SEEKING JUSTICE – Victims matter less
Questions from a criminology prof about social justice issues
The United Conservative Party (UCP) government in #Alberta is showing us once again how they prioritize their agenda over the needs of (all) the people they are elected to serve.
Bill 16 aims to expand the scope of the Alberta Victims of Crime Fund (VCF) so that the UCP can take some of the Fund’s money to pay for their ideologically-based initiatives; initiatives that differ greatly from the Fund’s intended purpose. According to Alf Rudd, the President of the Alberta Police Based Victim Services Association, the VCF currently has a surplus of over $74 million. This is ear-marked for services and benefits to go directly to victims of crime. No one else. No criminal justice system or criminal justice program. The money is allocated for victims of crime.
But by passing Bill 16, in a sense, the UCP want to take from Peter in order to pay for Paul to get a new job. But there are other ways to fund new initiatives instead of taking money from some of the most vulnerable Albertans. Leave the VCF alone.
UPDATE June 27, 2020: The Bill passes
Because they don’t have the money for it, the #UCP want to take money from the VCF to pay for “strengthening public safety” programs. These so-called programs would be crime prevention programs relating to deterring, investigating, and prosecuting drug and organized crime. Those are valiant programs but their intention is drastically different from the VCF’s purpose which is about helping victims. And the push of Bill 16 is under the guise of “strengthening public safety” when really it is about replenishing diminished oil & gas revenues to support an ideological construct (get “tough on crime”). This smoke screen panders to some voters and especially rural voters in Alberta who voice feeling neglected.
I wonder why?
There are other ways in which to fund (legitimate or bogus) “strengthening public safety” programs instead of taking from the VCF. Why doesn’t Alberta diversify its income revenue? Instead, decade after decade #Alberta chooses to rely on the ebb and flow of the oil & gas industry and its real and projected revenue. And when that revenue is low, they typically cut or grab from other programs (such as transit, housing, education, mental health and addiction services) in order to make up the difference.
Why has Alberta been so reluctant to diversify? Why wouldn’t any household diversify its sources of revenue when planning for the future? Many households don’t rely on just employment income to plan for the future (kids’ education, retirement, increased healthcare needs). They invest in mutual funds or an RSP or they get an additional job that has a pension or they invest in rental properties and so on. So why doesn’t Alberta?
Why doesn’t Alberta invest in #renewableresources for job creation and income generation? Why doesn’t Alberta truly invest in agricultural and animal farming? Why doesn’t Alberta invest in education? And why is Alberta the only province that does not have a provincial #salestax?
Labby (2020) shared that,
“although economists have long suggested the idea as a way for Alberta to move away from the ups and downs of the resource revenue roller-coaster, politicians of all stripes have disavowed the thought of such a tax to smooth out those bumps. That mindset appears to be shifting now [June 12, 2020], and the COVID-19 pandemic may have something to do with it.”
Instead of taking money away from crucial services (transit, housing, education, mental health and addiction services), establish a sales tax to support the basic needs of ALL Albertans before creating any legitimate or bogus initiatives like strengthening public safety? But let me be clear, instituting a sales tax or reinstating the Alberta health premiums will only be valuable if allowances are made for those with lower incomes. There must be a concurrent system in place that does not doubly-penalize those with fixed or low incomes.
