Food banks should not be political battlegrounds.
These are incredibly important facilities that the some of the most vulnerable people in our society take advantage of. Food banks should be welcome and open to people from all walks of life, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexuality or anything else.
Inclusiveness is part of the professed mandate of the Athabasca Good Samaritan Ministries Association, which runs the local food bank. That is a good thing, and it is also why it is so concerning that the association displayed what is undeniably political propaganda at its facility to its users.
Three sheets of paper detailing opposition to Bill 24: An Act to Protect Gay-Straight Alliances and new summer jobs funding program requirements were made available at the food bank, according to association secretary-treasurer Lois Uchytil.
This information did not divulge concrete details about Bill 24 or the summer jobs funding requirements. It did not even refer to the fact Bill 24 is about protecting Gay-Straight Alliances while encouraging the reader to oppose it.
It is no secret that Bill 24 is a very politically-charged topic. People are free to oppose it, but that kind of opposition should be kept out of an institution like a food bank.
If an LGBTQ community member decides to access the food bank, what might they think if they see this kind of information being spread at the facility? Given the importance of Bill 24 is to many LGBTQ people, it could undercut a food bank’s desire to be inclusive.
There is also the moral quandary of presenting misleading information to people using a food bank, some of whom may not be able to discern the holes in the information. It is not right to target the people accessing these facilities with political misinformation.
That there are no provincial rules preventing this, according to Food Banks Alberta, is concerning and needs change. Food banks need to be places where nobody should have fear of being judged for their identity or their beliefs. As such, political and religious campaigning should generally be kept out of these facilities.
The Athabasca Good Samaritan Ministries Association has said it will likely never host flyers like this again, and good on them for doing so. Let their mistake here be a lesson to all.
