The Forever Canada bus stopped in Slave Lake on June 30 as part of a campaign urging Albertans not to support a referendum on Alberta separation.
Thomas Lukaszuk, a former deputy premier of Alberta, is leading the effort and says he is passionate about Canadian unity.
In his view, a referendum on separation would be harmful to the province. He says he does not want Premier Danielle Smith to hold one.
Lukaszuk says he does not want to see a referendum because, in his words, “it is divisive, expensive, and not serving our province any good.”
His campaign is aimed at stopping what he believes would be a damaging political process before it begins.
He says his goal is to stop at every municipality in Alberta as part of the Forever Canada campaign.
He is taking his message directly to communities across the province.
Lukaszuk claims he received a United Conservative Party cabinet leak.
He says the leak indicated Premier Smith wants to amend the Citizens Initiative Act to pave the way for what he describes as a constitutionally binding referendum.
He also claims Smith had plans to file a referendum on American Independence Day.
Those claims were presented as part of his argument for why he believes Albertans should oppose moving toward a referendum.
Lukaszuk says he is concerned Alberta could face consequences similar to those he believes Quebec experienced when separatism was being considered there.
Forever Canada bus
In his opinion, investment left Quebec during that time.
He says he does not want to see Alberta go through the same thing.
He argues that even the discussion of Alberta separation has already caused division among families, and he believes the province should avoid a referendum that could deepen those divisions.
Rather than a public referendum, Lukaszuk says he is hoping for a legislative vote.
He believes the issue should be handled through a vote in the legislature instead of through a provincewide referendum campaign.
In his view, a referendum would be an unnecessary and costly exercise at a time when he believes Alberta should be focused on unity and problem-solving within Canada.
Lukaszuk describes his efforts as the biggest petition campaign in Canadian history.
He says the campaign is non-partisan, and he believes it has support from every political party.
By presenting the campaign that way, he says the Forever Canada movement is intended to reach beyond party lines and appeal to Albertans who may disagree on other political issues but share concern about separation.
He also says the campaign is the first bilingual campaign of its kind in Alberta.
He says that French-language rights are federally protected.
Lukaszuk says he believes language rights are part of the wider conversation about what separation would mean for the province.
In his opinion, separatists have been clear that Alberta would be English speaking only.
He pointed to this position on language rights as another reason he opposes separation.
Although he opposes separation, Lukaszuk says he believes there are real issues that need to be addressed with Ottawa and with interprovincial trade.
He says he does not deny that Alberta has concerns within Confederation, but he does not believe separatism is the answer.
In his view, those issues should be worked out while Alberta remains part of Canada.
Lukaszuk says he believes there has already been progress on some of those issues.
He claims Alberta has a better relationship with Ottawa than it has had in 20 years, and he says that progress should not be put at risk by a separation referendum.
His words in Slave Lake centred on the idea that Alberta can push for improvements within Canada rather than pursue separation from it.
The Forever Canada bus stop was also supported by Chief Raymond Powder of Fort McKay First Nation, who spoke in favour of unity.
“I stand for unity because when we stand together there is strength and respect,” Chief Powder says. “Division is not who we are and it is not our identity, together we are blessed.”
For Lukaszuk, the central issue is not only whether Albertans support separation, but whether the province should go through a referendum process at all.
He says he believes the process itself would create division, cost money and harm Alberta.
That is why, in his opinion, stopping the referendum before it happens is the focus of the Forever Canada campaign.
The campaign’s stop in Slave Lake was part of Lukaszuk’s wider effort to reach communities across Alberta.
He intends to stop at every municipality.
Lukaszuk says he believes Alberta would be damaged by the uncertainty a referendum could create, and he pointed to Quebec as an example of what he thinks can happen when separatism becomes a major political issue.
In his opinion, Alberta should not invite similar uncertainty, especially when he believes there are other ways to address grievances with Ottawa and other provinces.
He says there are problems to be solved but he believes those issues should be worked through without separation.
The bilingual nature of the campaign was another point Lukaszuk raises as part of his argument.
He claims the Forever Canada effort is the first bilingual campaign in Alberta and connected that to federally protected French-language rights.
His concern, as he describes it, is that separation could change the way those rights are treated in Alberta.
He says he believes that is part of the reason Albertans should think carefully about the consequences of separation.
As the Forever Canada bus continues toward other municipalities, Lukaszuk says his goal remains to prevent a referendum from taking place.
He believes the petition campaign can show opposition to a referendum before one is called, and he says the effort is meant to be non-partisan.
In his view, the issue of whether Alberta should remain united with Canada should not belong to one political party but should be addressed by Albertans across party lines.
For those attending or hearing about the stop, the campaign’s message was clear: Lukaszuk believes Albertans should not be asked to vote in a separation referendum.
Sara Driedger
Lakeside Leader