Former Edmonton Catholic School Board trustee Carla Smiley says she refused to be “coerced” into revealing her COVID-19 vaccination status. That decision meant being barred from all division property..So, the voice of a principled trustee who served the board, parents, and students well for four years is gone..Smiley, who submitted her resignation on October 25 without public comment, has broken her silence..“I said I’m not going to share my private health information in order to attend meetings. It’s coercion for our staff to have to share their vaccination status. It’s none of anyone’s business. That’s what caused me to resign. I don’t want it for me, I don’t want it for somebody else,” Smiley told Western Standard in an exclusive interview..“When the vaccination mandate came along, that was the last straw. My conscience wouldn’t allow for anything else.”.On October 5, the board voted in the mandate. Smiley argued against it, citing other credible treatments..“I was told we only look at Alberta Health Services information,” she said..On October 22, the board extended the mandate to include trustees, including disclosure of status, effective October 27. .“It is with great sadness and regret that I submit my resignation to the Edmonton Catholic School Board, and to my electorate,” wrote Smiley in a letter to board chair Sandra Palazzo..“I do this in protest against the current vaccine mandate being enforced by our school division which violates the conscience and bodily autonomy of our staff. Coercion does not allow for freely given consent. I cannot support this direction being taken by our administration with the support of the board corporate.”.Smiley was the only one of seven trustees to challenge this theft of freedom driving people from their jobs..“I just don’t expect this from Catholics. I expect them to understand about freedom. We’ve just adopted the world view. We’re fearful. This is the only solution we can see.” .“This is proposed by government. There’s the carrot and the stick. The government did a lotto this summer, then they were offering $100 if you got vaccinated. What is that? That’s the carrot. And now we’ve gone the stick. The stick is implications at your workplace. Going forward we won’t hire anybody who can’t prove vaccination status.”.Smiley laments division in a parallel society — “the clean and the unclean.”.Everyone but parents and children — staff, contractors, guests, visitors, and volunteers — now must produce a passport. Staff must submit vaccine status via an internal digital system..Employees who don’t provide vaccination status must submit to a rapid test twice weekly, paid for by the division until December 17. After that, it’s out of pocket..Many people contacted Smiley concerned about losing their jobs, being forced into getting vaccinated and revealing status, and not being able to afford the tests..“People think if you decline to answer about status you aren’t vaccinated. You might be.”.The government’s narrative “be a good citizen, get yourself vaccinated” coupled with Pope Francis saying it’s an “act of charity” forces unwanted decisions.. “What’s a good Catholic supposed to do?”.In the spring of 2020 frontline health workers wanted vaccination priority. The Alberta Teachers’ Association said teachers were next in line..“I said OK, as long as it’s not mandatory. I wanted to give people freedom of conscience because for Catholics, some of them, the association with the fetal cell lines in vaccines is problematic. Others are aware that it’s experimental and don’t want to be part of the experiment. They’re just waiting and watching.”.“I was assured it wouldn’t be mandatory. I took some solace in the fact that the Public Health Act, Bill 66, was updated. It said the government wouldn’t mandate vaccinations. Yet here we are..“Some 99.73% of people survive COVID. That’s an October 13 Alberta statistic. I know some people are more vulnerable. It’s not that I’m unsympathetic. It’s the mandatory nature.”.She appreciates that the “dedicated trustees” believe enforcement is right..“I had 17 schools and eight parishes. It was a gift to serve, a call from God. So now I just consider it over,” said Smiley..“I’m looking to make a statement and leave it at that. It would be my hope that this would encourage others to stand.”.John Hilton-O’Brien, executive director of Parents for Choice in Education, said Smiley’s absence on the board will be a loss..“It’s really good to have strong trustees like this. It’s unfortunate when we lose them … this doesn’t do anyone any good, especially not the students,” said Hilton-O’Brien. .Board chair Palazzo basically said sorry you resigned, wish you well..“As a Board of Trustees, we are entrusted with the responsibility of ensuring that the voices of the people who elect us are represented at the governance table,” said Palazzo in a statement. .This apparently doesn’t apply to dissenting voices..Smiley was elected in 2017, then held onto the job by acclamation on October 18. No doubt, she’ll be criticized for abandoning her post. .The voices celebrating her courage of conviction will drown those critics out..Slobodian is the Senior Manitoba Columnist for the Western Standard.lslobodian@westernstandardonline.com
