HEY KENNEY DID THIS COME FROM THE WAR ROOM?
THE INDEPENDENT
An explicit cartoon of 17-year-old Greta Thunberg being raped has been spotted with the branding of a Canadian oil company on it.
According to HuffPost Canada, ARTICLE POSTED BELOW the sticker was found by Alberta citizen Michelle Narang, who despite being a supporter of the oil and gas industry, felt compelled to post an image of the sticker on Facebook criticising its existence.
The sticker was allegedly being handed out at job sites to be worn on hard hats, and was circulating among X-Site Energy Services employees last week with the knowledge of one of the managers.
Said manager reportedly responded to the complaint by saying that Thunberg "wasn't a child"... which seems somewhat irrelevant.
Thunberg responded in her characteristically measured way, tweeting that this shows she and her cause are winning.
This isn't necessarily wrong. Thunberg has a history of making men irrationally angry, despite the fact that her only goal in life is really to minimise the planet's destruction due to climate change.
Somehow, the likes of Donald Trump, Piers Morgan, Jeremy Clarkson and so on seem incapable of just leaving her alone, and feel the need to constantly hurl insults and minimise her impact.
This has now escalated to the point of images of sexual violence, which is clearly worrying.
It's also heavily gendered – one can only wonder whether a male activist would be subject to such horrifying treatment and conclude that likely not.
Disgusting Sticker Of 'Greta Thunberg' Linked To Alberta Oil Company Shocks Canadians
“It blows my mind anyone would think it’s funny.”
By Samantha Beattie
HUFFINGTON POST CANADA
Michelle Narang cried when she first saw a sticker of what appears to be a drawing of teen activist Greta Thunberg being sexually assaulted and the name of an oilfield company printed boldly across the bottom of the decal.
Narang, who lives in Rocky Mountain House in west-central Alberta, is a proud supporter of Canadian energy. Her relatives earn a living in the oil industry, which also supports the non-profit she works for. She calls the investment that oil and gas companies make in communities, like her town, “beautiful.”
“This is an industry Alberta is fighting for so desperately. This sticker is not something Alberta or Albertans need,” Narang told HuffPost Canada in an interview Thursday.
Narang decided she couldn’t stay silent. As someone who knows survivors of sexual assault, she never wants her 13-year-old son to see the sticker, or be OK with violence against women. So, she posted the image to Facebook as a way to call it out: “This company represents everything that the [oil and gas] industry needs to fight against.”
The sticker shows a drawing of the back of a nude female and two hands pulling from behind on her braided hair. The word “Greta” is written across her lower back. This image has been censored
“Silence never creates change,” Narang said. “It’s sad to me (the sticker) went through a supply chain of people, who thought about it, printed it and distributed it. It blows my mind anyone would think it’s funny.”
A friend who works in the oil industry sent an image of the sticker to Narang. They spoke to HuffPost Canada on a condition of anonymity, fearing repercussions at their job. The sticker, reading “X-Site Energy Services,” was handed out recently as promotional material at job sites to be worn on hard hats, the worker said.
Although the actual stickers weren’t distributed at their workplace, they said the graphic image was circulating among their colleagues on Wednesday. The worker said the company was asked if it would be interested in a similar sticker.
“It was completely disgusting and wrong,” the worker said.
Narang said she called the general manager of X-Site, Doug Sparrow, asking him if he knew about the sticker that appears to depict the rape of a minor. He said he was aware of it, according to Narang, and his response was, “She’s not a child, she’s 17.”
Under the Criminal Code, child pornography is any visual representation of a person under the age of 18 engaged or depicted to be engaged in a sexual activity.
Alberta oil and gas industry apparently needs to be reminded of the definition of child pornography in Canadian law. Making and disseminating child pornography is an indictable offence. #ablegpic.twitter.com/v55HfopK3a— Lise Gotell (@LiseGot) February 27, 2020
UPDATE - Feb. 28, 2020: RCMP have investigated the image, and determined it is not considered child pornography. “According to our experts, the image does not meet the criteria for it to constitute a criminal offence,” an officer from the Red Deer detachment told HuffPost.
Sparrow did not respond to HuffPost’s repeated requests for comment, but he told City News Edmonton Thursday that neither X-Site, nor any X-Site employee, was involved in making the sticker.
“Someone has done this. That’s all I know,” Sparrow said.
He told Global News that he was shutting down his company’s social media pages because of online “attacks.”
Velocity, a printing company in Red Deer, has been accused of printing the stickers. A representative told HuffPost that while X-Site was a previous client, its work history shows Velocity did not print this order.
Thunberg, a Swedish activist, has become a symbol for climate change action, as the world faces significant global warming and only 10 years to curb catastrophe, according to the United Nations and other experts.
At the same time, the Alberta oil industry is facing increasing pressure from other provinces and environmentalists to cut carbon emissions and transition to green energy.
Just this week, Teck Resources backed out of a $20-billion Alberta oilsands mining project, blaming Canada’s unclear climate change policy. Across the country, Indigenous protesters have blocked major railways in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline in B.C.
Highlighting the national discord, four Alberta Conservative MPs released a document called the “Buffalo Declaration,” calling for “equality” and a louder voice for Alberta at the federal table.
‘This is not what our province stands for’
Alberta’s Minister of Culture Leela Aheer denounced the image on Twitter, calling it, “completely deplorable, unacceptable and degrading. This is not what our province stands for. Whoever is responsible should be ashamed and apologize immediately. I stand with Albertans against this horrendous image.”
Premier Jason Kenney, in a comment, thanked Aheer for denouncing “this odious image and the message it sends.”
Narang emphasized the sticker is not representative of her community and does not want it to be used as fodder by the “anti-oil, anti-Alberta side.”
“I really want Eastern Canada to understand this (sticker) is the craziest thing possible,” Narang said. “There’s way more good news stories and we love our environment.”
UPDATE: This story has been updated to include politicians’ responses and an additional comment from Doug Sparrow.
EDITOR’S NOTE: A previous version of this story included an unedited image of the sticker. It has been updated to blur the image as it is an implied depiction of a minor.
'Greta Thunberg' Sticker Is Offensive But Not Child Pornography: RCMP
The House of Commons unanimously adopted a motion condemning the sticker.
By Emilie Clavel
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Michelle Narang cried when she first saw a sticker of what appears to be a drawing of teen activist Greta Thunberg being sexually assaulted and the name of an oilfield company printed boldly across the bottom of the decal.
Narang, who lives in Rocky Mountain House in west-central Alberta, is a proud supporter of Canadian energy. Her relatives earn a living in the oil industry, which also supports the non-profit she works for. She calls the investment that oil and gas companies make in communities, like her town, “beautiful.”
“This is an industry Alberta is fighting for so desperately. This sticker is not something Alberta or Albertans need,” Narang told HuffPost Canada in an interview Thursday.
Narang decided she couldn’t stay silent. As someone who knows survivors of sexual assault, she never wants her 13-year-old son to see the sticker, or be OK with violence against women. So, she posted the image to Facebook as a way to call it out: “This company represents everything that the [oil and gas] industry needs to fight against.”
The sticker shows a drawing of the back of a nude female and two hands pulling from behind on her braided hair. The word “Greta” is written across her lower back. This image has been censored
“Silence never creates change,” Narang said. “It’s sad to me (the sticker) went through a supply chain of people, who thought about it, printed it and distributed it. It blows my mind anyone would think it’s funny.”
A friend who works in the oil industry sent an image of the sticker to Narang. They spoke to HuffPost Canada on a condition of anonymity, fearing repercussions at their job. The sticker, reading “X-Site Energy Services,” was handed out recently as promotional material at job sites to be worn on hard hats, the worker said.
Although the actual stickers weren’t distributed at their workplace, they said the graphic image was circulating among their colleagues on Wednesday. The worker said the company was asked if it would be interested in a similar sticker.
“It was completely disgusting and wrong,” the worker said.
Narang said she called the general manager of X-Site, Doug Sparrow, asking him if he knew about the sticker that appears to depict the rape of a minor. He said he was aware of it, according to Narang, and his response was, “She’s not a child, she’s 17.”
Under the Criminal Code, child pornography is any visual representation of a person under the age of 18 engaged or depicted to be engaged in a sexual activity.
Alberta oil and gas industry apparently needs to be reminded of the definition of child pornography in Canadian law. Making and disseminating child pornography is an indictable offence. #ablegpic.twitter.com/v55HfopK3a— Lise Gotell (@LiseGot) February 27, 2020
UPDATE - Feb. 28, 2020: RCMP have investigated the image, and determined it is not considered child pornography. “According to our experts, the image does not meet the criteria for it to constitute a criminal offence,” an officer from the Red Deer detachment told HuffPost.
Sparrow did not respond to HuffPost’s repeated requests for comment, but he told City News Edmonton Thursday that neither X-Site, nor any X-Site employee, was involved in making the sticker.
“Someone has done this. That’s all I know,” Sparrow said.
He told Global News that he was shutting down his company’s social media pages because of online “attacks.”
Velocity, a printing company in Red Deer, has been accused of printing the stickers. A representative told HuffPost that while X-Site was a previous client, its work history shows Velocity did not print this order.
Thunberg, a Swedish activist, has become a symbol for climate change action, as the world faces significant global warming and only 10 years to curb catastrophe, according to the United Nations and other experts.
At the same time, the Alberta oil industry is facing increasing pressure from other provinces and environmentalists to cut carbon emissions and transition to green energy.
Just this week, Teck Resources backed out of a $20-billion Alberta oilsands mining project, blaming Canada’s unclear climate change policy. Across the country, Indigenous protesters have blocked major railways in solidarity with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs who oppose a natural gas pipeline in B.C.
Highlighting the national discord, four Alberta Conservative MPs released a document called the “Buffalo Declaration,” calling for “equality” and a louder voice for Alberta at the federal table.
‘This is not what our province stands for’
Alberta’s Minister of Culture Leela Aheer denounced the image on Twitter, calling it, “completely deplorable, unacceptable and degrading. This is not what our province stands for. Whoever is responsible should be ashamed and apologize immediately. I stand with Albertans against this horrendous image.”
Premier Jason Kenney, in a comment, thanked Aheer for denouncing “this odious image and the message it sends.”
Narang emphasized the sticker is not representative of her community and does not want it to be used as fodder by the “anti-oil, anti-Alberta side.”
“I really want Eastern Canada to understand this (sticker) is the craziest thing possible,” Narang said. “There’s way more good news stories and we love our environment.”
UPDATE: This story has been updated to include politicians’ responses and an additional comment from Doug Sparrow.
EDITOR’S NOTE: A previous version of this story included an unedited image of the sticker. It has been updated to blur the image as it is an implied depiction of a minor.
'Greta Thunberg' Sticker Is Offensive But Not Child Pornography: RCMP
The House of Commons unanimously adopted a motion condemning the sticker.
By Emilie Clavel
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Climate activist Greta Thunberg marches in a school strike
climate protest in Bristol in southwest England on Feb. 28, 2020.
A sticker linked to an Alberta oilfield company that appears to depict teen climate activist Greta Thunberg being sexually assaulted “does not meet the threshold of a criminal matter,” according to the RCMP.
The drawing shows a naked female and two hands pulling her braids back, with the word “Greta” written across her lower back. Below that is the logo of Edson-based company X-Site Energy Services Ltd. It has drawn staunch criticism, and serious concerns that the imagery constitutes child pornography.
Swedish activist Thunberg, 17, has galvanized young people around the world to call on global leaders to act on climate change. She made several stops in Canada last year, including a climate rally at the Alberta legislature. Supporters of the oil and gas industry from United We Roll countered the event with a convoy meant to show their pride for the sector.
Previously on HuffPost: Greta Thunberg joins rally in Edmonton. Story continues after video.
Michelle Narang, who lives in Rocky Mountain House and called out the image on Facebook, told the Canadian Press that she reported the image as child pornography to to the RCMP Thursday.
On Friday, RCMP Supt. Gerald Grobmeier told HuffPost that while his detachment in Red Deer had not been assigned to the complaint, officers there “took it upon themselves” to review the image after seeing it on Facebook.
“We had the image analyzed by our experts in child exploitation matters. They determined that it does not meet the threshold of a criminal matter, so there isn’t an investigation underway,” he said.
Under the Criminal Code, child pornography is any visual representation of a person under the age of 18 engaged or depicted to be engaged in a sexual activity.
“There’s a lot of assumptions on who that person is when they write the word ‘Greta.’ Unfortunately, with criminal cases you can’t make assumptions, you need facts,” Grobmeier said.
“We also don’t feel it’s appropriate, of course, but it isn’t a criminal matter,” he added.
‘Room for interpretation’
Francis Fortin, an associate professor of criminology at University of Montreal whose research has focused on child pornography, said the RCMP’s decision is a sound one.
While the image leaves “room for interpretation,” the explicit character or sexual purpose of the image is questionable, from a legal standpoint. For example, it would be hard to prove to a judge that the image depicts someone under 18 years old.
“With a 16- or 17-year-old girl, it’s hard to establish their age. Some are more developed than others,” said Fortin, pointing out this is part of the reason why most arrests for child pornography deal with images showing prepubescent children.
Illustrations or drawings can prove even trickier to prosecute, since “the spirit of the law is to stop the proliferation of those images to protect children from being victimized.”
Fortin said, “You need to put the context aside and look at the image on its own, staying very true to the law. I don’t think someone could make the interpretation [that the image shows Greta Thunberg]. Greta is a fairly common name.”
That is not to say the sticker should ever have been distributed.
“It’s definitely in bad taste,” said Fortin. “But it couldn’t be considered child pornography in Canada.”
On Friday afternoon, the House of Commons unanimously adopted a motion condemning the sticker. NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice, who tabled the motion, described it as “encouraging a violent sexual assault on a young environmental activist.”
A sticker linked to an Alberta oilfield company that appears to depict teen climate activist Greta Thunberg being sexually assaulted “does not meet the threshold of a criminal matter,” according to the RCMP.
The drawing shows a naked female and two hands pulling her braids back, with the word “Greta” written across her lower back. Below that is the logo of Edson-based company X-Site Energy Services Ltd. It has drawn staunch criticism, and serious concerns that the imagery constitutes child pornography.
Swedish activist Thunberg, 17, has galvanized young people around the world to call on global leaders to act on climate change. She made several stops in Canada last year, including a climate rally at the Alberta legislature. Supporters of the oil and gas industry from United We Roll countered the event with a convoy meant to show their pride for the sector.
Previously on HuffPost: Greta Thunberg joins rally in Edmonton. Story continues after video.
Michelle Narang, who lives in Rocky Mountain House and called out the image on Facebook, told the Canadian Press that she reported the image as child pornography to to the RCMP Thursday.
On Friday, RCMP Supt. Gerald Grobmeier told HuffPost that while his detachment in Red Deer had not been assigned to the complaint, officers there “took it upon themselves” to review the image after seeing it on Facebook.
“We had the image analyzed by our experts in child exploitation matters. They determined that it does not meet the threshold of a criminal matter, so there isn’t an investigation underway,” he said.
Under the Criminal Code, child pornography is any visual representation of a person under the age of 18 engaged or depicted to be engaged in a sexual activity.
“There’s a lot of assumptions on who that person is when they write the word ‘Greta.’ Unfortunately, with criminal cases you can’t make assumptions, you need facts,” Grobmeier said.
“We also don’t feel it’s appropriate, of course, but it isn’t a criminal matter,” he added.
‘Room for interpretation’
Francis Fortin, an associate professor of criminology at University of Montreal whose research has focused on child pornography, said the RCMP’s decision is a sound one.
While the image leaves “room for interpretation,” the explicit character or sexual purpose of the image is questionable, from a legal standpoint. For example, it would be hard to prove to a judge that the image depicts someone under 18 years old.
“With a 16- or 17-year-old girl, it’s hard to establish their age. Some are more developed than others,” said Fortin, pointing out this is part of the reason why most arrests for child pornography deal with images showing prepubescent children.
Illustrations or drawings can prove even trickier to prosecute, since “the spirit of the law is to stop the proliferation of those images to protect children from being victimized.”
Fortin said, “You need to put the context aside and look at the image on its own, staying very true to the law. I don’t think someone could make the interpretation [that the image shows Greta Thunberg]. Greta is a fairly common name.”
That is not to say the sticker should ever have been distributed.
“It’s definitely in bad taste,” said Fortin. “But it couldn’t be considered child pornography in Canada.”
On Friday afternoon, the House of Commons unanimously adopted a motion condemning the sticker. NDP MP Alexandre Boulerice, who tabled the motion, described it as “encouraging a violent sexual assault on a young environmental activist.”
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