Western Standard - Taking decisive steps to prevent hate-motivated violence

00:00:00.000 Thank you. Well, good day. Good day, everyone. Thank you all for being here. First of all,

00:00:16.960 I just want to take this opportunity to mention that we are gathered today in three to six lands.

00:00:20.720 Of course, bear respects to the histories and languages and the cultures of First Nations,

00:00:25.280 metis and inuit people from right across canada whose presence continues to enrich our vibrant

00:00:31.360 community so thank you uh thank you to the minister of justice micky amory minister of

00:00:36.400 education demetrius nicolaitis uh stacy levitt wright the ceo the jewish federation of edmonton

00:00:42.720 and abraham of abogush the principal of edmonton islamic academy and acting alberta sheriff chief

00:00:50.240 bob andrews as well as my assistant deputy minister ross naren who's also present to answer

00:00:55.920 any technical questions we're here today to talk about an important issue that and that's protecting

00:01:02.320 the rights while also protecting safety albertans government has been very clear over the past few

00:01:08.000 months albertans have a right to learn worship and socialize freely and to feel safe while doing so

00:01:15.680 over the past few months we've seen a rise in incidents of anti-semitism and islamophobia

00:01:21.680 both globally and right here at home since this rise in attentions our government and department

00:01:28.000 officials have been in constant communication with local law enforcement and community

00:01:32.960 representatives too often certainly lately hate targeted violence has tarnished peaceful protest

00:01:41.920 activities giving rise to a climate of confrontation and an increased sense of fear

00:01:47.920 felt among our province's jewish and muslim communities albertans and their government

00:01:55.280 will not stand for this hate and bias motivated acts of harassment and vandalism

00:02:00.960 have no place on our streets schools or places of worship does it matter where you are from

00:02:07.600 or where you pray in alberta you have a right to feel safe walking down the street or going to

00:02:14.800 school alberta's government remains steadfast in our commitment to confront and uproot hate

00:02:20.480 sentiment wherever it exists in our province as we've seen right here and elsewhere no society

00:02:27.200 is immune to this serious problem that's why in 2021 we established the alberta security

00:02:33.280 infrastructure program through this program organizations serving communities are identifiable

00:02:38.880 groups at risk of hate or a bias motivated violence that can access a grant funding to

00:02:45.520 help cover costs associated with security assessments and enhancements to security

00:02:51.440 infrastructure at their facilities this funding has helped hundreds of diverse organizations

00:02:57.200 pursue security enhancements that meet their particular security needs since its inception

00:03:03.440 the asip grant has made a difference by providing 2.4 million dollars in funding to 231 organizations

00:03:10.720 and help create safer spaces for those they serve given the increased potential for threats to

00:03:17.760 public safety here in alberta since october we've taken swift and immediate action on a number of

00:03:23.200 fronts we have to continue to be responsive to the evolving security realities that albertans

00:03:31.200 and organizations face hate has no place in this province as we've seen in other parts of the

00:03:37.120 country hate sentiment and targeted violence are on the rise even to the extent that some schools

00:03:43.360 have now become a focus for vandalism and harassment this will not be tolerated this

00:03:49.600 will not be tolerated for sure in alberta today i'm announcing a temporary expansion of the asip

00:03:54.960 grant the next 12 months islamic and jewish faith-based schools within alberta school system

00:04:00.320 will be eligible to apply for funding to cover costs associated with protecting their students

00:04:05.920 teachers and their facilities in addition to supporting expenses related to security

00:04:12.240 infrastructure enhancements up to twenty thousand dollars in asap grant funding will be available

00:04:17.920 to support eligible schools that identify a short-term need for a physical security presence

00:04:24.080 on campus many of the institutions that we have met with have identified that they can cover the

00:04:30.720 costs for those who are unable to we will make accommodations on a case-by-case basis shameful

00:04:39.360 hate motivated behaviors are less likely to occur when we know that others are watching

00:04:46.720 i've said this time and time again officer presence matters so physical patrol uh physical

00:04:54.480 patrolling can be useful it can be useful deterrent against targeted vandalism and other hate

00:04:59.600 motivated crime that's why we're also making available in alberta the alberta sheriffs to

00:05:07.360 support our local law enforcement in the protective monitoring of vulnerable sites like synagogues

00:05:13.360 like mosques jewish and islamic schools and community centers our response to this very

00:05:18.880 complex issue has been immediate and we will continue to work with community members local

00:05:24.480 law enforcement agencies and our federal and provincial counterparts to ensure the rights of

00:05:30.320 members of the public are protected while maintaining the public safety to be clear i

00:05:35.040 am not insinuating that these locations are under any current threat or should fear attack

00:05:42.640 but by providing more options for bolstering the physical security presence around sensitive sites

00:05:49.200 we're helping to ensure that albertans their schools their places of worship

00:05:53.840 are protected from heinous acts of anti-semitism and islamophobia action driven by hatred is

00:06:01.920 cowardly and unacceptable and albertus government has zero tolerance for these actions and the hate

00:06:08.960 motivated harassment of any albertan is something that our government must act decisively to

00:06:14.480 confront and we are we won't compromise on safe educational religious or cultural environments

00:06:22.800 because we are all albertans who have a right to live learn worship free from fear and intimidation

00:06:31.520 it is critical that the support that we offer meets the current moment i encourage islamic

00:06:38.480 and Jewish bilingual and faith-based schools to of course visit alberta.ca to learn more

00:06:44.560 about the options that will be available to help them protect their facilities and keep students

00:06:50.400 and staff safe and with that i say thank you very much and i will now let you look forward to my

00:06:55.520 friend mickey andrew to say a few words mr justice thank you thank you minister ellis i'm very pleased

00:07:02.960 to be here today at this important event as minister ellis already highlighted the tragic

00:07:09.040 events that we've witnessed over the past several weeks in the middle east have been heartbreaking

00:07:14.160 thousands of innocent civilians on both sides of the conflict including an unprecedented number

00:07:19.760 of children have lost their lives humanitarian organizations all over the world are reporting

00:07:25.760 that millions of people in gaza are unable to access basic human needs like water and electricity

00:07:32.960 These events have weighed heavily on many Albertans, many of whom have close connections

00:07:39.200 to friends and family in the region.

00:07:41.920 We've also seen and felt the impacts of the grief, fear, anger and pain that this conflict

00:07:49.240 has caused in our communities here at home.

00:07:52.060 I share in these emotions and pray and urge all of those involved to end the conflict

00:07:57.300 as quickly as possible.

00:07:59.440 I also share in the concerns of my colleagues and Albertans over the recent rise in acts

00:08:04.980 of Islamophobia and anti-Semitism here at home.

00:08:08.640 We must remain vigilant here in Alberta to make sure that our province is a safe place

00:08:13.080 for everyone.

00:08:14.200 First, let me be clear.

00:08:17.160 Hate-motivated violence and crime or racism of any kind has no place here in this province.

00:08:24.140 Hate-motivated violence and crime against innocent Albertans will be prosecuted to the

00:08:28.520 best of our abilities. Today's announcement of the temporary expansion of the Alberta

00:08:34.040 Security Infrastructure Program, the ACIP grant, to include Islamic and Jewish faith-based schools

00:08:41.240 for the next 12 months is part of Alberta's ongoing support and action. We are taking action

00:08:48.040 to protect Albertans from this violence, with particular emphasis on protecting our children

00:08:53.240 in faith-based schools it is critical that we deal with hate motivated crimes through

00:08:58.280 our criminal justice system the alberta crown prosecution services specialized prosecution

00:09:04.200 offices prosecute hate motivated crimes and offenses that have an element of hate or are

00:09:10.440 bias motivated these can include charges like assault or mischief sections of the criminal

00:09:17.960 code can also be used to show hate as an aggravating factor when dealing with sentencing

00:09:24.120 we have been working on other ways to tackle this problem and protect albertans

00:09:28.840 through alberta's anti-racism action plan we are taking meaningful action to address racism

00:09:34.840 and help build a more welcoming and inclusive province for all albertans

00:09:39.640 the alberta human rights act protects albertans from discrimination in protected areas

00:09:44.520 and based on protected grounds such as religious beliefs or race. Alberta has appointed two hate

00:09:50.520 crime community liaisons who are working directly with cultural communities and groups most targeted

00:09:56.520 by hate and bias motivated crimes. These liaisons will make recommendations on how we can develop

00:10:03.800 and implement a coordinated and comprehensive strategy to prevent these crimes and to support

00:10:09.240 victims the hate crimes coordination unit was also created to work with law enforcement groups

00:10:16.200 across the province to help reduce and respond to hate driven occurrences by facilitating

00:10:22.040 training opportunities interagency intelligence gathering and investigative supports

00:10:28.280 we know that many albertans have experienced serious grief and pain because of the ongoing

00:10:33.880 world conflicts and that's why we are encouraging everybody who needs help to reach out for local

00:10:40.200 support by calling alberta 211 which is available in more than 170 languages or the alberta mental

00:10:47.240 health helpline by calling 1-877-303-2642 we are taking a multi-faceted approach and will continue

00:10:58.200 to do all that we can to protect those targeted by hate and bias motivated crimes and support

00:11:04.120 those who need help to get through these difficult times in recent weeks i've received reports from

00:11:11.000 albertans about the use of excessive force by police during some protests in calgary

00:11:17.480 i take these allegations very seriously as a result i understand that acert is investigating

00:11:24.120 one of these allegations that occurred in the city of calgary on november 19 2023

00:11:29.640 and the results of such investigation will be made public once that investigation is concluded

00:11:36.440 i also want to be clear people from all faiths and backgrounds are welcome here in alberta

00:11:42.280 we welcome you and we will take all steps needed to protect you let me also state unequivocally

00:11:49.880 the fundamental right to peaceful lawful and safe protest belongs to all canadians

00:11:56.680 we've seen thousands of albertans voice their concerns in a peaceful manner

00:12:00.680 and we will protect their right to do so every albertan has a right to feel safe in their

00:12:05.720 community and we're taking action to make that happen thank you i will now invite minister

00:12:13.240 Nicolaides to come to the floor and say a few remarks. Thank you.

00:12:21.080 Sure thank you very much and good afternoon everyone and thanks for joining us for this

00:12:25.800 very important announcement. I want to thank in particular of course Minister Ellis

00:12:30.040 for the important work in expanding the ACIP program as he's outlined and I want to thank

00:12:35.640 Minister Amory and our other colleagues and guests who are joining us here today.

00:12:40.840 as alberta's minister of education i want to be very clear every student in alberta should feel

00:12:47.400 absolutely safe and secure when they walk through the doors of their school our schools should

00:12:53.480 always be welcome caring and respectful places for our students right now unfortunately that's

00:13:00.520 not the case for too many jewish and muslim students in our province i've heard firsthand

00:13:08.040 from many families about concerns in with respect to attending schools during these challenging

00:13:15.400 times as minister ellis has outlined a moment ago alberta's united conservative government

00:13:20.920 is taking decisive steps to keep albertans safe by expanding the alberta security infrastructure

00:13:27.400 program grant islamic and jewish faith-based schools will now have access to temporary

00:13:35.640 funding for security enhancements that will offer peace of mind to students, educators,

00:13:43.160 other staff and their families. Any school that demonstrates that they're at risk of

00:13:49.000 hate or bias motivated crimes or incidents may apply. Funding will be available to help

00:13:55.840 cover the costs of security assessments and security enhancements up to $20,000 for schools

00:14:03.800 that identify a short-term need

00:14:05.500 for physical security on campus.

00:14:08.800 We must not and we will not allow rising hate

00:14:13.400 and threats to impact our students, their schools,

00:14:17.100 their staff and their families.

00:14:19.860 Alberta's government will continue to work

00:14:22.220 with school authorities to ensure

00:14:24.620 we're doing everything we can to provide students

00:14:27.980 with safe and secure learning environments.

00:14:31.340 I know additionally on this point

00:14:33.580 that many of our school divisions have done tremendous work

00:14:38.260 in reaching out to local law enforcement agencies

00:14:40.980 and working collaboratively with them

00:14:43.460 when and if any concerns have been raised.

00:14:48.020 Of course, we all collectively continue to hope

00:14:50.760 for a peaceful resolution to the conflict overseas

00:14:54.520 and a return to normal for our students

00:14:57.420 and our families here in our province.

00:15:00.560 Thank you very much.

00:15:03.580 Thank you. Thank you to the Alberta Government for inviting me to give remarks today. On

00:15:15.020 behalf of Alberta's Jewish community, I want to express our sincere appreciation to Minister

00:15:20.500 Mike Ellis and the Government of Alberta for the additional support and protection for

00:15:24.980 places of worship, community centers and faith-based schools. All Albertans want to send their

00:15:30.880 children to school knowing they are safe and with this added layer of protection our community

00:15:35.760 obtains the security it needs to function tonight jewish people around the world start the 0.91

00:15:41.200 celebration of hanukkah it is amongst many other things a celebration of good over evil it's a

00:15:47.360 celebration of light over darkness today's announcement gives us light in these dark days

00:15:52.560 that have descended upon our people over the last two months with the rise in anti-semitism and

00:15:57.680 incidents of hate targeted towards alberta's jewish community we have required additional

00:16:02.240 security measures so our children can attend school without fear of attack so we can worship

00:16:07.280 in our synagogues and so we can attend cultural community events according to statistics canada

00:16:13.840 jewish people make up only one percent of canada's population but we are the target of 67 of

00:16:19.600 religiously motivated hate crimes the attacks have become more brazen across the country

00:16:24.720 with shots fired at jewish schools and fire bombs thrown at synagogues

00:16:28.960 alberta security infrastructure program has been a lifeline to our community

00:16:32.960 giving jewish albertans security and peace of mind we commend minister ellis and the government

00:16:38.240 of alberta for sending a powerful message of support in the face of hate to the expansion

00:16:43.360 of the asic grant and the provision of alberta sheriffs to protect our community as required

00:16:48.320 Thank you.

00:16:55.320 Good morning, Honourable Ministers, distinguished guests, and to all Albertans, assalamu alaikum.

00:17:02.400 I wish peace and blessings upon you all.

00:17:05.820 My name is Abraham Abogouj, and I am the Principal of the Edmonton Islamic Academy, and I'm honoured

00:17:11.660 to have been invited on behalf of all Islamic schools within our great province to partake

00:17:17.180 in today's announcement and to validate the importance of this added security measure

00:17:23.000 in faith-based independent schools.

00:17:25.420 I'd like to begin by thanking the Honourable Minister Ellis and his staff from the Public

00:17:31.120 Safety and Emergency Services offices for approving this grant.

00:17:35.300 I'd also like to acknowledge Honourable Nicolaitis, about six weeks ago we had the opportunity

00:17:42.260 to host our Minister of Education at our school.

00:17:45.800 During the visit, the minister was very receptive to hearing about our security concerns and

00:17:50.940 the increase in hate-related incidents towards our students and their families.

00:17:56.460 We also would like to thank the Honourable Minister Amory, who has also been engaging

00:18:01.000 with our community on a number of occasions and has expressed concern for student safety

00:18:06.420 and well-being.

00:18:08.420 As a result of these open discussions, our entrusted ministers took quick action and

00:18:13.480 instituted a strategy that we are in full support of this is a great example of how government and

00:18:19.240 community relationships work here in alberta and i want to thank our ministers and the provincial

00:18:24.120 government for recognizing that our community is going through a very difficult time as we face an

00:18:29.880 increase in hate incidents towards muslims here in alberta and we fully support the need for

00:18:35.080 expanding the alberta security infrastructure program to include faith-based independent

00:18:40.440 schools as i had mentioned earlier i am the principal of the edmonton islamic academy we are

00:18:46.920 a k-12 islamic school we provide education to children these children are the future of our

00:18:55.560 province and i can confirm that we have had moments of anti-racism incidents in our school

00:19:02.600 especially over the last couple of months at times our families our staff and our students

00:19:09.000 have expressed concern with the increase of hate and cited incidents as a school our resources to

00:19:15.720 provide security have limitations and this grant will assist us in supporting our security demands

00:19:22.920 our students and staff deserve to go to school and feel safe and feel secure they should not

00:19:30.600 have to worry about getting harassed for wearing the hijab on their way home from school worrying

00:19:37.880 about unwanted visitors entering our building or having to face hate comments while online

00:19:46.360 or even at times in person schools are places for children and they deserve to live in a province

00:19:53.800 that is free from hate that is free from islamophobia that is free from any form of anti-muslim

00:20:01.560 or anti-palestinian threats at our school we teach our students to uphold an intercultural

00:20:09.080 and interfaith understanding and to use their skills and intellects for the betterment of

00:20:14.600 humanity we teach our students to be proud of their islamic identity and to love all people

00:20:20.840 regardless of their religious beliefs we take time to celebrate our differences and to make

00:20:26.920 every effort to celebrate our diversity here in alberta these are the traits of a muslim

00:20:33.960 and by extension these virtues represent what it is to be an albertan our province was built on core

00:20:41.560 values of respect acceptance and kindness however targeted attacks on faith groups does exist and

00:20:49.320 have a negative impact on the safety and the well-being of alberta students as albertans

00:20:55.960 we need to come together at this very difficult time to reflect and to realign our efforts to

00:21:02.840 reclaim the alberta spirit that makes our province so special for all people for all faiths including

00:21:11.240 alberta's muslims today's announcement by the alberta government to include faith-based

00:21:15.640 independent schools under the asip program is a positive step towards ensuring alberta students

00:21:22.040 of all faiths can access their education in a safe and secure environment we thank our ministers

00:21:28.920 today and we look forward to continuing on this path towards a better alberta for all assalam

00:21:36.840 this brings us to the question and answer portion of our announcement uh we do have some reporters

00:21:42.360 here on the floor and we have reporters on the phone so we'll just start in the room uh if uh

00:21:47.400 if you guys just want to ask anyone any questions yeah go ahead yeah travis mckeon cbc news edmonton

00:21:53.320 is this measure seen as a preemptive measure based on what we've seen in other parts of canada or we

00:21:59.800 seen enough incidents in schools as well well so there's a bit of a preemptive measure we've

00:22:05.960 certainly seen some of the things that have occurred in other jurisdictions in um in in canada

00:22:13.000 um but i would say this is this was kind of instigated by by parents right and both in the

00:22:20.040 the jewish community the muslim community um who would tell me and certainly my colleagues

00:22:27.960 stories of of their children watching the news and and saying you know mom dad like

00:22:35.880 it's just going to happen in our school as an example and there was genuine fear

00:22:41.640 in both the Jewish community and in the Muslim community.

00:22:45.620 And so shortly after October 7th,

00:22:48.940 I know Minister Amory and I were together

00:22:50.720 during that particular day at a conference

00:22:54.160 given around that time.

00:22:56.620 And I instructed the department to reach out

00:22:59.100 to all of our communities, both Muslim and Jewish,

00:23:03.160 to make sure, what can we do to support you?

00:23:06.900 So it has been a bit of an evolving process.

00:23:09.460 And as I talk with these wonderful people from the Jewish community and my wonderful friends from the Muslim community, we are just providing avenues and mechanisms for their community to feel safe.

00:23:21.020 So, you know, as I syndicated in my reports, you know, we have no information at this time that there is a direct threat.

00:23:32.040 However, you know, the old policeman in me says we always got it prepared and certainly to make

00:23:36.760 sure that our community feels safe has always been a priority of mine.

00:23:41.640 Did you have a follow-up question?

00:23:43.080 Yeah, I'm curious on the side of the sheriffs being used for security,

00:23:46.920 why is that a good fit and how is that going to work as we know some of the sheriffs have been

00:23:50.440 used in Calgary and Edmonton as well?

00:23:52.680 Sure, well thank you. So obviously I've indicated many times officer presence

00:23:56.440 matters. Certainly the first point of contact will be the Edmonton Police Service, the Calgary

00:24:01.080 police service just as an example and anywhere where there is uh our friends of the the the

00:24:06.840 muslim and the uh jewish communities uh however um certainly some of the feedback we've gotten

00:24:13.400 from those organizations is you know minister we are already stretched as far as uh what we're

00:24:20.280 what we're dealing with regarding organized crime and other issues facing facing the communities

00:24:25.480 so again i'm always trying to think outside of the box you know what is it what is it that

00:24:31.080 the um the communities have been asking for what they're asking for is an officer presence

00:24:36.680 okay so if we can provide that officer presence um as a potential mechanism understanding that

00:24:43.240 the um local jurisdiction would have first right of your first right to choose whether or not they

00:24:49.160 want to do it or not we just want to make sure that all options are on the table and of course

00:24:54.040 there's an operational component to make sure that those sheriffs would be in contact with

00:24:57.640 the local law enforcement and and you know i think we from a technical perspective we've worked out

00:25:02.840 those details yes have any more questions yeah um um so when we're talking about the increase

00:25:11.640 um are we talking about both severity and number and i know sometimes there's a lag with the police

00:25:18.440 data because they have to try and hate motivated versus hate crime um can you speak to is it is

00:25:23.560 it both number and yeah i would say i would say it's a little bit of both i mean certainly our

00:25:29.880 folks that are on on the ground uh i'm sure they they certainly may be able to speak to a bit

00:25:35.640 better than i can but again we're just trying to be responsive to the needs of the community and um

00:25:42.280 um you know i don't want to get too emotional here but you know when i'm when i'm hearing stories

00:25:49.800 about you know young kids doesn't matter jewish muslim who are

00:25:58.360 you know you know under the age of 10 as an example right and uh okay this is alberta like

00:26:07.160 we're not i'm not gonna let people live in fear here and uh so having the sheriffs um like what

00:26:14.600 ladies and gentlemen like i i've been around a long time i mean this is again alberta being

00:26:21.320 a shining example for the world right look at this we're standing here because we love our

00:26:27.240 children and we love our community and um you know i don't sorry i don't have any specific numbers

00:26:32.520 but i'm sure somebody might be able to get to something and it might be a too big of a question

00:26:37.480 for this press conference but i mean it sounds what i'm hearing is everybody here values peace

00:26:43.000 safety the the right to practice their religion everyone wants um their children protected and

00:26:49.320 and yet when we see global global events flare up we see hate flare up here so what's it going to

00:26:54.760 take to stop that stop that hate and and to have that embrace of that is a big question yeah i i

00:27:03.560 that is a very big question and but i would say this again this is a shining example of how

00:27:09.000 everyone and every culture can come together understanding that it is about peace that it is

00:27:15.000 about protecting our children and making sure everyone in the community um um has the ability

00:27:23.080 to practice their faith and uh practice their their their cultural norms in a way free of hate

00:27:34.040 and again I will reiterate this we are not going to tolerate that in this province.

00:27:42.120 Do we have any more questions from the floor? Go ahead Lisa.

00:27:44.840 I'm sorry to take this opportunity to ask Minister Amory a question about Bill 8. It's been just over

00:27:50.840 a month I think since you introduced it. I've heard you speak to it a couple times but obviously it

00:27:55.080 passed last night and I'm still a little bit confused about some of your comments that you've

00:27:59.720 made about the bill you talked about how it's important for modernizing the government but

00:28:05.400 i still don't understand the specific reason why uh you need to take um the the rules about

00:28:13.560 receiving gifts and the maximum amount of value of those gifts out of the the legislative debate

00:28:19.080 into regulations why do those decisions need to be made behind closed doors essentially well first

00:28:24.840 First off, they're not made behind closed doors, this was actively debated for many hours

00:28:30.480 in the legislature.

00:28:32.080 We have decided to move the prescribed amounts into regulation because that is a common theme

00:28:39.940 that we're doing with a number of different bills and that is a common theme of our government.

00:28:43.840 We're trying to make things far more efficient for Albertans rather than moving the or changing

00:28:49.680 the or amending the amounts each and every time by legislative act we are able to move them into

00:28:56.160 regulation now and have that done by order and council which is a publicly available document

00:29:00.320 and it's not done behind closed doors um we also recognize the need and we've heard from

00:29:05.120 stakeholders all across the province that the um the demands potentially they have not been changed

00:29:10.640 they have not been addressed for a very long time and we are an outlier as it comes right now in

00:29:16.240 terms of what those numbers are we're trying to align them and we will look to align them with

00:29:20.320 the rest of canada and just to follow that the premier has spoken publicly about taking issue

00:29:26.080 with the ethics commissioner reminding her about conflict of interest rules she was irritated that

00:29:31.440 the ethics commissioner was reminding her about the value of gifts and the specific events that

00:29:36.080 she um could could or could not go to so and she also thought it was important that she be able to

00:29:43.520 attend events so i'm wondering which stakeholders specifically are asking for this or have asked

00:29:49.280 for this and why can't mlas just buy a ticket to a hockey game or a skybox why do you have to

00:29:54.880 receive them as gifts why is that important i think as a function of our office and our role

00:30:00.400 both as ministers and as mlas you know there's certain expectation that we involve ourselves

00:30:05.920 with various events of the community we do a number of events each and every week i think all

00:30:10.640 I don't think the premier was necessarily irritated with the ethics commissioner who has done a wonderful job in providing me advice and the rest of the members of cabinet and caucus.

00:30:23.020 I think the challenges that we're experiencing are the limitations on doing things that we think align with our social duties and our office.

00:30:32.520 One of those are the challenges and limitations that we have in attending stampede events, for example.

00:30:37.800 and I think that we have limitations as to how long we can stay at a particular event,

00:30:43.160 who we can meet with, what type of event we can go to. These do not reflect, in my view,

00:30:49.560 the current environment of what's happening right now. Things have changed, things have evolved

00:30:54.360 since the Act was last addressed and Bill 8 will attempt to repair those issues.

00:30:59.880 We're going to head to the phone lines now to take some questions. Ask the operator if

00:31:04.440 If she could put through the first caller. 1.00

00:31:07.480 Carrie Clay, Club and Mail. 0.84

00:31:09.980 Hi, thanks for taking my questions.

00:31:11.720 It's for the ministers available today.

00:31:14.440 I'm wondering what the ministers of the government make of Calgary Mayor Zodi Gondek

00:31:20.340 spouting out of the menorah lighting today.

00:31:24.740 Well, look, I'm not going to speak to what she is or is not doing,

00:31:30.780 but certainly from our government's perspective,

00:31:33.420 we certainly believe in celebrating traditions of all our diverse cultural communities right

00:31:38.380 here in albertas and i know members uh attending we do have member uh attending an event in calgary

00:31:45.100 minister jones will be there in calgary and minister nally will be at the legislature for

00:31:51.100 the menorah lighting events um did you have a follow-up question um the mayor indicated that

00:31:59.340 that she felt like this had been reframed in picking sides.

00:32:02.640 Does that seem reasonable?

00:32:05.580 Well, that's a good question you can ask the mayor.

00:32:08.380 I, look, I'm not going to,

00:32:11.260 I'm not gonna get into what she may or may not do

00:32:15.820 or what she may or may not say.

00:32:18.380 Again, on this side,

00:32:20.540 I'm gonna say this side of you sipping in the legislature

00:32:23.780 and saying this side of the house, I apologize.

00:32:25.420 That's what I mean by that.

00:32:26.820 But what I'm referring to is certainly our government,

00:32:29.200 It certainly believes that you should be able to

00:32:32.060 practice your traditions, again, of all diverse

00:32:34.900 cultural communities, and we support that.

00:32:37.700 No matter what your culture is, certainly no

00:32:40.520 matter what your religion is, that is a priority

00:32:42.680 for our government to make sure that everyone

00:32:45.220 can practice freely.

00:32:47.680 And again, we are sending two representatives,

00:32:50.680 both Edmonton and Calgary, to make sure

00:32:52.460 they're lighting of the menorah.

00:32:53.820 Thank you.

00:32:54.960 That's all the time we have for today.

00:32:56.520 I'd like to thank everybody for coming.

00:32:58.260 And if you have any follow-up questions, you can send me an email.

00:33:02.020 Thank you.

00:33:03.400 No, we don't.

00:33:17.120 Canadian Shooting Sports Association.

00:33:19.340 Without the CSSA, our gun rights would have been taken long, long ago.

00:33:23.920 These guys are on the front lines, helping to draft smart and intelligent.

00:33:28.260 firearms, regulations, and legislation in Canada, and more importantly, educating the public about

00:33:34.100 how we keep guns out of the hands of the wrong people. To become a member, it's absolutely worth

00:33:38.960 every penny.

Western Standard - December 08, 2023

Taking decisive steps to prevent hate-motivated violence

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