing and quarantine rules. But thanks to leaders with alt-right and fringe ties, it rapidly evolved into a massive, well-organized grassroots operation with multiple convoys and leaders, who have been hosting freedom rallies much like the pro-Trump and "Stop the Steal" gatherings in the US. Some members have also now been accused of harassing people at a homeless shelter, desecrating war memorials and monuments, waving racist flags and swastikas, snarling traffic, and obstructing a US–Canadian border crossing. The movement has forced businesses and vaccine clinics to close due to the outpouring of maskless protesters. In Ottawa, where thousands of convoy supporters converged this past weekend for a demonstration, a popular mall has, according to the Retail Council of Canada, lost millions of dollars in revenue due to the protest.

Truckers and organizers, however, insist their demonstrations have remained peaceful and amicable, sharing videos of participants at rallies singing, cooking, picking up trash, and clearing icy sidewalks.

On Wednesday, GoFundMe paused and is reviewing the campaign “to ensure it complies with our terms of service and applicable laws and regulations.” In the past, GoFundMe ended the mega "We the People Will Build the Wall" campaign after organizer Brian Kolfage changed the terms for how the money would be used. It’s possible that GoFundMe is now asking how organizers plan to use the millions in donations since the amount raised would far exceed what's necessary to cover food and transportation for truckers. And while pausing the campaign and putting it under review significantly hinders its fundraising, it does not end it. GoFundMe has said it has already distributed $1 million of the funds after organizers explained how the money would be used.

In response to questions from BuzzFeed News Wednesday evening, GoFundMe sent a statement explaining that it has been closely monitoring the campaign “to ensure the funds are going to the intended recipients and that the fundraiser remains within [its] Terms of Service.” The company said it requested more information from organizers and that they were “still compliant” with the rules, implying that the campaign had already been reviewed and that the site paused donations as it waited for a response.

At the time of its creation, GoFundMe said the Freedom Convoy campaign did not violate its rules regarding violence