An Olds College student says she feels her place in the institution is in jeopardy after she received a “threatening” call from a school official saying she was a “health and safety risk” after attending the ‘No More Lockdowns Rodeo’ in Bowden, AB..Mykelti Fisher said she attended the rodeo on May 1 and socialized some of the photos from the event..On Monday, Fisher said she received a “rude and belittling” phone call from Michael Keeling, head of Occupational Health and Safety for Olds College..“He started by accusing me of putting up a vulgar (F— Kenney) posting on Facebook. I had to argue with him, I had done no such thing, and he finally agreed with me,” Fisher told the Western Standard..“He then asked me if I had gone to the rodeo in Bowden and when I said ‘yes’, he said I was an OHS hazard to the campus..“At the end of the conversation he said he would be talking to the registrar of the college about my future at the school.”.Fisher says she has no signs or symptoms of COVID-19..Fisher is approaching the end of a 16-month Animal Health technician course. She has another six weeks to go, but is now concerned about being able to get onto campus to do hands-on work..“I’m so frustrated. I’ve been here so long, and now I can’t even go to a rodeo that wasn’t even on college time,” she said..The rogue rodeo in Bowden was held outdoors. Doctors and health experts that the the Western Standard spoke to said that risk of contracting COVID-19 outdoors was “minimal”..Fisher also expressed frustration with the lockdown in Alberta, adding she was against Premier Jason Kenney’s policy..“I told [Keeling] I was exercising my right to a peaceful gathering and that I didn’t think I should be getting in trouble for something that had happened outside of school hours. I asked him if me going into Walmart would also be considered a threat to health and safety, he replied with ‘that’s not what we are talking about’..“I don’t know where to go from here, I’m in my last semester and just want to get it done… but I also don’t want to give up standing up for what I believe in.”.Officials at Old College have been contacted for comment by the Western Standard but have not responded as of publishing..Alberta Premier Jason Kenney also expressed his outrage over the event..Kenney said the rodeo was the exact opposite of the cowboy spirit..Kenney called the rodeo, attended by about 4,000 people, “disturbing.”.In a closed-door UCP caucus meeting, Kenney said in reference to the attendees of the rodeo, “If they are our base, I want a new base.”.And at the end of a Facebook town hall on May 4, Kenney lashed out at rodeo organizer Ty Northcott for some of his social media postings..“They said ‘We will not stand by idly and watch, as not only our businesses, but our Western heritage, and more importantly, our basic human rights are ripped out of existence by the tyrannical beings of our current world.’ The tyrannical beings? Not even human beings, the tyrannical beings of the current world..“What the heck does that mean. I mean are these people, is that now merging with …Lizard Man conspiracies. I’m one of the tyrannical beings of the current world? What does that…so I said to my caucus, people who are making death threats against me and members of my family and are talking about the tyrannical beings that have taken over the world. They’re not my base. They’re not Alberta conservatives. They’re not mainstream Albertans. They are people who need to cut way back on caffeine, take off the tinfoil hat and come back to reality..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
An Olds College student says she feels her place in the institution is in jeopardy after she received a “threatening” call from a school official saying she was a “health and safety risk” after attending the ‘No More Lockdowns Rodeo’ in Bowden, AB..Mykelti Fisher said she attended the rodeo on May 1 and socialized some of the photos from the event..On Monday, Fisher said she received a “rude and belittling” phone call from Michael Keeling, head of Occupational Health and Safety for Olds College..“He started by accusing me of putting up a vulgar (F— Kenney) posting on Facebook. I had to argue with him, I had done no such thing, and he finally agreed with me,” Fisher told the Western Standard..“He then asked me if I had gone to the rodeo in Bowden and when I said ‘yes’, he said I was an OHS hazard to the campus..“At the end of the conversation he said he would be talking to the registrar of the college about my future at the school.”.Fisher says she has no signs or symptoms of COVID-19..Fisher is approaching the end of a 16-month Animal Health technician course. She has another six weeks to go, but is now concerned about being able to get onto campus to do hands-on work..“I’m so frustrated. I’ve been here so long, and now I can’t even go to a rodeo that wasn’t even on college time,” she said..The rogue rodeo in Bowden was held outdoors. Doctors and health experts that the the Western Standard spoke to said that risk of contracting COVID-19 outdoors was “minimal”..Fisher also expressed frustration with the lockdown in Alberta, adding she was against Premier Jason Kenney’s policy..“I told [Keeling] I was exercising my right to a peaceful gathering and that I didn’t think I should be getting in trouble for something that had happened outside of school hours. I asked him if me going into Walmart would also be considered a threat to health and safety, he replied with ‘that’s not what we are talking about’..“I don’t know where to go from here, I’m in my last semester and just want to get it done… but I also don’t want to give up standing up for what I believe in.”.Officials at Old College have been contacted for comment by the Western Standard but have not responded as of publishing..Alberta Premier Jason Kenney also expressed his outrage over the event..Kenney said the rodeo was the exact opposite of the cowboy spirit..Kenney called the rodeo, attended by about 4,000 people, “disturbing.”.In a closed-door UCP caucus meeting, Kenney said in reference to the attendees of the rodeo, “If they are our base, I want a new base.”.And at the end of a Facebook town hall on May 4, Kenney lashed out at rodeo organizer Ty Northcott for some of his social media postings..“They said ‘We will not stand by idly and watch, as not only our businesses, but our Western heritage, and more importantly, our basic human rights are ripped out of existence by the tyrannical beings of our current world.’ The tyrannical beings? Not even human beings, the tyrannical beings of the current world..“What the heck does that mean. I mean are these people, is that now merging with …Lizard Man conspiracies. I’m one of the tyrannical beings of the current world? What does that…so I said to my caucus, people who are making death threats against me and members of my family and are talking about the tyrannical beings that have taken over the world. They’re not my base. They’re not Alberta conservatives. They’re not mainstream Albertans. They are people who need to cut way back on caffeine, take off the tinfoil hat and come back to reality..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
