Alberta UCP leader Danielle Smith is a proud defender of liberty, and she has the ink to prove it.
Smith’s forearm tattoo, which has recently made headlines, was drawn by her stepson, a tattoo artist based in Calgary. The tattoo is the ancient Sumerian cuneiform symbol “ama-gi” which roughly means “liberty” or “freedom”.
Some online leftists have tried to smear the premier by claiming that her tattoo is actually the logo of the Liberty Fund, a right-wing libertarian think tank based in Indiana.
They are making the false claim that Smith is somehow affiliated with or influenced by this organization, which promotes classical liberalism and limited government.
While the Liberty Fund uses the same characters in their logo, Smith’s tattoo is not a sign of allegiance to any group or ideology. It’s a personal statement of her belief in liberty, something most ordinary Canadians also cherish.
According to Smith, she discovered the Sumerian word when she worked at the Fraser Institute and was fascinated by the symbol and its history.
Some scholars believe that “ama-gi” is the first recorded reference in written language to the concept of freedom.
In a literal sense, the word means “return to the mother”, which signifies the release of a person from debt slavery or servitude.
Representing the restoration of one’s natural rights and dignity as a free individual, the tattoo is befitting for a premier running on a pro-freedom platform.
