PANDEMIC RELIGION

Open Letter to Canadians

May 19, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Red Deer – Mountain View, AB

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms 2(a): freedom of conscience and religion.

Religious persecution. Fenced off churches. Arrested pastors.

These are typically headlines that one would see in China, North Korea or other dictatorial countries. Sadly, these have all been headlines in Alberta, Canada in 2021.

Whether you are a part of a faith community or you are an atheist, should you support the Charter Right of freedom of conscience and religion in the middle of a pandemic?

Religion is more than a group of people assembling in a building once a week. It is the coming together of a community to support one another, especially in difficult times. Are Zoom calls really a substitute?

If you aren’t attending a religious gathering in person, is there really any risk of you contacting COVID-19 from the individuals who did attend?

What if the guidance from the government was reversed?

Instead of banning those who wanted to attend a religious gathering, the government was instead forcing you to attend a service that went against your individual beliefs?

Isn’t this the point of Charter Rights? To protect the individual from government overreach, not the government from the overreach of each individual?

I may not agree with your religion and I may not join your religious gathering but I fully support everyone’s right to attend a religious gathering, including in the middle of a pandemic. Will you do the same for others?

Sincerely,

Jared Pilon

Libertarian Party Candidate for Red Deer – Mountain View, AB