Alberta First Nation Chief demands apology from Premier Danielle Smith’s office

The chief of the Sturgeon Lake Cree First Nation is demanding a public apology from a senior official in Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's office over controversial remarks made on social media. Chief Sheldon Sunshine stated that if such comments were made by a senior staffer in any other province, the individual would be fired.

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If such comments were made by a senior staffer in a Premier’s office in any other province, they would be fired.

The comments in question were posted by Bruce McAllister, the executive director of Premier Smith's office. Responding to First Nations chiefs who called for an investigation into the premier for alleged treason, McAllister dismissed their demands as "childish nonsense." He suggested their priorities should be addressing issues like addiction, overdose crises, poverty, and unemployment within their communities, which he described as being entrenched in these problems.

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Accusing elected officials of treason is dangerous and unacceptable rhetoric that only fuels division. It must be rejected entirely.

McAllister's remarks have drawn sharp criticism. Alberta Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi echoed the call for McAllister's dismissal, stating that his commentary reflects a pattern of disrespect from Smith's United Conservatives and resembles bullying behavior. Nenshi argued that firing McAllister would be a necessary step to signal respect for Albertans.

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We cannot afford to normalize this type of racist language in Alberta.

Chief Sunshine emphasized that normalizing such language is unacceptable in Alberta and expressed hope for a public apology. An official from Premier Smith's office responded by calling accusations of treason "dangerous and unacceptable rhetoric that only fuels division." The official added that the government wishes to work collaboratively on a government-to-government basis but indicated they would do so when the Treaty Chiefs are ready.

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These are dog whistles... (McAllister’s) entire world is about making and keeping people angry.