Over a million people descend on the Calgary Stampede every year. The 'Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth' is the marquee event on Alberta's summer calendar. This year, however, looming over the festivities is the upcoming referendum on Alberta's place in Canada. In October, Albertans will vote on whether they want the province to remain in the country, or hold a binding referendum later on separation. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing BBC News.
Liberal MP Corey Hogan from Calgary invited dozens of colleagues from across the country to promote unity. He called separatism 'a poison'. Prime Minister Mark Carney is slated to appear in Calgary this weekend with a unity message. Polls suggest the pro-unity side will win comfortably, but some Albertans fear a Brexit-style upset. Andrew Kemle, a graduate student at the University of Calgary, said: 'An entire country sleepwalked into an economic disaster.'
Winning over voters like Justin Perkins will be a challenge. He said: 'I'm 100% Canadian, but every year it is a little less.' Former Progressive Conservative lawmaker Thomas Lukaszuk's group Forever Canada considers separation 'a terrible process'. Lukaszuk travels the province in a 'Unity Bus', reminding people what it means to be Canadian. The October vote has been dismissed as a 'referendum on a referendum', since the question doesn't ask directly if the province should separate, but whether Albertans want to explore the possibility. Still, many treat it as a binding vote.