What We Lost: Inside the Attack on Canada's Largest Children's Charity

by Tawfiq Rangwala

Read by Martin Luther King III, the What WE Lost podcast goes behind the scenes of the so-called ‘WE Charity Scandal’ to share the real story that Canadians never got to hear. It’s a story of a manufactured scandal designed for partisan gain and of a media landscape defined more by clicks and likes than facts and truth. For the first time, Martin Luther King III recounts the real story that was never reported.
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Podcast episodes

  • Season 1

  • Introduction to What WE Lost Podcast

    Introduction to What WE Lost Podcast

    S01 E01
    34:14

    As a past member of WE Charity’s board of directors, Tawfiq Rangwala had a front row seat to the CSSG controversy as it unfolded. He resigned from the board and decided to write a book about what he witnessed first hand, Read by Martin Luther King III, this podcast showcases Tawfiq's decision to write What WE Lost and about what really happened in what became known as the "WE Charity scandal". Martin Luther King III reads the What WE Lost podcast.

  • Bad Omens

    Bad Omens

    S01 E02
    57:58

    At the start of 2020, just months before the Canada Student Services Grant controversy dominated headlines, WE was riding high, gearing up to celebrate its' 25th anniversary and planning for the next 25 years. But with a global pandemic declared in March, the organization had to make some quick and difficult decisions. Read by Martin Luther King III, this is the What WE Lost podcast episode 2. Lets look at the truth behind those decisions and how they set up the organization for long term stability.

  • Good Enough is Not Good Enough

    Good Enough is Not Good Enough

    S01 E03
    01:23:01

    “Whatever the criticism, one thing is clear: the attack on WE was really, in many ways, an attack on the character and credibility of its co-founders, Craig and Marc Kielburger.” Martin Luther King III reads The What WE Lost podcast. Listen as Tawfiq Rangwala takes a look back at the Kielburger brothers while also demystifying some of the bigger criticisms of the organization – from ME to WE to its culture to real estate policy – to dispel some of the myths at the centre of the CSSG controversy.

  • A Call to Serve

    A Call to Serve

    S01 E04
    55:47

    Martin Luther King III goes further into the controversy in this episode of the What WE Lost Podcast. The CSSG program was not a 'government bail out' for the organization as politicians like Charlie Angus and Pierre Poilievre would have you believe. Instead, it started with government bureaucrats looking for a solution and believing WE Charity, with its 25-year track record, was the solution. Listen to Martin Luther King III narrate the What WE Lost podcast, starting with the call from Rachel Wernick that changed everything.

  • Mission Creep

    Mission Creep

    S01 E05
    48:00

    It was supposed to be a $40-million program supporting 20,000 students, but at the urging of government bureaucrats, the CSSG ballooned in size to support 100,000 students with a maximum price tag of $543 million. How did it balloon in size in a matter of weeks? Why did WE Charity Foundation really sign the contribution agreement? What government misstep almost made WE Charity pull out of the program before it even launched? Martin Luther King III goes further into what really happened in the What WE Lost podcast. This is the insider’s story you won’t hear from politicians like Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Pierre Poilievre.