Canadian unity takes center stage at Calgary Stampede ahead of Alberta vote
Stampede pancake breakfasts became a unity rally as Liberals swarmed Calgary and Alberta separatists pushed their referendum into the province's summer stage.
Corey Hogan, the Calgary Confederation MP, had a list of 37 Liberal MPs who would attend Stampede and thought the total could climb to 45. Hogan: "It's important to show up at this particular moment," while the October 19 referendum will ask whether Alberta should remain in Canada or start the legal process for a future binding separation vote, the first time a province outside Quebec has put separation to the public.
In Sundre, organizers cancelled an annual rodeo parade after disallowing a pro-independence Alberta float triggered online hostility, and in Ponoka a separatist "let's talk" tent drew curious visitors as well as people who wanted the summer event left alone. Retired police officer Leanne Brown: "I'm getting tired of hearing about it because it's just causing a lot of people to be stressed or angry with each other for no reason," while oil and gas worker Chris Parsons: "Maybe they (the federal government) will take us a little bit more seriously."
Separatists are angry at environmental policies promoted under Justin Trudeau that they believe undermined oil and gas, while Mark Carney has tried to ease those grievances through a federal-provincial agreement aimed at helping Alberta grow its energy industry. An Ipsos poll from early June showed support for Alberta independence had fallen 10 percentage points since January to 19 per cent. Andrew Kemle, a University of Calgary graduate student: "The shadow of Brexit is hanging over this whole thing."
Carney called the referendum a "dangerous bluff" and warned that promises of an easy break can be misleading. The referendum itself will not trigger separation, only the legal process required before any future binding vote.
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