What happened to decency in democracy?

What happened to decency in democracy?

Last week, I attended a coal town hall meeting in Fort Macleod that was meant to be a respectful and informative evening with Premier Danielle Smith and three senior cabinet ministers: Brian Jean, Minister of Energy and Minerals; Rebecca Schulz, Minister of Environment and Protected Areas; and RJ Sigurdson, Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation.

Instead, what unfolded was nothing short of shameful.

About 500 people packed the community hall. A third of them were genuinely there to listen, to ask questions, and to learn more about the government’s stance on coal development and the environmental research that is guiding policy decisions. The other two thirds were split between supporters and vocal opponents of coal, but it was the anti coal faction who hijacked the room.

They heckled. They booed. They held signs accusing the premier and ministers of lying. They interrupted speakers repeatedly. Some even refused to use the premier’s proper title, calling her “Danny” or “Danielle” with casual disdain, utterly ignoring the office she holds and the democratic system that put her there.

What happened to decorum? What happened to decency?

Disagreement is a cornerstone of democracy, but so is respect. So is dialogue. When we lose the ability to sit quietly, listen, and ask questions in good faith, we lose the very foundation of our civic society. And that is exactly what happened in that room.

I love southern Alberta. I am proud to live and work here. But I left that meeting embarrassed by the way people were acting.

Embarrassed that our elected officials, who took the time to travel here and speak directly with constituents, were treated with such open contempt. Why would they ever bother coming back?

A notable number of the protestors were from Calgary, something I confirmed through personal conversations and was later told was encouraged by members of the official opposition. But not all were outsiders. Some were local. And that is harder to swallow.

Because these are our neighbours. Our community. And still, a group of so called advocates thought it was appropriate to shout down the very people they claim they want accountability from.

I personally had an experience that perfectly captured the ugliness of the evening. After using the restroom, I was followed by an older woman who cornered me and called me a “newspaper slut.” Her logic? She assumed my paper was owned by someone from Australia, and that somehow disqualified me from having an opinion or a role in the conversation.

I stood there, baffled. I own my newspaper. I have for years. I advocate fiercely for my community, and I believe in journalism that holds power to account. But this? This was not accountability. This was petty harassment.

And it was not just directed at me. I watched as a young man, maybe in his early twenties, walked out of the hall and said, “And people say my generation is disrespectful.” That stuck with me. Because he is right. We have long pointed fingers at younger Canadians for their political disengagement or poor manners, but that night, it was the elders in the room who showed the least amount of class.

This town hall could have been a chance to build understanding. The government came prepared to share information about selenium levels in local waterways, environmental monitoring, and their evolving policy on coal development. But their message was drowned out, intentionally.

If you disagreed with them, that was your right. If you had questions, that was the place to ask them. But what we saw was not civic participation, it was sabotage.

My only hope is that the premier and her ministers left knowing not all of us behaved that way. That there are still reasonable people in southern Alberta who appreciate civil dialogue, who can handle tough conversations without turning them into circus acts.

We can do better than this. We must.

Because if we cannot show our leaders even a basic level of human decency, we do not deserve the chance to be heard.

People have asked me why the Premier and her ministers even came down here. The answer is simple: the eco-tyrants have caused so much chaos at MLA Chelsae Petrovic’s office that she can no longer even host something as basic as a coffee meeting with constituents. They’ve taken away our ability to meet face to face with our MLA to discuss important issues, because, believe it or not, not everyone in this riding is furious about coal.

My guess is that MLA Petrovic was trying to bring some normalcy back for the rest of us. But if last night proved anything, it’s that these protesters aren’t capable of respectful dialogue. They can’t control themselves, and they made the entire riding look like a bunch of unhinged lunatics.

Thank you, MLA Petrovic, for bringing the Premier and ministers to our region. Despite the noise from a few, many of us believe you’re doing a commendable job in what is often a thankless role. Your efforts to ensure our voices are heard, especially those of us who aren’t screaming from the sidelines, do not go unnoticed.