James Albers is a Calgary-based management consultant specializing in leadership development.The long lines of Albertans stepping forward to sign the petition for a referendum are now impossible to ignore. More impressive still is what happens when venues need to change at the last minute. Shame on you, Canadian Brewhouse (and yes, some community halls too). The word gets out, the crowd relocates, the lines re-form, and the cause of independence presses on.Albertans, as a general rule, are fair-minded and earnest people. They believe that democracy is something significant. They are not afraid of a fair exchange of ideas in the public square. No one believes that everyone in this province is going to agree with us, so bring your objections. Present your case. We are ready.What we do not sanction are the silly games, the tactics lifted straight from Marxist activist playbooks, games that are a direct affront to the very democratic principles we claim to uphold.Not once, during the time when our “Forever Canada” Albertans were collecting signatures, did anyone seek to interfere with their democratic right to do so. Granted, it would have been difficult to find them, as no lineups were evident, and the only Forever Canvasser I ever witnessed was a lonely elderly woman manning a table outside our polling station during our civic election.I remember wondering at the propriety of that action, being so near a polling station. But I did not challenge her. And as far as I saw, no one else did either. “Good for her,” I thought. Get involved. Do your part. I don’t agree with her, but I applaud her willingness to participate in this very important discussion on the future of our province.I believe that perspective is shared by most Albertans, certainly by most of us on the independence side of the equation..It is not unexpected that we would face opposition. Opposition, in a democracy, is not only tolerable, it is required. But what we do not sanction is the way that opposition is now manifesting itself. It ranges from lying and mocking to intimidation toward those of us who wish to make their views known regarding our unhappiness with Alberta’s lot in Confederation. We will not be cowed. And the louder these destructive forces scream, the firmer our resolve becomes.So let us examine a few of the tactics now being deployed, so that each of us can be equipped to offer a balanced perspective and response to those who oppose our position.First, they try to define us.As one of our Alberta Senators, Ms. Simons, shame on her, has already demonstrated so aptly, we have been labelled with every slur and tag in the catalogue. I won’t dignify them by repeating them. This is nothing new. It is a tried-and-true Marxist tactic, employed when opponents do not have a compelling argument to make about our position.What they are trying to claim is that we are a fringe minority, (heard that before?) that the movement does not represent Alberta, that there is no broad base of support. We are told we are nothing but a bunch of “frosty tops,” meaning seniors. Or that there are no visible minorities, no youth, no indigenous representation, that we are all farmers (as if that were an insult), and so on. You get the gist..But those of us who have attended the town halls know the truth. We have seen the broad and diverse group of people who have come out to support this cause.Yes, there are “frosty tops,” men and women for whom independence may not bear fruit in their own lifetime, but in the lives of their children and grandchildren. Those who believe they are planting seeds of the tree of liberty, beneath whose branches they may never find shade, but their children will.There are many I have met who have come to us from Africa and the Middle East, people who bear witness to what happens when democracy is stripped away from a nation.There are those who came to Alberta from what had been Eastern Bloc countries of Europe, who understand full well the price of socialism and the havoc it wreaks, and who now see those forces rising again in Canada. These are people who see independence as a firewall against the intrusion of those destructive philosophies.There is also a large group of young people who are looking at independence as a way to reclaim what had once been the Canadian reality, one where hard work and perseverance resulted in a home and a good standard of living and freedom..We believe, as well, that Alberta has its own distinct culture that is no longer reflected in what the East promotes as our Canadian identity. No, we are not a “modern, progressive, liberal state,” much as Mr. Carney would like to paint us with that brush. We are a modern, independent-minded, compassionate people, with an aversion to big government.Every town hall, every signing venue, has been a reflection of Alberta, and the sheer numbers frighten those who oppose us.The media now attempts to portray Albertans as ill-informed, claiming that support for independence wanes once people are told of the costs of independence. Of course, they never define those costs. But we have, and we know the calculus is far more favourable to Alberta than it is to Canada. (Go to the Alberta Prosperity Project website and download their fiscal analysis, The Value of Freedom, for an excellent examination of those issues.)Now reports are circulating that they want people to go to our signing events to take pictures and dox independence supporters. They clearly do not understand Albertans if they believe this will have an impact. Here is the reality.We are not like other parts of the country. We don’t make a fuss, but we also don’t brook any baloney when it comes to interfering with our democratic right to voice our opinion, or to take a stand regarding this important and legally permitted process of independence..Efforts to denigrate us, intimidate us, or lie about us will only drive more Albertans to this cause.We have had enough of the cancel culture of the East. Enough of holding our breath so as not to burst the bubble of some progressive leftist who believes they have the right to tell us what to think and how to live.Have you ever noticed it is always the progressive left who speak out all the time and loudly voice their opinions, as deluded and offensive as they are, and yet who scream blue murder should someone disagree with them? They never notice the silent majority in the room, the people who simply shake their heads in quiet disbelief and move on.This is precisely what our independence movement really is.It is the silent majority of Albertans who have had enough, and who just want to move on and be left alone. We don’t answer polls because we are at work. We don’t parade our angst or play the victim. We wake up one day, weigh the issues, and decide the time has come to strike out on our own.To those who will try to interfere with our choices and the exercise of our God-given freedom, present your case. We are prepared. And if you resort to the shenanigans, you are currently using, know this, you will only make our resolve stronger.History has a way of exposing the true character of a people, and it often does so not in grand parades but in quiet resolve, in long lines at town halls, in signatures placed with steady hands. This movement is not the invention of politicians. It is the awakening of citizens. And whatever becomes of it, one thing is already settled: Alberta has found its voice again. Those who try to silence it through mockery and intimidation will discover the oldest truth of all, that a free people may be patient, but they are never permissioned. When the time comes, they do not ask. They act.James Albers is a Calgary-based management consultant specializing in leadership development.
