Jon Mulder, the suspended president of the Central Alberta Soccer Association (CASA), isn’t the one who should be under a disciplinary microscope.Lisa Grant, the Alberta Soccer Association’s (ASA), executive director, has some serious explaining to do.Grant’s reaction to Mulder’s e-mail responding to her push for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training that allegedly morphed into “harassment and intimidation” of the long-time Ponoka-area soccer volunteer is at best unprofessional.She needs to explain how her actions cannot be interpreted as ego and ideology driven, over-the-top vindictive and intolerance flying in the face of the DEI that she’s pushing on everyone else.She needs to explain why the rules laid out in the ASA Bylaws, Polices, Rules and Regulations were ignored in Mulder’s case — even though these are conditions of receiving provincial and federal grants, a combined $324,942 in 2022.Grant needs to show she’s getting to the bottom of Mulder’s private email to select soccer members being leaked to the CBC in violation of ASA privacy policy. She must reveal who leaked it and then hold that person accountable.Grant needs to explain why she didn’t address legitimate concerns Mulder raised regarding equity for all and the DEI focus on sexualizing children (a concern shared by parents) who just want to play soccer.Grant suspended Mulder via email, without speaking to him, then had the audacity to banish him from soccer.“This means you cannot play, coach, referee, or administer soccer at any level, nor may you attend any ASA-sanctioned games as a spectator,” she wrote in an October 12 email.Mulder stood before an unprepared discipline panel Wednesday. The panel will decide if his suspension stands and will soon deliver a verdict, based on the only document on hand which was Grant’s email. Hardly seems fair if that’s all it takes to strip someone of the right to participate in soccer.“The crux of it really, he acknowledges his internal email to other people in the soccer community was probably a little more aggressive, than it had to be,” said Mark Giles with Mi2, who was retained to handle the communications and investigative aspects of his case.“I was called in to support Jon. I thought the ASA wasn’t giving him a fair shake. I think they’re playing the woke game and just jumping on anything, cancel culture, suspending him automatically. Really crazy sort of stuff,” said Giles.“In fact, there was an email saying his suspension not only includes not being on the board or involved with soccer in Alberta. He’s not to communicate with other people. Of course, they have no authority to do that.”Mulder also hired lawyer Craig Paterson to represent him.“Basically, they’re just not happy that he’s got some hard-hitting support, namely a lawyer and me. They obviously are trying to shut him down.”“I’ve seen a lot of this stuff,” said Giles who specializes in surveillance but takes on cases involving people fighting for their rights.“What happens is these organizations, they prey on people and they’re used to getting away with it and people just cower down,” said the former military public affairs officer, military policeman and Calgary policeman.“When you come back with a hard-hitting response it sets them back on their heels as it should.”Giles said the ASA’s case is “full of holes.”“He’s a long-serving volunteer to his community. It’s not like there’s any allegation that he’s done any real harm. People just didn’t like his email.”That email was in response to one Grant sent on October 11 to soccer members informing them about an Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) virtual conference hosted by Canada Soccer.“The main objective of this conference is to amplify the great work being done in communities across Canada,” reads Grant's email with She/Her pronouns.The conference will focus on “women and girls in soccer, (sexual minority community) inclusion, all-abilities soccer, anti-racism and new-to-Canada participants in soccer.”A frustrated Mulder responded with what he later admitted was an “aggressive” email.“Keep Marxist politics out of sports, especially children’s sports,” wrote Mulder.“Only perverts and predators wish to discuss sex and sexuality with other people’s children. Adults don’t need to discuss their sexual proclivities in order to participate in community sports.” “We ought not engage in the bigotry of low expectations, nor should we seek to impose policies that implicitly discriminate against Canadians, especially young males of European descent, which is what all those initiatives seek to do.” “This top-down imposition of radical left wing ideology into our communities and sports programs is wholly inappropriate.” “This isn’t great work. This ideology is proven to destroy everything wherever it is implemented.”Giles said the reaction from the ASA was “almost sort of playing God.”“Jon didn’t make this public. His email was on an internal Alberta Soccer Association email.”It was leaked to the CBC which selectively chose quotes, excluding Mulder’s concerns about sexualizing children and not giving European males — which have been under extreme attack in Canada, not only in soccer.“The association made it public instead of something along the lines of ‘Listen, we received your complaint related to a response in an email which is alleged to have not been appropriate, therefore we are looking at setting a hearing.’ That’s what you would expect from a professional organization.”“But she used the word ‘disgusting’ – very unprofessional,” said Giles referring to Grant’s quote in the CBC story.“The bottom line in terms of due process and fair play, they then sort of arbitrarily set a disciplinary hearing. They put a few of their buddies on this panel. We fought back on that one. We got a little perhaps more independent people on their panel.”If anyone is pushing inclusivity, it’s Mulder.“What’s he’s essentially saying is ‘Yes, of course we have efforts to have more diversity and make sure soccer programs are available to everybody, but we also have a huge audience of participants that are already there, regardless of whatever race they are — white or otherwise — we should also be paying attention to them.”Instead, Giles said Mulder is “being harassed and intimidated by the ASA” and Grant is in violation of her own organizational policies and doesn’t seem to understand due process.Grant did not return the Western Standard’s calls.If the panel doesn’t scrap every tyrannical thing imposed on Mulder, that’ll send an ominous message to every volunteer in every Alberta sport.The ASA is saying you have no rights as a volunteer, that it doesn’t matter what disciplinary policies and procedures are, that if you challenge policies, an offended someone can ban you — and there’s nothing you can do about it.One last thing Grant should be mandated to do is provide concrete evidence that DEI is necessary in Alberta soccer.Massive government dollars flow into funding this ideology. Beyond woke word salads there’s no proof it does any good or is necessary.But it’ll be militantly enforced — unless people such as Mulder stand up to the nonsense that interferes with the joy of kicking a ball around.
Jon Mulder, the suspended president of the Central Alberta Soccer Association (CASA), isn’t the one who should be under a disciplinary microscope.Lisa Grant, the Alberta Soccer Association’s (ASA), executive director, has some serious explaining to do.Grant’s reaction to Mulder’s e-mail responding to her push for diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training that allegedly morphed into “harassment and intimidation” of the long-time Ponoka-area soccer volunteer is at best unprofessional.She needs to explain how her actions cannot be interpreted as ego and ideology driven, over-the-top vindictive and intolerance flying in the face of the DEI that she’s pushing on everyone else.She needs to explain why the rules laid out in the ASA Bylaws, Polices, Rules and Regulations were ignored in Mulder’s case — even though these are conditions of receiving provincial and federal grants, a combined $324,942 in 2022.Grant needs to show she’s getting to the bottom of Mulder’s private email to select soccer members being leaked to the CBC in violation of ASA privacy policy. She must reveal who leaked it and then hold that person accountable.Grant needs to explain why she didn’t address legitimate concerns Mulder raised regarding equity for all and the DEI focus on sexualizing children (a concern shared by parents) who just want to play soccer.Grant suspended Mulder via email, without speaking to him, then had the audacity to banish him from soccer.“This means you cannot play, coach, referee, or administer soccer at any level, nor may you attend any ASA-sanctioned games as a spectator,” she wrote in an October 12 email.Mulder stood before an unprepared discipline panel Wednesday. The panel will decide if his suspension stands and will soon deliver a verdict, based on the only document on hand which was Grant’s email. Hardly seems fair if that’s all it takes to strip someone of the right to participate in soccer.“The crux of it really, he acknowledges his internal email to other people in the soccer community was probably a little more aggressive, than it had to be,” said Mark Giles with Mi2, who was retained to handle the communications and investigative aspects of his case.“I was called in to support Jon. I thought the ASA wasn’t giving him a fair shake. I think they’re playing the woke game and just jumping on anything, cancel culture, suspending him automatically. Really crazy sort of stuff,” said Giles.“In fact, there was an email saying his suspension not only includes not being on the board or involved with soccer in Alberta. He’s not to communicate with other people. Of course, they have no authority to do that.”Mulder also hired lawyer Craig Paterson to represent him.“Basically, they’re just not happy that he’s got some hard-hitting support, namely a lawyer and me. They obviously are trying to shut him down.”“I’ve seen a lot of this stuff,” said Giles who specializes in surveillance but takes on cases involving people fighting for their rights.“What happens is these organizations, they prey on people and they’re used to getting away with it and people just cower down,” said the former military public affairs officer, military policeman and Calgary policeman.“When you come back with a hard-hitting response it sets them back on their heels as it should.”Giles said the ASA’s case is “full of holes.”“He’s a long-serving volunteer to his community. It’s not like there’s any allegation that he’s done any real harm. People just didn’t like his email.”That email was in response to one Grant sent on October 11 to soccer members informing them about an Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Accessibility (IDEA) virtual conference hosted by Canada Soccer.“The main objective of this conference is to amplify the great work being done in communities across Canada,” reads Grant's email with She/Her pronouns.The conference will focus on “women and girls in soccer, (sexual minority community) inclusion, all-abilities soccer, anti-racism and new-to-Canada participants in soccer.”A frustrated Mulder responded with what he later admitted was an “aggressive” email.“Keep Marxist politics out of sports, especially children’s sports,” wrote Mulder.“Only perverts and predators wish to discuss sex and sexuality with other people’s children. Adults don’t need to discuss their sexual proclivities in order to participate in community sports.” “We ought not engage in the bigotry of low expectations, nor should we seek to impose policies that implicitly discriminate against Canadians, especially young males of European descent, which is what all those initiatives seek to do.” “This top-down imposition of radical left wing ideology into our communities and sports programs is wholly inappropriate.” “This isn’t great work. This ideology is proven to destroy everything wherever it is implemented.”Giles said the reaction from the ASA was “almost sort of playing God.”“Jon didn’t make this public. His email was on an internal Alberta Soccer Association email.”It was leaked to the CBC which selectively chose quotes, excluding Mulder’s concerns about sexualizing children and not giving European males — which have been under extreme attack in Canada, not only in soccer.“The association made it public instead of something along the lines of ‘Listen, we received your complaint related to a response in an email which is alleged to have not been appropriate, therefore we are looking at setting a hearing.’ That’s what you would expect from a professional organization.”“But she used the word ‘disgusting’ – very unprofessional,” said Giles referring to Grant’s quote in the CBC story.“The bottom line in terms of due process and fair play, they then sort of arbitrarily set a disciplinary hearing. They put a few of their buddies on this panel. We fought back on that one. We got a little perhaps more independent people on their panel.”If anyone is pushing inclusivity, it’s Mulder.“What’s he’s essentially saying is ‘Yes, of course we have efforts to have more diversity and make sure soccer programs are available to everybody, but we also have a huge audience of participants that are already there, regardless of whatever race they are — white or otherwise — we should also be paying attention to them.”Instead, Giles said Mulder is “being harassed and intimidated by the ASA” and Grant is in violation of her own organizational policies and doesn’t seem to understand due process.Grant did not return the Western Standard’s calls.If the panel doesn’t scrap every tyrannical thing imposed on Mulder, that’ll send an ominous message to every volunteer in every Alberta sport.The ASA is saying you have no rights as a volunteer, that it doesn’t matter what disciplinary policies and procedures are, that if you challenge policies, an offended someone can ban you — and there’s nothing you can do about it.One last thing Grant should be mandated to do is provide concrete evidence that DEI is necessary in Alberta soccer.Massive government dollars flow into funding this ideology. Beyond woke word salads there’s no proof it does any good or is necessary.But it’ll be militantly enforced — unless people such as Mulder stand up to the nonsense that interferes with the joy of kicking a ball around.
