The payment giants of traditional finance are closing their doors to this international organization bringing together activists and left-wing progressive organizations. Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) are coming to the rescue.
Cryptocurrencies as a response to debanking
On January 31, 2022, Progressive International announced on Twitter that the organization is now accepting donations in bitcoin and ether at bc1qcxhwsj7c9pdrfk2970rpgz3vwvnz658l5jjw2c and 0x8C67C3b27F027985EE9Cc29AB0f8630358F125c4 respectively. This is the first time Progressive International has accepted cryptocurrency donations.
This decision was reportedly made after “several companies blocked donations to the @progintl a solidarity campaign with Cuba and its ambitions to help vaccinate the world.” Specifically, Dutch bank ING and payment giant PayPal reportedly blocked donations to Progressive International and this Cuba solidarity campaign, according to a spokesperson for the organization.
The campaign was intended to fund Progressive International’s efforts to show the Cuban government’s progress in developing vaccines against covid-19. It also aimed to support the hosting of a panel of experts to present the Cuban government’s efforts on vaccination.
Accepting donations in cryptocurrencies is therefore a defense for Progressive International against “attempts” to exclude the organization “from the global financial system.”
The BTC address provided by Progressive International holds 0.00868179 BTC at the time of writing. Ether donations amount to 0.71528 ETH.
Traditional finance fails once again in the field of inclusiveness. Those excluded from the banks and the traditional financial system are turning to the new finance which offers them a home. Some people criticize proof-of-work cryptocurrencies like bitcoin for being polluting and thus destroying the planet. Mozilla even had to back down under pressure after announcing that it was accepting donations in cryptocurrencies. But how many people dare to criticize organizations that accept donations in fiat currencies, this toy of banks that give power to institutions that reign supreme over a centralized system, not hesitating to exclude those who would not necessarily share the same visions or values as them.
