Scotiabank de-banking political dissidents
by Dan Fournier, Opinion, published Monday, Jan. 23, 6:37 EST on fournier.substack.com
Scotiabank emblem. Image source.
A Friday, January 20 tweet by Greg Wycliffe, a media analyst, revealed that Scotiabank was preparing to formally terminate their banking services with former Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) veteran Jeremy Mackenzie.
Jeremy Mackenzie received a call from a Scotiabank representative presaging that his account was to imminently be suspended and that the bank’s relationship with him was beyond their ”risk appetite”, which was the principal reason stated.
The bank’s representative who made the call stated that Mackenzie’s Scotiabank bank branch had just been made aware by the head office and that he will receive a written letter from which he will have 30 days to close his account(s). In addition, the former CAF veteran was informed that he cannot visit his branch office without its express written consent.
Mackenzie, a comedian podcaster who goes by the handle Raging Dissident and outspoken critic of the RCMP and the Trudeau government, remained remarkably polite during the unsettling conversation, though he did state that he might need to sue them on discriminatory grounds due to his “legal situation”.
Understandably, during the phone call he also expressed discontent regarding how he would continue paying for his mortgage as well as addressing the [financial] needs of his children.
When contacted by this author for comment on the matter, Jeremy Mackenzie added the following:
“I am the sole provider for my children and their mother. They live in my home, that I have mortgaged with Scotiabank. I have only a few weeks to secure a new means of paying this mortgage or I will lose the house. Missing just two payments is grounds for the bank to seize your home.”
“My pension and benefits, my primary income from my time in the Canadian Army goes through this account.”
Near the end of the phone call with Scotiabank’s representative, Mackenzie asked the Scotiabank agent in jest whether the letter would be accompanied by a MAiD pamphlet.
Presumably, the action taken by the bank was due to Mackenzie’s political views and public criticisms against the Trudeau government as well as his controversial nature, tough the specific reasons have yet to be disclosed by the financial institution.
Enemy of the State
“First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a socialist.
Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out—because I was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.” – Martin Niemöller
As mentioned earlier, this author contacted Mr. Mackenzie regarding this matter for comment.
When asked whether he thinks his outspokenness towards the Trudeau government and the RCMP may have contributed to this punitive action along with possible motivations, Mr. Mackenzie stated the following:
“There's no question I am 'persona non grata' when it comes to the federal government. I have been the subject of a sustained campaign of slander and character assassination since 2018 by extremist zealots in the Canadian Anti Hate Network, which received substantial funding from the government.”
“This astroturfing of mischaracterizations and outright lies created a foundation for the greater media world at large to begin building stories on. This then led to the RCMP, Halifax Police, Saskatoon Police, York Police and OPP to begin investigation of me "based upon my ideology" while citing Anti Hate sourced media articles as justification.”
With regards to who may have asked or pressured Scotiabank to terminate their banking relationship with him, Mackenzie didn’t want to speculate, but referenced similar situations in America whereby popular outspoken figures had negative pressure applied to them in the media, law enforcement, and finance.
“De-banking has been long discussed as a means to 'motivate' others through example setting. Everyone who sees this happen to me may now think twice about supporting a cause the state doesn't like or posting something a politician may take issue with. There's a chilling effect, and it is intentional,” explained the outspoken CAF veteran.
Making a public example of political dissidents is an age-old tradition, and has certainly been exhibited in the past year with the likes of Tamara Lich and Pat King, among other Freedom Convoy organisers by the Trudeau Liberal government.
Freedom of information requests and the legal process “will inevitably reveal who was the key driver of this decision being made,” added Mackenzie.
Jeremy Mackenzie has a Substack called The Diagolon Dispatch which has a post aptly named Enemy of the State that outlines details of the crusade against him.
A Dangerous Precedent
Scotiabank, a Canadian multinational banking and financial services company headquartered in Toronto, void of any court order had frozen bank accounts of clients connected to the Freedom Convoy and subsequently apologised for doing so.
During last year’s Freedom Convoy under Trudeau’s invocation of the Emergencies Act (EA), the freezing of bank accounts without a court order was a first in Canadian history.
“Under the EA, the government froze some $8 million from the bank accounts of 267 different people. along with roughly 170 bitcoin wallets,” noted a January 12, 2023, LifeSiteNews article.
Once it became apparent that there was large scale financial support for the Freedom Convoy, Chrystia Freeland and Canadian banking CEOs were seeking a means by which they could financially punish its organisers and those who contributed to the popular movement.
A banking executive intimately involved in the matter suggested to Freeland that listing them as “terrorists” would do the trick.
The Public Order Emergency Commission’s (POEC) inquiry held last November revealed documents that confirmed the dishonest means. To wit, here is the suggestion that was brought forward during testimony [highlighted in red for emphasis]
The two keywords that stand out from the statement are “terrorists” and “sanctions”, for any individual who is designated a terrorist or appears on a sanctions list can swiftly have their bank accounts frozen, as per new Canadian laws. DPM refers to the Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.
The circumstances under which such unprecedented actions took place, however, were shady and frivolous, for they were employed, at least in part, as a political weapon.
Another banker confirmed this very sentiment:
Two major concerns expressed included that the [banking] sector could be used as “an arm of the government”, and that the banking system as a whole can be seen as a “political weapon.” It was also noted that court orders are [usually] required to act [in such practices].
As per a Nov. 24, 2021, True North article, a handwritten note by Chrystia Freeland under the headline “Dave” showed that the Minister of Finance was discussing the possibility of using the label of “terrorist” to describe members of the Freedom Convoy.
At the POEC inquiry, Chrystia Freeland stated that it was not her job to determined who is a terrorist; yet when lawyer Brendan Miller showed her handwritten note and asked her which person called Dave this note was referring to, Freeland skirted the issue.
Lawyer Brendan Miller questioning the Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland at the POEC inquiry with her handwritten note (left).
Freeland never denied that the note had come from her notebook. And though she refused to answer which party it was in reference to, she asserted that wasn’t about David Vigneault, the Director of CSIS, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service whose authority could be used to designate certain parties as terrorists.
There was also another written note, purportedly from Chrystia Freeland’s notebook and in her handwriting, labelled “Darryl / BMO” with the inscription “label them as terrorists.”
On Friday, January 19, reporter Andrew Lawton from True North, a Canadian digital media news platform, confronted Mr. Darryl White who is the current CEO of BMO (Bank of Montreal) on the streets of Davos, Switzerland where the current summit for the World Economic Forum (WEF) is taking place regarding the note. Mr. White, who appears on the WEF’s website, said that he would never called convoy protesters terrorists.
During the exchange, Lawton mentioned that another banking executive had stressed that they didn’t want the banks to be weaponised and asked White whether that was a view he shared. Mr. White said “Oh, it’s always a view I shared. I don’t think banks should be weaponised anymore than any other industry.”
The second area that is quite troubling with regards to these unscrupulous methods to punish individuals is that of sanctioning them.
Recently enacted legislation also outlines the very dangerous precedent of heedlessly adding individuals or entities to sanction would set in a liberal democracy.
For, in such an oppressive environment, any person could nonchalantly be labelled a terrorist, be put on a sanctions list, and become completely destroyed financially, professionally, reputationally, and socially.
What are the implications surrounding the Scotiabank – Jeremy Mackenzie case?
Firstly, it is worthwhile exploring what consequences occurred as a result of major banks (which apart from Scotiabank also include Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), BMO (Bank of Montreal), and the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)) freezing select customers’ accounts.
As was affirmed by a former TD bank executive, there was reportedly an “avalanche of withdrawals.”
Parker Gallant, a retired 30-year TD Bank executive and former vice-president of international finance and trade finance said that though overall trust with banks had not been shaken, “People are p—– off with what’s going on,” adding that the anger was mostly directed at the federal government.
Adding fear about the Canadian banking system, none other than Jordan Peterson weighed in on the matter last February asserting “I’ve been in contact with a reliable source within the Canadian military and he told me today by email that if I had any sense I’d take my money out of the Canadian banks because the situation is far worse than I’ve been informed.”
Peterson continued, specifically ripping Justin Trudeau on the matter by saying:
“He [Trudeau] permanently destroyed 20 percent of the population’s faith in the entire Canadian banking system. And stained the Canadian banking system’s international reputation, I would say for decades.”
At the time, the justification for freezing Canadian citizens’ bank accounts appears to have stemmed from the auspices of the Emergencies Act to counter so-called “domestic terrorism.”
Now that this EA is no longer in effect, it is reasonable to ask under which specific pretexts Mr. Mackenzie’s account has been frozen. For, its potential consequences are quite serious and can be far-reaching.
If any of those reasons were void of sound legal bases and merely frivolous in nature, that would confirm that these financial institutions we call commercial banks have become, de facto, usurped by the federal authorities to act on their behalf as a political weapon to punish anyone who dissents against them. This is the kind of stuff that happens under a tyrannical regime.
When asked what message he would have to his fellow Canadians regarding this matter, Jeremy Mackenzie stressed the following:
“I am simply a Canadian veteran who found a second life in expressing his opinions and entertaining others. Because the state didn't like what I have to say, it chose to target me. Regardless of who someone is or what they believe, the fact that Canadians are not protected from something as severe as having your bank account terminated, seemingly because they don't like you, is a dark precedent. If it can happen to me, it can happen to you. Is that okay?”
Over the weekend, there has been a significant amount of backlash on social media and on Twitter in particular. The hashtags #BoycottScotiabank and #ScotiabankRun have trended with thousands of views and comments from enraged Canadians.
Another outspoken personality, David Freiheit, better known as Viva Frei, who fled with his family to Florida last year from this native province of Quebec due to similar fears, set up a GiveSendGo campaign to help Jeremy Mackenzie in his plight, stating the following in its description:
“This fundraiser is not an endorsement of the offensive things Jeremy has said. It is not an endorsement of the crimes for which Jeremy is accused. This fundraiser is a middle finger to the tyranny we are currently witnessing in Canada.
Love him or hate him, we either stand with Jeremy, or we come to terms with the fact that Canada is not a free and democratic society.
I, David Freiheit, set this account up. I will not take one penny from it. All proceeds go to Jeremy and to whatever costs and fees he incurs in pursuit of justice. My hope is that it pays off Jeremy's mortgage and living expenses.”
The campaign has already amassed over $14,600.
This author has contacted Scotiabank for comment regarding this and other questions surrounding the Mackenzie case but has yet to receive an answer. Should one be forthcoming, it will be appended to this article.
How long until they start coming after us journalists too?
“Someone you have deprived of everything is no longer in your power.
He is again completely free.” – Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Addendum
Government of Canada - Financial Consumer Agency of Canada - Your banking rights and new protections
Disclaimer:
See the author’s About page for full disclaimer.
Highly troubling. While I didn't have any evidence to point to I knew this wouldn't end with the emergencies act. It's true that workarounds exist, it's really not the point at this stage. Sure a couple of industrious dissidents may be able to operate in a shadow financial network, but as he points out the chilling effects are massive.
We must stand for others while we still can.
The longer this current gang sits in Parliament, the more these new 'normals' set in and are codified both as matter of law and routine.
Canada is slipping.
How much is this tied to Chrystia's legislation she rammed through during the EA - the one they suspiciously had ready to go and seemed very eager to implement?