Canadian "protesters" at Huawei extradition hearing say they were tricked, thought they were in a music video

The idea of paid protesters is a favorite of the right, though as always, the thing you accuse your opponents of inevitably turns out to be the thing you're doing yourself (Trump paid actors to cheer his presidential campaign announcement and big industry groups pay actors to protest regulations that undermine their profits).

The Trump administration has been seeking to extradite Huawei heiress/exec Meng Wanzhou since they had her arrested by Canadian authorities in late 2018.

This week saw a crucial juncture in that legal wrangle, when Meng Wanzhou faced a judge over her objections to her extradition. Cameras were barred from the courtroom, but outside of it there was a lively demonstration of pro-Huawei/pro-China protesters, with a very different makeup to the usual protesters who have taken up Ms Weng's cause, who are primarily mainland Chinese students who are studying in Canada.

By contrast, these protesters were primarily not of Chinese origin, and they all sported red, homemade protest signs decrying the Trump administration, calling for "equal justice," and seeking the return of "Michael" (two Canadians, both named Michael, have been detained by Chinese authorities in retaliation for Meng's arrest).

Bob Mackin of The Breaker attended the protest and talked to these protesters and found them both curiously reticent to speak about their cause, and also singularly ignorant about the cause they were supporting. Mackin asked several of the protesters if they'd been paid to attend the event, but none admitted it at the time.

Subsequently, some of the protesters have contacted Mackin to say that they were paid to be there, and moreover, that they believed they were performing as extras in a music video. Read the rest