Why is Canada importing a hateful slogan?
Chris Alexander failed to come to the defence of democracy
A little backbone can go a long ways in politics. Chris Alexander, a contender for the federal Conservative party leadership, apparently lacks anything resembling a spine.
Speaking at an anti-carbon tax rally organized by Ezra Levant’s right-wing Rebel Media, Alexander couldn’t summon the nerve to put a stop to men and women in the crowd chanting “Lock Her Up” on Saturday in Edmonton.
They were referring to Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, whose New Democrats swept the long-reigning Progressive Conservatives from office in 2015. Instead, Alexander bobbed along, almost conducting the chant, before carrying on with his speech. He says he himself started chanting “Vote Her Out,” and didn’t put a stop to the other chant because it’s the job of politicians to listen to people.
Sure it is. It’s also the job of politicians to stand up to this sort of behaviour. It doesn’t matter that Alexander later said he disagreed with the chant; he should’ve spoken up at the time. For instance, “There are good reasons to oppose a carbon tax. But calling on our democraticallyelected Premier to be ‘locked up’ is ridiculous & offensive,” tweeted Jason Kenney, who is running for the Tory leadership in Alberta. Michael Chong, another candidate for the federal Conservative leadership, also denounced the chant. The silence from some others is disheartening.
Of course, this type of lunacy is a non-partisan activity. David Suzuki, the godfather of Canadian environmentalists, told Rolling Stone Australia in February that Stephen Harper should be tossed in prison for “wilful blindness” about climate change.
Out West, the tidal wave of resentment that fuels antigovernment chants is entirely understandable. Alberta is wracked by a savage recession and Notley’s government has made some astonishingly inept moves. People are scared a carbon tax, which goes into effect on Jan. 1, will keep them out of work, or lead to them losing their jobs. So this feeling cannot be ignored.
Still — it may be hard for professional provocateurs to understand — you can actually respect people and understand their frustration while also believing we should hold ourselves to halfway-decent standards in the way we talk politics. “Lock Her Up” isn’t the same as “Vote Her Out.” Alarm at its use isn’t just because Donald Trump supporters directed it at Hillary Clinton; it’s troubling because it’s a fundamentally undemocratic sentiment. It isn’t élitist sniffing to worry about the “lügenpresse” — German for “lying press” — sign at the rally, which is a literal reincarnation of Naziera propaganda.
Not all criticism of female politicians is automatically sexist. As The Rebel’s Alberta bureau chief, Sheila Gunn Reid, pointed out, she spoke at the rally and estimated half the attendees were women. Fair enough.
But context, people. When Sandra Jansen, who was running against Kenney for the Alberta PC leadership, crossed the floor in the legislature last month, she read out some of the sexist abuse she’d received, including being called a “traitorous bitch.” Notley’s face has been used as golf targets at a tournament. Levant himself has called Environment Minister Catherine McKenna “Climate Barbie.” Tory MP Michelle Rempel has spoken out against sexism on Parliament Hill.
This pattern of vitriol goes a long way to explaining why the call of “Lock Her Up,” directed at a female politician, carries (even if unintentional) a whiff of violence. The threat of violence and intimidation — of locking a woman up when no criminal act has been identified — is outrageous.
Look: Dec. 6 is the anniversary of the École Polytechnique massacre, where 14 women were killed by a man claiming to be fighting feminism. That’s not to equate political venting with mass murder. But it serves as an unwelcome reminder of where some lunatics might take this stuff. It’s why we have to call it when we hear it.
At any rate, there’s no reason to believe that the chant at Saturday’s rally represents what the majority of Albertans believe. That makes it all the more depressing that Chris Alexander couldn’t show enough guts to defend the democracy he’d like to one day lead.
The call of ‘Lock Her Up,’ directed at a female politician, carries (even if unintentional) a whiff of violence. The threat of violence and intimidation — of locking a woman up when no criminal act has been identified — is outrageous. Tyler Dawson
Tyler Dawson is deputy editorial pages editor of the Ottawa Citizen. tdawson@postmedia.com Twitter.com/tylerrdawson