Acadia University faculty union on strike, classes cancelled

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Union represents 350 professors, librarians, archivists, and 

instructors

Aly Thomson · CBC News · Posted: Feb 01, 2022 

Members of the Acadia University Faculty Association were on the picket line Tuesday after failing to reach a deal with the university. (David Laughlin/CBC)

Acadia University's 350 professors, librarians, archivists and instructors were on strike Tuesday and classes were cancelled after the union rejected the latest contract offer from the university.

The Acadia University Faculty Association said in a news release it had set a strike deadline of Tuesday at 12:01 a.m. local time after meetings with a provincially appointed conciliator "failed to result in substantial progress in negotiations."

The release said the conciliator filed a report declaring an impasse on Jan. 14, but discussions during the 14-day cooling off period failed to produce an acceptable offer.

The association's contract expired in July.

Union spokesperson Jon Saklofske, a professor in the English and theatre departments, said the union has been discouraged by the negotiations and feel the process has not been collaborative.

The Acadia University Faculty Association has been asking for improvements to hiring processes to increase diversity among faculty. (David Laughlin/CBC)

"We are at the core of this public institution's service. We were the ones that deliver the service to the enrolled here to get an education," Saklofske said in an interview,

"We just want to negotiate an agreement where faculty are aren't seen as a liability and that allows us to preserve and sustain the kind of education that Acadia delivers."

Saklofske said they are asking for salaries that do not fall below cost-of-living increases and also improvements to hiring processes to increase diversity among faculty, including dedicated positions for Indigenous faculty.

The union is also looking for a gradual increase in tenure-stream faculty to help meet increasing student enrolment, and improved wages and working conditions for part-time faculty, he said.

Dale Keefe, the university's provost and vice-president academic, said the university is taking negotiations seriously and is looking to get back to the bargaining table as soon as possible. He said the focus for now is making sure students are supported.

"I know the student services are working to provide tutoring sessions, provide additional activities on campus, study sessions — all of those sorts of things," said Keefe, adding there were also counselling sessions available.

Keefe said students "oviously are very concerned in terms of what does this mean for them and any sort of impact on their studies."

Dale Keefe is Acadia University's provost and vice-president of academic. (David Laughlin/CBC)

A message posted on the university's website Tuesday morning said all classes and labs were cancelled until further notice due to the strike, but all other campus operations and services would continue, and student supports were in place.

In a news release, union president Andrew Biro said faculty have gone "above and beyond" to support students through the last two years of the pandemic.

"Unfortunately the board has been unwilling to acknowledge the importance of faculty or recognize that decent working conditions guaranteed by a fair and equitable contract are paramount for us to continue to serve our important role in sustaining Acadia's strong academic programming," said Biro in the release.

Saklofske said the strike will follow COVID-19 protocols and plans are underway to accommodate members who cannot participate in picketing due to isolation requirements, being unwell or for non-COVID-related reasons such as mobility issues.

He noted that in November, 90 per cent of the Acadia University Faculty Association membership participated in a strike authorization vote and 94 per cent of those voted in favour of striking.

Acadia University Faculty Association spokesperson Jon Saklofske says they have been frustrated by a lack of direct response from the university to their offers during the negotiations. (David Laughlin/CBC)

"This just shows the dedication of our members to collaborate with the administration to just furthering the excellent educational aspects of Acadia. It shows our determination and also our commitment," he said.

Georgia Saleski, vice-president of student life with the Acadia Students' Union, said it's been a difficult few weeks for students, who have been watching the negotiations amid returning to in-person classes following the latest wave of the pandemic.

"It's been an extremely challenging few years for anyone who goes to university," Saleski, a fourth-year kinesiology student, told CBC Radio's Maritime Noon.

"This strike presents a whole new set of challenges as now it's not only the question of whether or not we'll be in classrooms or online, it's the question of when we'll get back to our education."

Saleski said students are hoping to get back into the classroom as soon as possible and that accommodations will be made to ensure students are able to complete their work on time to finish courses and graduate as scheduled.

Jamie Penney, a second-year student, was out on the picket lines with striking employees "to support my teachers."

"I think it's unfair because we are paying full tuition if the strikes goes on for long, but the teachers deserve everything they're asking for," Penney said.

Faculty & students protest “threats” levied by U of L as potential strike looms

(Lethbridge News Now)

By David Opinko
Jan 31, 2022 | 4:20 PM

LETHBRIDGE, AB – A little over 200 people came out to a protest outside the University of Lethbridge (U of L) Sunday afternoon.

Negotiations between the university and its faculty have been ongoing for over a year and a half and educators have been without a contract since June 30, 2020.

Recently, the two sides reached an impasse in talks with little in the way of substantial progress being made. There are several items they have been unable to agree on including pay, academic freedom, and more.

READ MORE: Impasse in negotiations between U of L and Faculty Association

With talks of a strike or lockout being a possibility in the next week or so, the U of L provided an update on the situation on Thursday, January 27 that outlined what might happen should there be job action. The full statement can be read here, but we have highlighted the portion of it that resulted in protesters hitting the picket line:

Impacts of Faculty Association Strike on Students:

A Faculty Association strike will halt all faculty-led student learning and research opportunities at the University.

Prolonged instructional delay threatens student outcomes below, and may result in the loss of the entire Spring 2022 semester:

course completion;

delays issuing final grades required for applications for graduation, graduate studies and other admissions;

disruption to applied learning placements, job placements, convocation, and employment timelines; and

travel requirements for international students

Impacts of Faculty Association Strike on Faculty:

A Faculty Association strike will pause employment for all members, including faculty and sessional instructors. During the strike period, members will be unable to:

offer student instruction and supervision,

conduct or support academic research, or

access any online academic platforms including email

Following the protest, the U of L sent the following statement to LNN in response to the impacts to faculty and students listed above:

“We have a limited semester window to provide the minimum number of instructional hours. A Faculty Association strike would have consequences for everyone, including students. We have an obligation to keep students informed. We’re doing that through direct communication and through our Student FAQ on the university website.”

The University did not directly state whether students would be eligible for a refund on their tuition or fees if there was to be a “loss of the entire Spring 2022 semester.”

While the U of L assures that they only want to protect the interests of students, many who attended the protest told LNN that they perceived the labour negotiations update as a direct threat to students.

“The mental health of students already is so fragile. And I’m like, oh, so you just told all these students on the add-drop date that you are taking away their semester and all of this money they’ve paid is gone. That’s what you’re telling them. That’s [what] you’re telling them is the threat – if we support our faculty,” says U of L student and protest organizer Amy Mendenhall

“My friends and I, we were up to one a.m. that day, reaching out to students, getting information to make sure everybody I could, I could add them to the group so I could comfort them, or we immediately reached out to all of them like, what the heck was that? And all the faculty said, like, this is propaganda, this was irresponsible. It was awful, horrific, and nobody has taken any claim for that, and the silence from admin since it went down has been deafening,” Mendenhall adds.

Julia Brassolotto, an associate professor in the Faculty of Health Sciences, says it was amazing to see so many come out on a windy Sunday to show their solidarity.

“I find it disingenuous to suggest that faculty don’t care about our students. We are very, very careful in thinking through everything to do with a potential strike because we know our students so well. We’re the ones at the frontlines who support them through their journey of learning. We have close relationships with them. So we’re acutely aware of the impact this could have and we want to mitigate any challenges, but I’m a public health professor and I teach my students to champion things to make things better. You have to address structural issues by speaking up, and so I think that they’re doing exactly what we teach them, which is to look at what’s fair and what’s reasonable and to speak up and get involved and be a part of that and I think it’s really cool that they’re exercising their right to do this.”

Brassolotto says it has been difficult to go over 580 days without a contract as it only adds to the uncertainty and stress caused by the pandemic.

“Early on in negotiations, there was a threat of a four percent retroactive rollback, which was only removed once we went into mediation. What that meant is that they were telling us for, you know, almost a year that they might dip into our accounts and take back four per cent from the previous year’s salary in addition to rolling back. So there was this financial uncertainty for all of us. Also wanting to protect things in the university like academic freedom and collegial governance.”

Some members of the protest told LNN that they heard rumours that President and Vice Chancellor Mike Mahon would be leaving the university at the end of this term. The U of L states that this is not true and that Mahon’s contract ends mid-way through 2023.

If the U of L’s Faculty Association were to vote to declare a strike, they would have to give 72 hours of notice before it could potentially begin.

Both faculty and the university assure students that they would like to do everything they can to prevent this from happening.

Students march in support of faculty as University of Lethbridge contract negotiations continue

A few hundred students and faculty members braved the wind on Sunday to stand in solidarity and support amid ongoing contract negotiations between faculty members and the University of Lethbridge.

Karsen Marczuk
CTV News Lethbridge Video Journalist
Published Jan. 31, 2022 5:19 p.m. MST

Tensions and emotions are running high at the University of Lethbridge because of the possibility of strike action.

A few hundred students and faculty members braved the wind on Sunday to stand in solidarity and support amid ongoing contract negotiations between faculty members and the University of Lethbridge. Those in attendance say the lack of communication between the university and student's is concerning.

“My concern is for all of the first years and second years that have never experienced campus life, that makes me angry because they don't know what's happening because students are left out of the conversation,” said Amy Mendenhall, a student and co-organizer of the protest.

Faculty members have been without a contract for almost two years.

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'It's just terrible for employees': University of Lethbridge Faculty Association holds rally as contract talks drag on

Students say they are concerned about a possible strike after bargaining reached an impasse nearly two weeks ago.

An unsigned email sent by the university last week also has students on edge. It states if a strike takes place, faculty won't even have access to their emails.

“We’re so frustrated because as students, were the biggest stakeholder here and nobody has asked us, nobody has talked to us, we've been kept out of it,” said Mendenhall.

Students says it's nearly impossible to learn without professors to teach.

“I hope that the board of governors realises that they have nothing without the professors and without the students," said student Kathleen Mah.

"We stand in solidarity with them, not because we're swallow or we're just kind of throwing things out there, but because these are the people that we see everyday, these are the people that support us."

The University of Lethbridge Faculty Association (ULFA) held a rally in November in response to contract deliberations. Students fear they won't be able to finish the semester.

“I want academic freedom addressed, I want things like intellectual property addressed, most importantly I want to see our faculty happy, and they are not happy right now,” said student Angie Nikoleychuk.

ULFA president Dan O'Donnell says he was pleased to see students voicing their concerns and frustration with the U of L.

“The trouble over the past two years has been the administration of the university has tried several times to pit students and faculty and staff against each other and those of us in the leadership of the union and leadership of student groups have known that's not true,” said O’Donnell.

The union and U of L are currently in a two-week cooling off period, O’Donnell says once the period passes on Wednesday, the union can apply for a strike vote under the Alberta Labour Relations Board.

If faculty vote for job action, it could begin as early as next week.

“I’m confident that as the week goes on, we'll certainly see some new contact and I’m hoping some real opportunities to negotiate and get things settled,” said O’Donnell.

Similarly, the university would be able to lock employees out.


A few hundred students and faculty members braved the wind on Sunday to stand in solidarity and support amid ongoing contract negotiations between faculty members and the University of Lethbridge.

THE RULING IDEAS ARE THE IDEAS OF THE RULING CLASS

With Winter Olympics set to start, poll finds Canadians not supportive

Boycott Beijing Games: poll

Mario Canseco - Feb 2, 2022 / 4:00 am | Story: 358688

Photo: Contributed

We are just days away from the start of the Winter Olympics and Canadians may be forgiven for not feeling in a particularly cheerful mood.

The ramifications of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to rattle our lives, with increased discussions about vaccine mandates and daily statements by health authorities. The country’s residents are also more concerned about economic stability and inflation than in years past.

If the Games were taking place in the United States or Europe, the sentiment from Canadians might be different. However, as those interested in skating, skiing and hockey undoubtedly know, the Olympics are being held in Beijing, making the city unique as the first host of both the summer and winter varieties of the sporting event.

From the standpoint of the average spectator, the Winter Olympics will be unusual in North America. The broadcasters that secured the rights to the Games years before anyone knew what COVID-19 was will not send the usual army of reporters and commentators to Beijing. These Games, like the ones that took place in Tokyo last summer, will feature little local flavour and many virtual sets managed from Ontario and Connecticut.

Research Co. and Glacier Media have consistently tracked the views of Canadians on China and the 2022 Olympics. Only about one in five Canadians have had a positive view of the People’s Republic of China for the past year and a half (20% when we last asked this question in December).

Also in December, 56% of Canadians thought that Canada should boycott the 2022 Winter Games because of China’s human rights record. The survey also outlined that Canadians wanted athletes to have free expression during the Games, as well as concerns about their safety: partly due to COVID-19, but also because they keep in mind the arbitrary detention of Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig.

A few days ago, we asked Canadians again about Beijing 2022. Perhaps the allure of a sporting event that Canadians followed intently in past editions would change minds. Or maybe, to follow the rhetoric from past and present presidents of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), this is “a time for sport, not politics.”

The answer to both of these questions is a resounding “No.” In our latest survey, 59% of Canadians remain adamant that Canada should boycott the Beijing Olympics, up three points since December and the highest level observed in four different surveys conducted since March 2021.

The generational gap that is usually present on nationwide public opinion research is not prominent on this matter. Majorities of Canadians aged 18 to 34 (59%), aged 35 to 54 (54%) and aged 55 and over (65%) want to send a message that goes beyond not having a sitting official at the opening ceremonies – essentially what the “diplomatic boycott” enacted by Canada and the United States entails.

As was the case a few weeks ago, residents of three provinces are particularly adamant about keeping Canadian athletes home: Quebec (66%), British Columbia (also 66%) and Ontario (57%). There is no political divide on this matter either. More than three in five Canadians who last year voted for the Conservative Party of Canada (67%), the Liberal Party of Canada (63%) and the New Democratic Party (NDP) (62%) also support a boycott.

Regardless of the status of participants, most Canadians remain steadfast in the belief that athletes should be able to protest China’s human rights record during Beijing 2022 (72%, down two points) and that the IOC should not punish those who choose to do so (also 72%, up one point).

An equal proportion (72%, down two points) remains concerned about the health and safety of Canadian athletes who travel to Beijing. In addition, 47% of Canadians (up two points) claim that they will make a conscious effort to refrain from watching the Games, a proportion that rises to 53% in Quebec.

We also continue to see consistency in the relationship between Canadian wallets and Chinese exports. Only 30% of Canadians (down two points) say they never avoid products from China. Among the remaining 70% who try to pay attention to what they buy, 41% elude Chinese goods “most of the time” and 16% say they follow this course of action “all of the time.”

As the start of Beijing 2022 draws near, almost half of Canadians claim that they will be tuning out of this edition of the Winter Olympics altogether. The negative views of Canadians on the host country have not budged. Compared with last year, a slightly larger proportion of Canadians believe that a full boycott is warranted.

Mario Canseco is president of Research Co.

Results are based on an online study conducted from Jan. 21 to Jan. 23, 2022, among 1,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error, which measures sample variability, is plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

This column first appeared in Business In Vancouver.

Vaccination mandates aren't the enemy here, COVID is': Federal labour minister addresses Edmonton chamber crowd

Author of the article:

Ashley Joannou

Publishing date:

Feb 01, 2022  •  

Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan spoke to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce on Monday, Jan. 31, 2022. PHOTO BY ADRIAN WYLD /The Canadian Press, file

Article content

The risk of unvaccinated workers falling ill is far greater than the risk of labour shortages caused by a vaccination mandate, federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan told the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce Monday.

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Speaking at a virtual question and answer session, O’Regan said the convoy of protesters that arrived in Ottawa over the weekend had a lot less to do with truckers, who are largely vaccinated, than people were originally led to believe.

“I think it’s pretty evident that what you have in Ottawa are people with very deep-seated feelings about vaccinations period, or, frankly, people who are just tired of COVID and really want to let us know that,” he said.

The protest, dubbed the Freedom Convoy, was originally targeting a federal mandate requiring unvaccinated Canadian truckers re-entering Canada from the United States to get tested for COVID-19 and to quarantine but expanded to include those demonstrating against health orders and the federal government as a whole.

While acknowledging that everyone is tired of the pandemic, O’Regan said vaccine mandates work in increasing the overall percentage of the population that is vaccinated.

“All of these numbers do matter, and the risk of an unvaccinated worker falling ill and having to stay home or worse, ending up in hospital is far greater than the risk of labour shortages caused by vaccination mandates — bottom line,” he said.

“Vaccination mandates aren’t the enemy here, COVID is. 

COVID is the biggest threat to our economy.”

In December the federal government passed legislation to create 10 mandatory days of paid sick leave for workers in federally regulated industries. The changes will come into force by order in council. O’Regan said Monday that he is meeting with his provincial and territorial counterparts in February to talk about having similar legislation across the country.

Mandatory paid sick leave across the country would “close the gap in Canada’s social safety net,” O’Regan said while acknowledging that kind of country-wide change impacts smaller businesses.

“it’s one thing when I’m dealing with a CN, or a CP, or a Rogers, or a Bell, or Shaw. It’s quite another thing when you’re dealing with smaller businesses,” he said.

“So we’ve got to take the time to get it right. That is something that we are going to be consulting and working with industry very closely. I’m going to begin that conversation with my provincial and territorial colleagues.”

In Alberta, the NDP Opposition has repeatedly called for mandatory paid sick leave during the pandemic. Premier Jason Kenney has called it a “job-killing” policy that would force layoffs and put additional costs on business owners.

ajoannou@postmedia.com

twitter.com/ashleyjoannou

OTTAWA
The story behind this photo of downtown residents blocking a truck's path

Social media applauds 3 women as 'heroes' after they stood up to vehicles 'terrorizing' neighbourhood

Priscilla Ki Sun Hwang · 

CBC News · Posted: Feb 01, 2022

Marika Morris, photographed here pointing her thumb down, says she and her downtown Ottawa neighbours took to their streets to block trucks and vehicles driving through their neighbourhood Monday. To her left are Lise Lebeau and Andrea Colbert. The fourth person in the photo has not been identified. (Reddit)

Truck off.

That's what a few Ottawa residents communicated in their body language seen in a photo circulating online — a snapshot that captures the tension between Ottawans living in the downtown core and a cross-country convoy of visitors who have occupied city streets and Parliament Hill since Friday.

The image shows a large dump truck just metres away from two residents standing in the middle of a narrow Cooper Street in the city's Centretown neighbourhood — and both sides appear to be at a standstill.

"I decided to get out in the streets in front of a big truck … because I felt powerless. By that point it was three days of non-stop honking, yelling," Marika Morris, one of the residents in the photo, told CBC News on Tuesday.

"We can't think, we can't work, we can't study."

Lise Lebeau, Andrea Colbert and Marika Morris, who all live on Cooper Street in downtown Ottawa, say they’re fed up with the noise, intimidation and disruption caused by the truck convoy. 

Tuesday marks the fifth day downtown Ottawa residents have had to endure blaring honks and the smell of diesel fuel, stemming from an occupation of trucks and thousands of protesters that came to Ottawa in what began as opposition to mandatory vaccination for cross-border truckers — and has since evolved to include a range of opposition to COVID-19 public health measures.

"The only way to communicate with them was to stand in the middle of the road and make a thumbs down sign every time they honked," said Morris.

"That was the only way to communicate that we don't want them to terrorize us and we don't want them to occupy our streets."

It's not easy to stand up to a bully.- Andrea Colbert, Ottawa resident

Morris, who's seen in the photo directly in front of the truck leading a small parade of other vehicles, points her thumb down at drivers. Some are applauding her and her neighbours as "heroes."

"Three older ladies just blocked a small convoy led by a dump truck on Cooper. They were fantastic and are my new heroes," posted a Reddit user Monday, alongside the photo.

"Not all heroes wear capes! Some wear shawls," another wrote in response.

The photographer, who lives on the street and who CBC agreed not to name because of concerns for their safety, said they wanted "to share [the women's] bravery."

"They were doing what I think a lot of Ottawans wanted to do but were too afraid to do — stand up to the abuse of some of the protesters. I was very proud of them," the resident wrote to CBC in a private message.

'They don't care whether we live or die'

Lise Lebeau and Andrea Colbert were with Morris on Monday afternoon.

"The driver got very mad and he was honking," explained Lebeau, who said their impromptu blockade lasted only a few minutes before the women allowed the trucks to drive past.

"They got more belligerent, really aggressive, and were yelling at us," said Colbert.

Morris said the vehicles blocked every entry and exit for emergency vehicles.

"I know they don't care whether we live or die, but I certainly do care whether my neighbours live or die — so I wasn't going to stand there for too long."

From left to right, Andrea Colbert, Lise Lebeau and Marika Morris. The trio stood up to a small convoy of vehicles that paraded through their residential street on Monday. (Stu Mills/CBC)

Worried for neighbours

Morris said she typically sees people walking dogs all hours of the day — but the street has been barren for days. She knows of at least one child who's afraid to step outside, and says the vehicles are preventing some elderly residents from getting their prescription medications or grocery deliveries.

Morris said she was "choking on the way to the pharmacy" on vehicle exhaust fumes as they idled nearby. Lebeau, who has difficulty breathing, said she had to rely on her puffer more in the past few days.

A protester walks in front of Parliament Hill on Tuesday in Ottawa in front of a sign that says 'U gotta go'. Organizers behind the demonstration that has seized the nation's capital say they are preparing to stick around even longer by distributing fuel and supplies to the trucks clogging up Ottawa streets. (Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press)







The women also allege some people have defecated in the neighbourhood yards.

"They say they're doing this for freedom? Well we don't feel free, that's for sure," said Morris.

"We just decided we had enough, and we thought we'd make a statement," said Colbert, as horns roared behind her. "They're terrorizing our city."

She said once the photo of the trio began circulating, she felt proud of their efforts.

"But that was scary," Colbert said. "That's a huge truck ... It's not easy to stand up to a bully."

Vulnerable downtown residents hit breaking point as convoy enters 5th day

On Tuesday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford said it's time for protesters to move on to "let the people of Ottawa live" and let closed businesses reopen.

Asked during a Monday afternoon news conference whether police might end up clearing the protesters out, Ottawa police Chief Peter Sloly said police have "all options" on the table.

Sloly is scheduled to provide another update on the demonstrations on Wednesday afternoon.

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Michael Cooper has distanced himself from the symbol after criticism from 2 mayors

Emily Pasiuk · CBC News · Posted: Jan 30, 2022 

Conservative Member of Parliament for St. Albert-Edmonton, Michael Cooper, is seen in 2017. Cooper has been criticized for a photo of him giving an interview at an Ottawa protest while a person carrying a flag with a Nazi symbol is in the background. (CBC)

An Alberta MP said he was not aware a person was flying an upside down Canadian flag with a swastika on it behind him when he gave a television interview at a protest in Ottawa on the weekend.

Michael Cooper, the Conservative MP for St. Albert-Edmonton, was giving an interview to CBC TV on Saturday afternoon when a person holding the flag walked behind him. A photo of Cooper in proximity to the flag circulated online.

In a written statement Saturday night, Cooper distanced himself from the symbol, condemning it as "evil." 

"Had I seen the symbol, I would have condemned it, as I do now," the statement reads in part.

• Police presence will remain overnight as COVID-19 protests continue, says chief

• Ottawa mayor would like protesters to move on, but organizers say they're not going anywhere

"Nazism is the purest form of evil and I have always condemned it completely. Whoever flew this flag is personally responsible for that reprehensible decision and should be eternally ashamed of him or herself."

Over the weekend, Ottawa's downtown has been filled with thousands of truckers and others opposed to COVID-19 vaccine mandates and other public health restrictions.

Michael Cooper is seen in Ottawa, while speaking with CBC News. Just out of the frame, an upside down Canada flag with a swastika on it can be seen. (CBC)

Cooper attended the protest on Saturday, telling a CBC interviewer that he disagreed with the federal vaccine mandate for truck drivers crossing the U.S. border.

In the interview, Cooper said then that while there may be a "small number of unsavoury characters" in the mix, most of the people are "just here to send a message to the prime minister."

The protest was initially focused on the federal government's vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers, but it has expanded into a larger movement against broader public health measures to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Later Saturday, Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi and St. Albert Mayor Cathy Heron issued a joint statement calling on Cooper to apologize. 

"We want the rest of the country to know that MP Cooper's presence at this rally in no way reflects the values of Edmontonians and St. Albertans," the statement reads, in part.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi are both questioning St. Albert—Edmonton MP Michael Cooper’s participation in Saturday’s convoy protest, but Cooper says it’s his responsibility to hear his constituents’ concerns. 1:55

"Along with us, many other people are hurt by his behaviour and lack of judgment and we call upon him to apologize not only to his constituents, but to the rest of the country as well." 

Image not intentional, says political scientist

Duane Bratt, a political scientist at Mount Royal University in Calgary, said the image that circulated is not something Cooper intended. 

"But, you could have expected something like this when you waded into the protest," he said Sunday. 

"Because even if there's a minority, I saw an awful lot of upside down Canadian flags, I saw Confederate flags, I saw swastikas, I saw profanity towards [Justin] Trudeau. So, by going there, you create the opportunity for this sort of backdrop."

Bratt said the photo could haunt Cooper in the future, but added that he responded appropriately to the situation. 

OPINION: Convoy shows how Canadian society has become 'sick'

Wendy King finds too many examples of how the event was seriously un-Canadian —whatever valid points the organizers might have had got lost in the chaos

Wendy King

about 22 hours ago

Convoy traffic backed up north of Bradford in the southbound lanes of Highway 400 last week. 

Paul Novosad for BradfordToday

Honk if you’re sick of everything connected to the convoy?

Yeah, me, too. Except that I can’t get the visions out of my mind of what I have just seen in my country.

I really tried to understand what the main message was in having this trucker protest go to Ottawa.

Supposedly, it was to protest vaccine mandates for Canadian truckers, but then it morphed into something entirely different.

As far as I can tell, it was basically a weekend to get out and whine about everything from masks and supply shortages to gas prices and not being able to eat in a restaurant to not being able to party like it's 1999.

I get it. Everybody is angry. We are tired, fed up, broke, and cranky. People wanted to get outside with others of like mind and vent.

I get that, too!

We are mad about everything from $8 bacon to $1.50 for a litre of gas, crazy high rent to freezing cold weather to steamed-up glasses due to masks and we want someone to fix it all.

However, causing even more congestion on our highways, wasting fuel and possibly causing safety concerns for first-responders trying to manoeuvre to get to an emergency was a thoughtless way to do it.

Whatever valid points the organizers might have had got lost in the chaos.

There may have been an original message, but all I saw was a mess.

You lost me when reporters trying to do their jobs and cover the protest got spat upon and verbally abused.

You lost me when the woman being interviewed said, “the media is not covering this” literally as it was being covered. It wasn’t that there was no coverage, it was that you didn’t like the report.

For every logical, civilized speaker I saw there were dozens more who seemingly had no clue why they were really taking part.

It seemed as if they were just repeating phrases they heard somewhere:

”I am against mandates.”

“I’m here to get my freedom back."

“I’m fighting for Canada!”

When pushed as to what freedoms exactly have been taken away, they fumbled and reverted to yelling at the journalists and swearing about the prime minister.

Yelling. So much yelling.

Some protesters say they will stay in Ottawa until their demands are met.

Huh? What exactly is it you expect the politicians to do? We’ve never dealt with this type of pandemic before. Do you seriously think they aren't trying to make it better?

I take that back. I guess that’s exactly what the conspiracy theorists believe.

Has it been hit and miss? Has the messaging changed and been confusing? Yes, because we’ve never experienced this virus in our lifetime.

I made a point of watching coverage from many different sources and I saw a lot of half-naked, attention-seeking yahoos trying to get their 15 minutes of fame by waving obnoxious signs and screaming obscenities.

Does that move us forward in any meaningful way?

No doubt there were well-intentioned, average Canadians in the bunch, but they got drowned out by the rabble rousers.

When that woman danced on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and others parked their vehicles on the National War Memorial,  I was done trying to empathize.

You hang a hat, a sign and and an upside-down flag on the Terry Fox statue, you both lost me and you enraged me.

The mob mentality was reminiscent of Jan. 6, 2021 at the U.S. Capitol. I saw confederate flags and swastikas. I truly thought we were better than that.

For the first time in my life, I was glad my dad, a veteran, wasn’t alive to see this in our nation’s capital.

If any of the protesters get COVID — and many likely will from this super-spreader event — I say get to the back of the line at the hospital. And after they’ve been treated, hand them a bill. You don’t get to pick and choose what benefits Canada offers you when it helps you, and reject things that make you uncomfortable.

From all that was shown to me over the last few days, I realize our Canadian society is sick — and it has precious little to do with COVID.

https://www.newmarkettoday.ca/local-news/opinion-convoy-shows-how-canadian-society-has-become-sick-5016608