Separatist group takes motorhome to northwestern Alberta to talk independence

Separatist group takes motorhome to northwestern Alberta to talk independence

Pro-independence supporters express concerns about economy, lack of say in Canada

The Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome makes a slow turn off Highway 2 into the parking lot of the Dunvegan Inn in Fairview, Alta., on a sunny mid-September morning.

The rig, which is running late, is met by a contingent of local people who stroll across the parking lot to meet the folks inside.

People involved with the grassroots pro-independence organization have been touring around Alberta ahead of the province’s Oct. 19 referendum, which will include a question on whether Alberta should remain a part of Canada or hold a binding vote on separation.

Neil Hart, a retired Fairview resident, came to meet the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome.

Hart said he wanted to pick up more signs in support of Alberta independence and explained he’s helped put up the large ones along the highways that lead out of the town located about 115 kilometres north of Grande Prairie.

“When you’re headed towards Grimshaw, you see the one sign up on the granary,” Hart said.

“I have one on the south side of the road and there's another one just when you leave town, down on the side there, 8-by-16s. They look good.”

Hart, 68, said he used to work as a heavy duty mechanic, then farmed for 25 years. He also founded a company that provided mulching services in the oilpatch.

He said he wants Alberta to become its own nation because he wants to see younger generations have a chance at getting what he calls “real jobs, real careers” like he had when he first entered the workforce 50 years ago.

“I'm done. I'm retired,” Hart said. “It's my kids and grandkids. They need a chance.”

He said there was once plenty of work in the area but that’s changed. According to Hart, Fairview is turning into a “retirement town” and he’s urging his children and grandchildren to move.

“There's no jobs here. They got to leave,” Hart said. “I keep telling them, ‘Sorry kids, there’s no sense staying here. You got to at least get to Grande Prairie.’ Things are happening in Grande Prairie.”

Hart’s reasons for wanting to leave Canada were repeated by others who came to meet the motorhome belonging to Chris Scott, the founder of Let’s Talk Alberta.

People said they feel they pay taxes to the federal government and get little in return.

Others pointed to how federal elections appear to be settled before Albertans finish casting their ballots as evidence of how little influence the province has over policies that are crafted in Ottawa.

Fairview was just one of the stops that the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome made in northern Alberta this month. Members of the group also held a town hall at a hotel in Grande Prairie.

About 200 people showed up for the three-hour event, which featured presentations from Keith Wilson, a constitutional lawyer and co-founder of the pro-independence group Let Alberta Decide, Benoit Trudeau, a self-described sovereigntist and author based in central Alberta, and Scott.

People milled about the room, chatted with each other and looked over the independence-themed hats, T-shirts, signs and bumper stickers for sale on the tables in the back of the room.

As a song called My Alberta Roots Run Deep wrapped up, Sandy Duguay with Let’s Talk Alberta welcomed people to the event. She asked how many were attending their first meeting and about 10 of the 200 people in the room put up their hands.

“Thank you for coming,” Duguay said. “I hope you find that your time was well spent by the time you leave tonight.”

When asked about the low number of new faces, Wilson said he wasn’t bothered by it.

“I don't use … [a town hall] as a gauge of support,” he said. “I use it as an opportunity to answer questions.

“And I use it as an opportunity to share with the people who do support independence ideas on how they can communicate and have open dialogue with others who don't.”

A new report on the financial cost of separating from Canada — completed by the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy and commissioned by the Alberta government — was a point of discussion at the town hall. The report estimates the cost of Alberta separation could be as much as $170 billion over just the first five years of independence.

Scott took issue with the report’s focus on the costs of separation without describing the potential benefits that he called “priceless.”

“How many people in this room would have paid that much extra tax to know that when we go to the ballot as Albertans, our voices will be heard and we can affect the outcome of the election?”

“I would have been happy to pay it. This isn't about the dollars. The dollars are important…But this is about something so much bigger than that and nobody's talking about it.”

A recent report from the Wilson-led independence organization Alberta Transition Council estimated the transition cost would be $5 billion in one-time expenses.

A former Treasury Board senior manager said the ATC report ignored hundreds of billions of dollars in costs.

Former UCP minister sides with Canada

While Let’s Talk Alberta considers itself an educational society that encourages people to talk and listen to each other’s perspectives, the majority of attendees at the Grande Prairie event appeared to be in favour of Alberta leaving Canada.

Grande Prairie resident Mary Bourne, who runs a Facebook page called Republic of Alberta, said she’s been to several independence events.

On the road with pro-independence Albertans, one small town at a time

Bourne said she supports separation because she is tired of paying "income tax for Ottawa and getting nothing for it.”

Timothy Jordan said he plans to vote for Option 2, which would give the Alberta government permission to start the legal process to have a definitive referendum on leaving Canada.

He said he would prefer if Premier Danielle Smith could “work things out” with the federal government but liked having the option to leave Canada.

“Not necessarily separation, but separation if necessary,” Jordan said.

After the stop in Fairview, the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome visited Grimshaw, Manning, High Level and La Crete.

Large pro-independence signs could be spotted along the highway. Signs of pro-Canada support were often less prominent like a Canadian flag attached to a fence or on a flagpole outside of a house.

The only pro-Canada message spotted by CBC was a handmade sign outside a house in Fairview: The words “Forever Canadian! Elbows up. F--- UCP” were scrawled in black marker on a piece of yellow cardboard.

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The lack of open support for the pro-Canada option doesn’t come as a surprise to Travis Toews, the former Alberta finance minister under Jason Kenney.

Toews, who lives on a rural property west of Grande Prairie, is associated with Vote to Stay and Lead Not Leave, two groups in favour of Alberta remaining within Confederation.

Toews said many people in the region are not willing to talk about the issue as it can create divisions within smaller communities or even families.

He said some people tell him privately that they’re happy he is standing up for Canada. Others express their surprise that he isn’t on side with those who want Alberta to leave.

“I'm from rural Alberta, a cattle rancher, have been involved in the energy industry,” Toews said.

“I think they look at the boxes I tick and perhaps they're surprised that I'm not an ardent separatist.”

Toews said he understands why people were frustrated about the government of former prime minister Justin Trudeau. While he is still a committed conservative, Toews says he is optimistic about Alberta’s prospects under Prime Minister Mark Carney.

He said reports, like the one from the University of Calgary, show how high the cost of separation would be, which in turn would be absorbed by a smaller population base.

He said the message coming from the pro-Canada groups in the weeks leading up to Oct. 19 will be for everyone to get out and vote.

“This is an extremely important decision that we're embarking on as a province,” he said. “And it's fundamentally important that the vast, vast majority of Albertans participate.”

Divisive issue not talked about

Back on the northern Alberta roadtrip, the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome was met by the largest crowd of the journey when it arrived in High Level, the penultimate stop of the day.

Helen Dyck was there to offer her support. She is strongly leaning toward voting for Option 2 on the separation question.

“You see people asking for food because they don't have enough. They cannot survive on one income,” she said. “What are these kids supposed to grow up with?”

As Alberta separation vote approaches, both campaigns are banking on voter turnout

Dyck said there is a part of her that wishes Alberta would remain in Canada but she doesn’t trust that the federal government would negotiate honestly with Alberta.

“The sentimental part that says I'm a Canadian, although I do believe I'm always going to remain a Canadian,” Dyck said. “But I think we can do better. We can do better than what we've done till now.”

Outside the group surrounding Scott’s motorhome, passersby on the south side of High Level mostly didn’t want to share their feelings on the referendum.

Mitch Brown was an exception. He said he is unhappy Albertans need to vote on staying in Canada and suggested the provincial government changed the rules to favour the separatists and allow the vote to happen.

“I'm thinking it's ridiculous it's even a conversation,” he said.

Brown added that he avoids discussing the topic with anyone but his wife.

Back in Fairview, Neil Hart posed for a picture with his daughter with the Let’s Talk Alberta motorhome behind them.

Hart says he finds people who’ve already decided they want to stay in Canada aren’t interested in changing their minds.

“There's really no sense talking to them because you know you're not going to get anywhere,” he said.

“It's people that are sitting on the fence I like talking to. They come around.”

Michelle Bellefontaine covers the Alberta legislature for CBC News in Edmonton. She has also worked as a reporter in the Maritimes and in northern Canada.