A recent story published by a legacy media outlet interviewed several pro-independence advocates, including me. We were asked what we would do if the referendum results on October 19 in Alberta don’t support continuing toward a binding referendum in the near future. The others and I answered that we would continue campaigning for Alberta’s independence.Federalists online were furious! They howled that the independence movement wouldn’t respect democracy! As is typical of the federalist left, they don’t have a deep understanding of democracy, much less any respect for it.When a political party loses an election, do they fold up shop and dissolve the party? Does an election result forever settle who should govern a jurisdiction? Of course not. The losing political party or parties regroup, re-evaluate their campaigns, and begin preparing for the next opportunity to contest an election. They don’t sit silently in the years leading up to the next democratic exercise. They spend that time trying to shape public perception along with reconsidering their own messaging in hopes of winning the next election. Or, if it’s a new conservative party like the one in BC, they dedicate their time to ripping their own party to shreds and hope they can rebuild themselves for the next vote. But that’s fodder for a whole different column. The point is that they don’t give up, and they don’t sit idle.Independence advocates are no different. If indeed a majority of Albertans select Option 1 on Question 10, we will respect the outcome of the referendum. But it doesn’t mean we will stop making our case. To demand another referendum in the immediate future would be unreasonable and would disrespect the choice of Albertans. But to continue to work to create winning conditions for a referendum a few years down the road only makes sense to those committed to independence..Most Albertans understand this, even if reactive souls on social media don’t. Polling by Abacus Data found that only 15% of respondents thought the referendum would settle the question for a generation, and 63% felt the issue will keep Albertans divided for years to come. Nearly half of the supporters for Option 2 feel the independence movement will continue to grow regardless of the outcome on October 19.For the independence issue to be resolved, something substantive must change in Canada. Even if a strong majority of Albertans choose Option 1 in the referendum, the underlying issues that created the alienation leading to the referendum haven’t changed.For the unity issue to be resolved, Canada needs structural changes, not just a change in political parties or attitude from the federal government. Federalists wanting the issue to come to an end should be examining ways to achieve constitutional reforms within the federation. Western alienation has been festering and growing in Canada for decades, and the growth will continue with the status quo. Meanwhile, Quebec is inching closer toward yet another independence referendum. When multiple provinces are putting unity to the question, it can’t be denied that something is inherently wrong with the country’s system..On the independence side of things, advocates will have to examine their own stance to understand why they didn’t get their cause over the line if indeed it doesn’t this time. Adding more depth to their case through studies and policy papers can help, along with pushing for more sovereignty to incrementally decouple the province from the federation. They should follow Quebec’s lead in pursuing things such as a provincial pension plan, a police force, and bringing home the collection of corporate taxes. They can’t sit and wait for the flawed system to do their job for them. The status quo left unchecked will lead to increased support for independence, but it will be a long and painful path to get there.People are understandably tired of the debate. Normal election campaigns are five-week affairs. The referendum campaign will be over five months. Pointing at the referendum itself as the source of the problem or thinking it will resolve the issue is wrong, though. It didn’t come out of nowhere, and the sources of discontent must be addressed.With it appearing that over a third of Albertans are ready to walk down the path to provincial independence, the movement can’t be dismissed or ignored. People have concluded that Canada is broken through decades of provincial inequity under an imbalanced federation. These committed independence supporters aren’t flash-in-the-pan advocates for the concept. This is a movement that has built a strong foundation that can’t be quelled by a referendum vote. Advocacy groups, politicians, and other public figures in the independence movement may come and go, but the movement isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.We are campaigning to win on October 19. We will continue campaigning to win on October 20, whatever the scenario may be at that point.
