A float celebrating Alberta’s agriculture, energy and wildlife industries joined the Westlock Ag Fair parade as supporters promoted option two on question 10 of the October referendum.
A former Town of Westlock council candidate and conservative activist made her opinion on the upcoming referendum known during one of the biggest events of the year.
Benita Pedersen returned to the annual Westlock and District Ag Fair parade on Friday, Aug. 14, where she hoisted the Alberta flag in solidarity with voting option two on question ten in the October referendum.
The float is a visual representation of the Alberta spirit with dozens of Alberta flags.
“The float celebrates some of the best aspects of Alberta. It features a grain elevator, celebrating our farmers. It features a pump jack that can be animated to pump up and down, celebrating our oil and energy,” said Pedersen.
“The float also features some wildlife on it, which celebrates our natural wildlife here but also our interest in hunting and owning firearms.”
Pedersen continued to use the phrase “Painting the province blue” while promoting her presence at the parade.
“Painting the province blue is all about distributing Alberta flags to people. If people want to donate to United Flags Alberta to cover the cost of the flags, that would be super,” said Pedersen.
“If people can’t afford to donate, that’s okay too. Unitedalbertaflags.com is happy to give out flags.”
United Alberta Flags is a third-party advertiser that supports answering option two on question ten during the October referendum.
The float was built by John Tomkinson from Unitedalbertaflags.com, and when Pedersen saw pictures of it online, she knew she had to bring it to Westlocks Ag Fair Parade.
“He built it with his family, and when I saw his float in an online video, I thought, ‘Isn’t that fabulous? We need to bring that to Westlock,” said Pedersen.
The participation in the parade was also an educational tool for Westlock residents to learn about the upcoming referendum on Oct. 19.
“When you vote option two on question ten, what you’re voting for is for the Alberta government to have more leverage with the Canadian federal government,” said Pedersen.
“It is possible it could lead to Alberta independence. It’s also possible it’ll simply lead to Alberta having greater sovereignty within Canada much like Quebec.”
Pedersen's goal is to make Albertans more aware of federal legislation that affects residents' rights and freedoms.
“For example, Bill C-11, the Online Streaming Act, which gave the CRTC [Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission] power over the internet in addition to television and radio,” said Pedersen, who also cited Bill C-18, the Online News Act, Bill C-8, the Cyber Security Act, and Bill C-9, the Combatting Hate Act.
“It adversely affects freedom of speech and expression as individuals do not want to be accused of hatred.”
For Pedersen, the love for her home and community is why she hopes many residents will stay educated on the political climate and about the October referendum.
“I’d like to see the people of Westlock be better informed about the concerns of the Canadian federal government and also empowered about what they can do about it.”
