Last summer, I learned that Alberta’s “public square” was for sale. As a canvasser for Forever Canadian, I was forced onto the scorching sidewalks because local Legions, seniors’ centers, and businesses used “neutrality” as an excuse to keep us out. I thought that was the low point for our democratic process.
I was wrong. It is now January 2026, and the “neutrality” I faced in the heat has turned into a lethal double standard in the cold.
Two Petitions, Two Temperatures
Across Alberta right now, two very different versions of democracy are playing out in sub-zero temperatures.
On one side, we have 23 active recall petitions targeting UCP MLAs and the “Alberta Funds Public Schools” citizen initiative. These are true grassroots efforts, led by local constituents, parents, and teachers who feel abandoned by their representatives. On the other side, we have a separatist citizen initiative—a movement backed by a war chest and a government that has spent months rigging the legislative rules in its favor.
The difference is visible on every street corner. While the separatist movement has the funding to rent warm community halls and Legions to host “signing events,” the people behind the recall and education petitions are being pushed back out onto the freezing cold sidewalks.
The Wealth Gap of the Village Square
Let’s be clear about why this is happening: Grassroots movements are not wealthy. A group of concerned parents or neighbors doesn’t have a corporate budget to drop $500 on a hall rental every night, pay for liability insurance, or cover damage deposits. For us, the “public square” has always been the sidewalk because it’s the only place that’s free. But in a -30°C Alberta winter, the sidewalk isn’t a platform; it’s a hazard.
By accepting rental fees from well-funded separatist groups, these facilities are essentially laundering extremism. They provide a warm, legitimate stage for a movement that wants to dismantle our country, all while claiming they are “just being a business.” Meanwhile, a teacher fighting for public school funding is treated like a pariah. They are told they cannot come inside because their presence is “controversial.” This isn’t neutrality; it’s a cover charge for the right to speak. If you have the money, you get the heat. If you don’t, you get the frostbite.
A Manufactured Divide
This is the “Pay-to-Play” democracy the UCP government has engineered. By hiking the citizen initiative fee to $25,000, they’ve ensured that only the wealthy can buy the warmth of a hall. If you’re a regular Albertan exercising your legal right to recall a politician, you get the frozen pavement.
This isn’t just about comfort; it’s about information. Because the separatists can afford the “heat,” they control the narrative in a controlled environment. They scream “Free Speech” on social media whenever they face pushback, but they ignore the fact that their speech is subsidized by their bank accounts. The average Albertan remains uneducated about the dangers of the separatist movement precisely because the fair, grassroots conversation has been frozen out of our community hubs.
The Warning
The Forever Canadian campaign collected over 450,000 signatures for a united Canada because we believed in the “village square.” But as of January 2026, that square has been privatized.
To the facility managers and business owners: Taking money from a group that wants to destroy Canada isn’t “neutral.” It is a choice to help dismantle the nation for the price of a room rental. If we continue to let the weather and the bottom line decide who gets to participate in our democracy, we won’t have a country left to argue about by spring.
Democracy shouldn’t have a thermostat. It’s time to bring everyone—especially the grassroots—in from the cold.