One of those ballots was to begin the process to rend Alberta from Canada.
asserted
One → begin → Canada
It reminded me of almost 31 years ago.
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It → remind → me
I was a 20-year-old student-journalist, covering the 1995 Quebec referendum.
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I → cover → referendum
The night was stressful — with the No side scraping by with a 50.6 per cent win to the Yes side’s 49.4 per cent.
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side → scrap → cent
Three-quarters of those who voted want to stay in Canada, but the referendum wasn’t just about separation.
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referendum → vote → separation
There were nine other questions that Albertans had to wrestle with, including giving their provincial government greater control over immigration, prioritizing Albertans for employment opportunities, restricting access to some publicly funded services for people with certain immigration statuses and demanding proof of citizenship to vote in elections.
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Albertans → be → elections
Pointing fingers at immigrants
Questions No. 1 through No. 4 sought a mandate to reduce the number of immigrants settled in Alberta and restrict their access to pricey social
Questions No. 1 through No. 4 sought a mandate to reduce the number of immigrants settled in Alberta and restrict their access to pricey social
There are valid grievances, but when times get tough, too often we point fingers at immigrants; the people who are already some of the most marginalized in our communities.
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who → point → communities
While I can understand some of the criticisms Albertans have of the federal government, I can’t ignore how these questions and debates affect people who may already feel pushed to the margins of our society.
uncertain
who → understand → society
The 1995 Quebec referendum was about protecting of language, history, culture and national identity.
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referendum → protect → language
Alberta’s referendum was based in economic anger and the province’s relationship with Ottawa.
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referendum → base → Ottawa
Both events ask the same question: Who is included in the vision of Canadian separatist movements?
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Who → ask → movements
Because very often, it’s a distinct group of people.
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it → ’ → people
While Canadians have a reputation for being polite, these debates highlight ugly attitudes about who belongs.
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who → have → attitudes
Back in 1995, when the No side eked by with a razor-thin win, then Quebec Premier and Parti Québécois leader Jacques Parizeau blamed “money and the ethnic vote” for their defeat.
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Parizeau → eke → defeat
While I wasn’t an immigrant, I was still seen as an outsider.
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I → see → outsider
As I sat at my local No headquarters, just a few blocks away from my parents’ home, I realized that I would never be seen as a real Quebecer, although I had been born and raised in Montreal.
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I → sit → Montreal
I understood what the separatist movement wanted to preserve; I just don’t think they saw me as part of that vision.
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they → understand → vision
Three decades later, immigrant-serving organizations in Alberta have raised concerns about a similar sense of exclusion and rising hostility toward newcomers and racialized communities.
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organizations → serve → newcomers
University of Alberta political scientist Jared Wesley told Global News in August that discussions about immigrants’ future treatment would inevitably extend beyond economics.
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discussions → tell → economics
“When you have politicians that create this rhetoric in the level of government, what happens as it trickles down into the community level is that it creates a lot of anti-immigrant sentiments — it creates a lot of anti-South Asian sentiments,” said Samya Hasan, the executive director of the Council of Agencies Serving South Asians, to CityNews in May 2026.
uncertain
Hasan → have → May
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s office disagreed that these referendum questions about immigration constitute racism.
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questions → disagree → racism
There is a problem
While some of the discussions that Albertans were asked to contemplate are valid — economic independence, fair representation, immigration — when people base those discussions in the ideology of othering, there is a problem.
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people → be → othering
Back in 1995, I had already decided to leave Quebec, but Parizeau’s comments were the tipping point for me.
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comments → decide → me
In February 1998, two months after finishing my degree, I left Montreal for Toronto.
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I → finish → Toronto
Today, I wonder if Alberta’s referendum will be that tipping point for young, racialized people who don’t feel included in this movement.
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who → wonder → movement
So, Alberta is staying in Canada for the foreseeable future, but the question remains: what does Canada in 2026 look like and who is it for?
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it → stay → who
The Aporia
