On October 11, 2022, Danielle Smith officially became the new Premier of the province of Alberta (Canada). Immediately, she wanted to reassure those who had voted for her, recalling her campaign promises as to the end of all health restrictions and the vaccination obligation. During the press conference held in Government House, she did not hesitate to take up the defense of non-vaccinated people, who constitute, according to her words, ” the most discriminated group i’ve seen in my life ».
Shocking statements…
On October 11, 2022, Ms Smith was sworn in at a ceremony which took place within Government House. On this occasion, she took the floor to highlight that the rights and freedoms of Albertans had been sorely tested during the Covid-19 crisis and ensure that she ” ensure that these rights and freedoms are protected and never again taken for granted ».
« The unvaccinated have been the most discriminated against group I have seen in my entire life. life,” she told reporters.
« I don’t think I’ve ever had a situation in my life where a person was fired from their job, wasn’t allowed to watch their kids play hockey, wasn’t allowed to visit a loved one in a long-term care center or a hospital, or was not allowed to fly to see her family on the other side of the country”she added.
…which caused a scandal
Immediately, voices within the Canadian left were raised to criticize these remarks deemed scandalous and “offensive” with regard to minorities: “Being unvaccinated is a choice. Being part of the black community, the Jewish community or the 2SLGBTQ+ community is not a choice”he was accused of, reports Global News.
The next day, under pressure, Danielle Smith made a statement regarding the comments made the previous day without renouncing what she had said.
« Yesterday I commented on the discrimination that unvaccinated people have suffered over the past two years. My intention was to highlight the poor treatment of people who chose not to be vaccinated and who were punished with bans on working, traveling or, in some cases, seeing their loved ones. […] I want to make it clear that it was not my intention to trivialize in any way the discrimination faced by minority communities and other persecuted groups, here in Canada and around the world, or to create false equivalencies with the terrible historical discrimination and persecution suffered by so many minority groups over the past decades and centuries […] We must actively work together as Albertans and Canadians to end all discrimination against all minority communities.”said Mr. Smith.
During the campaign, the one who would become Prime Minister of Alberta a few weeks later presented her bill on sovereignty to voters, the flagship measure of her program. A project that broke with what she had called ” of “anarchic” intrusion by Mr. Trudeau into provincial jurisdictions”particularly in terms of health and energy policy.
If Danielle Smith intends to reaffirm the constitutional rights of Alberta, this law should nevertheless be designed with respect for constitutional rights and comply with the decisions of the Supreme Court of Canada, the highest court in the land.