Items

• 
  2021-03-22

  Alberta and Bigfoot

  This article tackles a plethora of issues facing Albertans today, one of the most prominent being a lackluster b-tier animated series on Netflix which seriously threatens our economic and social stability. Jokes aside, I’ve chosen to add this document to the archive as it truly does represent the embarrassing state of affairs that Alberta finds itself in today; as a result of this conservative government’s primacy of privatization and a tax-payer fed propaganda machine which has mythologized the idea of conservative fiscal responsibility. Furthermore, this document sheds light on the attempt to revitalize an oil extraction method from the 1950s which involves detonating a nuclear device underground as a means to boil bitumen. Needless to say, these campaigns to ‘protect’ Albertan economic interests through propaganda have done the absolute opposite, furthermore this draws attention to the very real threat the UCP poses to the environmental stability of Alberta. More so, this news article touches upon the monopolization of both the oil and gas industry and telecommunications networks underneath the UCP regime, resulting in job losses and the flight of several companies from the province – companies which have undoubtedly received tax breaks and corporate donations of tax payer dollars from Kenny’s government. Another point, I feel like this is a very poignant topic currently within the political sphere of not just Alberta, but on a more general sense. Essentially, ‘culture’ wars are given primacy over real tangible material crises. Issues such as housing, food insecurity, job security all which was fundamentally ignored during the pandemic, and subsequently the apparent quest to preserve a failing single resource based economy is to blame. These pursuits which result in effectively no change to the material conditions of Albertans are somehow entertained by the media and popular culture at large. It is this document which highlights the ways in which culture wars largely serve to preserve the legitimacy of the current state of economic affairs, effectively creating a scapegoat to real tangible systemic change which is more than overdue. That is precisely where I see the value in uploading this document to the archive, in that it highlights the absolute ignorance of our current crises within this province. Politicians are more willing to discuss a cartoon Bigfoot rather than the material conditions of the citizens they are meant to represent, and furthermore are ignorant to their survival in the midst of a pandemic.
• 
  2021-02-15

  Do you have the right to protest? The coronavirus's impact on freedom of assembly

  A group gathers to protest against social isolation rules of the COVID-19 pandemic in Edmonton, Alberta.
• 
  2020-11-30

  Premier blames South Asian community for spike in Covid cases

  This article was made in response to comments made by the premier of Alberta, Jason Kenny towards the South Asian community of Calgary. In particular, Kenny had attributed the social gatherings and “tradition” of the South Asian community being the cause for a spike in Covid cases throughout the province. His comments were viewed as an extension of rising anti-Asian racism throughout the province, which can largely be attributed to the rhetoric of U.S. president Donald Trump as a means to escape liability for mismanaging the pandemic response. The community he blamed in particular is traditionally working class, who are employed in much of the city’s service and logistical jobs which are essential to the province as a whole. From food vendors, taxi drivers, cleaners, city employees – the frontline workers, those who are exposed most to the virus. Even more so, Jason Kenny’s comments caused further anger as he was somehow unable to assign the same blame to the swaths of mask-less protestors who marched in large groups throughout the province in defiance of government mandates in the following week. I believe this artifact would prove useful to the collection of Social Justice, mainly it is another Canadian experience based in the growing racialization/politicization of the covid-19 pandemic, and the ways in which conservative governments have attempted to scape-goat their own failings onto vulnerable communities. As throughout the pandemic, especially in the Western World, there has been an unnerving attempt to racialize the pandemic. Such as placing the blame on Chinese people, then Asian people as a whole; similarly this extends to working-class communities who man the frontlines to keep society functioning as normal. These communities (in regards to Calgary) are primarily composed of new immigrants who were not born in Canada, by Jason Kenny blaming these people for the upsurge in cases, he is exemplifying a racist generalization towards the entirety of the South Asian community of Calgary. In regards to Canada, this item matters to display that our pandemic experience was no different in that it illustrated the stark racial divides throughout the province, once compared to the primarily white ‘freedom’ marchers (who were also in the company of fascist/white-supremacist organizations such as the Proud Boys, Sons of Odin) walked proudly through our cities mask-less with little to no government comments as similar to Kenny’s on the SA community. I want to add these to the collection of Social Justice, as articles like these were first spurned on by anti-racist activists who initially heard Kenny’s remarks. What followed shortly after was a provincial outcry directed towards the premier for his questionable history in regards to racism. Situations like these prove that there is systemic racism at work within the government of Alberta, as the government racialized the issue of Covid-19, while looking away from the predominantly white mask less marchers.
• 
  2020-12-05

  Social anti-mask: Very disappointed': Kenney not happy with mass anti-mask protest in Calgary

  Article includes photos and videos of a large anti-mask protest in Calgary.