Alberta's new premier says the unvaccinated are "the most discriminated against"
Alberta’s new premier, Danielle Smith, said unvaccinated people faced more discrimination than any group she’s seen in her lifetime.
The remarks came at her first media address as premier following her United Conservative Party leadership win last week.
When asked about comparing what unvaccinated people went through compared to groups who are discriminated against for their race, gender, or sexuality, Smith said unvaccinated people faced “a pretty extreme level of discrimination.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever experienced a situation in my lifetime where a person was fired from their job or not allowed to watch their kids play hockey or not allowed to go visit a loved one in long-term care or hospital, not allowed to get on a plane to either go across the country to see family or even travel across the border,” she explained. “That is a pretty extreme level of discrimination.”
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Smith said she didn’t want to “take away any of the discrimination” that she’s seen in groups who have faced struggles based on race, gender, or sexuality, but that unvaccinated people “have been the most discriminated against group” that she’s ever witnessed in her lifetime.
“The community who faced the most restrictions on their freedoms in the last year were those made a choice not to be vaccinated.”
As you would expect, there has been a lot of backlash to those comments. Smith’s opposition leader for the Alberta NDP, Rachel Notley, didn’t mince words when sharing her thoughts.
Danielle Smith’s comments today on discrimination were completely disrespectful and tone deaf in light of all the work we are collectively committing to with respect to truth and reconciliation.
🧵 #ableg #yyc #yeg— Rachel Notley (@RachelNotley) October 12, 2022
There were plenty of reactions online as well.
So…Danielle Smith thinks unvaccinated people are the most discriminated against group she’s ever seen.
Someone please tell her about: Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women. Residential Schools. Systemic racism. Genocide.
This is what discrimination actually looks like.
— Naheed Dosani (@NaheedD) October 12, 2022
Danielle Smith was born in 1971. At a time where Apartheid still existed, where you were fired for have a disability, being gay or contracting AIDS, where marital rape was still legal. But sure the unvaccinated had it worse.
Jesus Christ— Kristin Raworth (@KristinRaworth) October 11, 2022
There was also some support for the new Alberta premier.
The majority of Canadians agree with Danielle Smith’s denouncement of the disgusting discrimination against unvaccinated folks.
And this is true no matter how hard the media and the left screams and yells.
— Joe Blo (@NormalGuy223) October 12, 2022
But the comments concerned a number of local groups.
We are aware of the comments made yesterday by Premier @ABDanielleSmith regarding the unvaccinated being the most discriminated against group that she’s witnessed in her lifetime. We have reached out to the premier’s office to express our concerns…(1/2)
— Jewish Edmonton (@JewishEdmonton) October 12, 2022
Meanwhile, Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek stated, “of the things I could say, I choose to focus on demonstrating to this premier the work that our city continues to do around anti-racism, Indigenous relations, Holocaust remembrance, allyship with the LGBTQ2S+ community & equity-based awareness. In other words, work that matters.”
This all comes after Smith announced she would no longer be taking advice on public health from Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Deena Hinshaw.