This is a civics course, that should be at all community centres! “How to participate in and protect your democracy”. I have often said that the best way to counteract the populist democracy strippers is to simply talk with the people at the local little league game sitting beside you in the stands while you’re watching your kids games. At the local charity where you help out with the food bank. At your church, where you work in the kitchen to prepare the Sunday dinner . First and foremost, you are already and always friends and acquaintances, and you have always shown respect to one another. Then instead of simply staying quiet, you just gently say I don’t agree with that sort of politics or I don’t buy that way of treating people or I prefer to see things this way. You don’t get angry. You don’t call names. You don’t even disparage the government or the policies that you are criticizing. You just say there is an alternative and that that is what you prefer. There is always space for that sort of discussion. You come across as reasonable, and it comes across as normal to have a different opinion. Then you go back it up at a rally or a public meeting. You go to City Hall and ask for your turn to speak if you are comfortable with that. Or you simply volunteer to help a group that is already organized to oppose a policy or a government you disagree with. That isn’t subversive. It is not radical. It is not nefarious. It’s simply participating in your democracy and it’s normal. And you don’t keep quiet about it you tell everybody what you’re doing. Make it normal. And invite people to come along with you.
December 11, Bill 14 receives royal assent and as a result Corb Lund's "no coal" legislative initiative is sent back to square one even though Elections Alberta had already approved Lund's proposed question on December 8. Once again the UCP is changing the rules of the game midway through a process.
It feels like requiring people to pay out of pocket for COVID vaccines could be on the list... our family only got the flu shot this year because almost $500 was too steep a price, and we don't regularly interact with immunocompromised folks. But our friends all across the country got theirs!
The nurses at the health clinic I visited were amazing, bending over backwards to find reasons to have all of my family receive the COVID shot free of charge. Definitely got the feeling there was a little quiet resistance going on. Maybe worth a try to ask.
I totally agree with your view of the public health nurses. They are true health care providers. I am immunocompromised so there was little to negotiate there, but my wife has various autoimmune conditions which the nurse went through with her and found reason for not paying for the shot. From babies to seniors, credit to the public health staff and all those health workers that keep the system functioning in these terrible times.
I feel you from Quebec. Other than older or vulnerable people, everyone in QC has to pay for Covid vax. In QC, the week ending Dec. 6 had 901 confirmed cases of Covid (and obviously many more where people didn’t test/report) and 666 people in hospital with covid. This number is only going up and the ERs are already running from 85%- 200% capacity in Montreal. (Flu and gastro are also currently raging through the province.)
Our english for newcomers class includes "civic literacy" in every class. We looked at the Universal Declaration on Human Rights on Dec 10.
We cover things like what is a community league,(cause that is where we are learning) what is in the news, what does the municipal, provincial, federal gov't do, what is the role of a citizen? We talk about racism and reconciliation, our shared values on family and peace. Thank you for these concrete ideas on engagement about rebuilding democracy.
I don't know about anyone else but I never thought I'd be fighting for democracy in Alberta. When she won in 2023 I was angry and worried but this is waaaaay worse than even I imagined.
You forgot people with disabilities, as so many well-meaning allies do. Look up Bill 12, and what people with disabilities have to say. I hope you will write about us next time.
I just attended Margaret Atwood's talk in Edmonton. The applause when she spoke up in praise of the librarians and the teachers was a balm to the soul.
Hi Jared, great work on this piece. One thing that’s missing that really underscores your broader point about voices being erased from the political narrative: the UCP’s overhaul of disability income supports in Bill 12 and the shift from AISH to the Alberta Disability Assistance Program (ADAP) and how that change is quietly reshaping who is seen as “worthy” of support and who isn’t.
Bill 12 isn’t just a technical rewrite of disability income supports. It creates a two-tier system, automatically moves the vast majority of current AISH recipients into ADAP, cuts core supports, reduces appeal rights, removes guaranteed cost-of-living increases, and concedes huge discretionary power to government officials over eligibility and benefits — all through regulation rather than legislated safeguards. https://www.zacharyweeks.ca/blog/bill-12-aish-to-adap
Critically, people with disabilities are disproportionately harmed by these changes:
Thousands of Albertans on AISH face lower monthly support and tighter earning exemptions under ADAP.
Appeals rights around reassignment from AISH to ADAP have been removed.
Key thresholds and definitions (like what counts as “substantially impeding employment”) are left to future regulation, not clear law.
Organizations like Inclusion Alberta have warned this will deepen poverty and erode rights for disabled Albertans.
This whole policy shift is exactly the kind of structural erasure your piece wrestles with: a group whose voices have been historically sidelined is now being reshaped into a statutorily less secure category without meaningful debate or visibility in the broader democratic conversation.
If you update your post to note this concrete, ongoing example of how policy intentionally sidelines a vulnerable population, it will make your argument about pluralistic ignorance and the limits of democratic responsiveness even stronger and more grounded in lived realities.
Thanks for considering it...and for keeping this conversation going.
Populist power depends on silence. It works by making people think everyone supports what’s happening—even when many of us don’t.
That’s why January 10 matters. The Alberta Day of Action is about breaking that illusion and making dissent visible. When ordinary Albertans show up together, the narrative cracks.
You don’t need to be an activist.
📍 Show up in your community
👥 Bring a friend
💙 Wear blue, wear red, wear a rainbow, wave an Alberta flag
🗣️ Say—in your own words—why democracy, public institutions, and being an Albertan matter to you
No event near you? Organize one. Even small gatherings count. Silence gives them power. Visibility breaks it.
January 10: let’s show that resistance isn’t fringe—and #WeAreAlbertan too. Email me at epsanetwork@gmail.com if you need help getting started.
Join the ForeverCanadian group. You will see some things you can do. I’m now an encouraged person, and feeling empowered to protect my rights and freedoms through this citizens’ grassroots groups positive action. It also shares a positive attitude and relavant information. We can all do something for our democracy !
I just attended Margaret Atwood's talk in Edmonton. The applause when she spoke up in praise of the librarians and the teachers was a balm to the soul.
Wow! A thorough, well-researched document. Thank you Prof. Wesley. May many Albertans be encouraged and energized to support their community and province. (View from QC, where we are fighting our own populist parties….)
Jared, thank you for this encouraging directional overview.
We need it.
It is a very discouraging time to be an Albertan but we won't let this one group (UCP) beat us.
This is a civics course, that should be at all community centres! “How to participate in and protect your democracy”. I have often said that the best way to counteract the populist democracy strippers is to simply talk with the people at the local little league game sitting beside you in the stands while you’re watching your kids games. At the local charity where you help out with the food bank. At your church, where you work in the kitchen to prepare the Sunday dinner . First and foremost, you are already and always friends and acquaintances, and you have always shown respect to one another. Then instead of simply staying quiet, you just gently say I don’t agree with that sort of politics or I don’t buy that way of treating people or I prefer to see things this way. You don’t get angry. You don’t call names. You don’t even disparage the government or the policies that you are criticizing. You just say there is an alternative and that that is what you prefer. There is always space for that sort of discussion. You come across as reasonable, and it comes across as normal to have a different opinion. Then you go back it up at a rally or a public meeting. You go to City Hall and ask for your turn to speak if you are comfortable with that. Or you simply volunteer to help a group that is already organized to oppose a policy or a government you disagree with. That isn’t subversive. It is not radical. It is not nefarious. It’s simply participating in your democracy and it’s normal. And you don’t keep quiet about it you tell everybody what you’re doing. Make it normal. And invite people to come along with you.
Here's a proposed addition to your Appendix.
December 11, Bill 14 receives royal assent and as a result Corb Lund's "no coal" legislative initiative is sent back to square one even though Elections Alberta had already approved Lund's proposed question on December 8. Once again the UCP is changing the rules of the game midway through a process.
It feels like requiring people to pay out of pocket for COVID vaccines could be on the list... our family only got the flu shot this year because almost $500 was too steep a price, and we don't regularly interact with immunocompromised folks. But our friends all across the country got theirs!
The nurses at the health clinic I visited were amazing, bending over backwards to find reasons to have all of my family receive the COVID shot free of charge. Definitely got the feeling there was a little quiet resistance going on. Maybe worth a try to ask.
I totally agree with your view of the public health nurses. They are true health care providers. I am immunocompromised so there was little to negotiate there, but my wife has various autoimmune conditions which the nurse went through with her and found reason for not paying for the shot. From babies to seniors, credit to the public health staff and all those health workers that keep the system functioning in these terrible times.
I feel you from Quebec. Other than older or vulnerable people, everyone in QC has to pay for Covid vax. In QC, the week ending Dec. 6 had 901 confirmed cases of Covid (and obviously many more where people didn’t test/report) and 666 people in hospital with covid. This number is only going up and the ERs are already running from 85%- 200% capacity in Montreal. (Flu and gastro are also currently raging through the province.)
Our english for newcomers class includes "civic literacy" in every class. We looked at the Universal Declaration on Human Rights on Dec 10.
We cover things like what is a community league,(cause that is where we are learning) what is in the news, what does the municipal, provincial, federal gov't do, what is the role of a citizen? We talk about racism and reconciliation, our shared values on family and peace. Thank you for these concrete ideas on engagement about rebuilding democracy.
I don't know about anyone else but I never thought I'd be fighting for democracy in Alberta. When she won in 2023 I was angry and worried but this is waaaaay worse than even I imagined.
You’re not alone 😔
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I feel so deflated and this is the boost and advice that this Albertan needed today.
You forgot people with disabilities, as so many well-meaning allies do. Look up Bill 12, and what people with disabilities have to say. I hope you will write about us next time.
I just attended Margaret Atwood's talk in Edmonton. The applause when she spoke up in praise of the librarians and the teachers was a balm to the soul.
Jared -- I'm going to share this far and wide. Thank you!
Hi Jared, great work on this piece. One thing that’s missing that really underscores your broader point about voices being erased from the political narrative: the UCP’s overhaul of disability income supports in Bill 12 and the shift from AISH to the Alberta Disability Assistance Program (ADAP) and how that change is quietly reshaping who is seen as “worthy” of support and who isn’t.
Bill 12 isn’t just a technical rewrite of disability income supports. It creates a two-tier system, automatically moves the vast majority of current AISH recipients into ADAP, cuts core supports, reduces appeal rights, removes guaranteed cost-of-living increases, and concedes huge discretionary power to government officials over eligibility and benefits — all through regulation rather than legislated safeguards. https://www.zacharyweeks.ca/blog/bill-12-aish-to-adap
Critically, people with disabilities are disproportionately harmed by these changes:
Thousands of Albertans on AISH face lower monthly support and tighter earning exemptions under ADAP.
Appeals rights around reassignment from AISH to ADAP have been removed.
Key thresholds and definitions (like what counts as “substantially impeding employment”) are left to future regulation, not clear law.
Organizations like Inclusion Alberta have warned this will deepen poverty and erode rights for disabled Albertans.
This whole policy shift is exactly the kind of structural erasure your piece wrestles with: a group whose voices have been historically sidelined is now being reshaped into a statutorily less secure category without meaningful debate or visibility in the broader democratic conversation.
If you update your post to note this concrete, ongoing example of how policy intentionally sidelines a vulnerable population, it will make your argument about pluralistic ignorance and the limits of democratic responsiveness even stronger and more grounded in lived realities.
Thanks for considering it...and for keeping this conversation going.
Marvelous info and suggestions. My MLA will a courteous blast.
Populist power depends on silence. It works by making people think everyone supports what’s happening—even when many of us don’t.
That’s why January 10 matters. The Alberta Day of Action is about breaking that illusion and making dissent visible. When ordinary Albertans show up together, the narrative cracks.
You don’t need to be an activist.
📍 Show up in your community
👥 Bring a friend
💙 Wear blue, wear red, wear a rainbow, wave an Alberta flag
🗣️ Say—in your own words—why democracy, public institutions, and being an Albertan matter to you
No event near you? Organize one. Even small gatherings count. Silence gives them power. Visibility breaks it.
January 10: let’s show that resistance isn’t fringe—and #WeAreAlbertan too. Email me at epsanetwork@gmail.com if you need help getting started.
Join the ForeverCanadian group. You will see some things you can do. I’m now an encouraged person, and feeling empowered to protect my rights and freedoms through this citizens’ grassroots groups positive action. It also shares a positive attitude and relavant information. We can all do something for our democracy !
I just attended Margaret Atwood's talk in Edmonton. The applause when she spoke up in praise of the librarians and the teachers was a balm to the soul.
She gave a lot of support to libraries and teachers throughout. It was a fantastic talk!
Wow! A thorough, well-researched document. Thank you Prof. Wesley. May many Albertans be encouraged and energized to support their community and province. (View from QC, where we are fighting our own populist parties….)