It’s a dark day for Canada when a court of law sides with totalitarian censorship. That is exactly what happened in Ontario after the province’s Divisional Court sided with the Ontario College of Psychologists against prolific author and speaker Dr. Jordan B. Peterson.
Peterson requested a judicial review of the college’s ruling that he undergo a social media re-education training session for views he expressed outside of his work.
What was Peterson’s offense? Tweeting sharp and biting criticisms of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal government, and making a reference to Canadian actor Elliot Page’s previous name, Ellen Page.
Peterson’s request for review failed
Unfortunately, the review failed, and it should shock all Canadians that such basic rights are being stripped from professionals.
If there’s any role political leaders must play, it’s to ensure that people’s rights are upheld. Passing laws, collecting taxes, managing bureaucracy… all of those tasks are secondary to upholding freedom.
Smith must protect Albertans
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith must take steps to ensure that this never happens in Alberta.
Professionals should not have to fear that their political opinions are being monitored for “wrongthink.”
Psychologists, physicians, teachers, dental hygienists, accountants, veterinarians, and engineers, just to name a few, should be allowed to give their fair and honest opinion about any political issue, without fear of professional reprisal.
The right to speak freely extends to everyone, even if Trudeau and his minions don’t like it.
Canada is a free nation, at least for now.
While professional regulatory organizations should have the power to license and reprimand professionals who conduct themselves poorly or illegally, that power should never extend to dictating what private individuals like Dr. Peterson say on their own time.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has taken no such measures in ensuring that professionals in the province don’t have to censor themselves in their own free time.
Why would he? He has been friendly with Trudeau for most of his tenure and he knows that the federal Liberals are happy to see a public figure and critic of such magnitude as Dr. Peterson be punished for voicing his opinions.
This can’t happen again
That must not happen here in Alberta or anywhere else in Canada again.
The truth is that people overwhelmingly agree that free speech is of paramount importance.
To date, 90,000 individuals have signed The Counter Signal’s petition to release Dr. Peterson from his re-education sentence. If you haven’t signed the petition and want to send a clear message to the Ontario College of Psychologists, make sure to add your name to the list by signing here.
Alberta needs to reign in the power of censorious professional organizations by making sure the law sides with victims of censorship.
Throughout the pandemic, too many doctors and nurses have been silenced for disagreeing with the blind lockdown orthodoxy – an undertaking we all now know failed and caused untold damage to the economy and the education of our children.
Speaking out is a must
The first step is simply to speak out. Leaders have influence and Premier Smith should make it clear to all regulatory bodies that the law stands with the silenced.
Regulatory bodies like the Law Society of Alberta and the College of Alberta Psychologists have to abide by the law whether it’s the Legal Profession Act or the Health Professions Act. These laws can be reinforced to make sure that free speech is protected in Alberta without question.
Disliking the Prime Minister should never be grounds to have your professional career killed or to be subjected to diversity, equity and inclusion struggle sessions.
