Lethbridge Division Detachment Visits
June 26, 2020
Lethbridge Division Detachment Visits
Dear Members of the Association,
We are very pleased to provide a note from Lethbridge Division President, Ken Taylor on the recent activities of his Division.
Ken writes,
On another note, so far, I have visited three of the detachments in our Division area: Fort Macleod, Crowsnest Pass, and Cardston. The response to the visitations (and Tim’s muffins) has been very positive. The members and civilian staff appreciated our efforts to offer support to them and their families. The members have stated there has been little backlash from the public, or even to their clients, as a result of all of the anti-police rhetoric. I also left a copy of the earlier address by our President to our VA Membership, at each detachment. The response to its contents was also very positive. Plans for more detachment visits are in the works.
Ken’s other note, which is a completely different tone is as follows,
I am forwarding this so-called cartoon that was published in the Lethbridge Herald this morning, Thursday, 2020JUN25. I have attached it as a jpg and pdf.
I telephoned the Editor, Randy Jensen, to express my disgust with the publishing of the cartoon and stated that their publishing of this type of anti-police article makes them nothing more than an agent provocateur by perpetuating the stereotyping of police in this light. I also said that their publication has not provided fair, unbiased and balanced reporting, which has caused me to lose trust with their paper. I told him that as the Editor, he was responsible for content and this cartoon reflects his tertiary agreement with it.
There was a pro-police rally this morning at the Lethbridge Police Service. Jensen said they have covered it for publishing it tomorrow morning. I asked why there was no mention of the rally in yesterday’s paper, announcing the planned rally, as the organizers had notified the media, and the local television station reported it the previous day. He had no answer, other than the paper, due to layoffs, is down to two reporters. I mentioned that the BLM rallies, however, were announced in their paper at least one day prior. He said that is what the news is about these days, and I suggested that they were doing “bandwagon reporting”, helping to push the pendulum a lot farther to one side. He said he would speak to the people who decided to run the “cartoon”. Again, I said that, as editor, he was the one ultimately responsible.
I just wanted you to be aware of the “cartoon”, although it probably has been published nationally. This one was so egregious that I couldn’t leave without a reply to the editor.
The Lethbridge Herald June 25th 2020
Our Association’s support for the serving members is incredibly important at this time. Shortly there will be information coming out about Calgary Division’s tremendous effort in this area. And, taking an RCMP STRONG plush toy to your local detachment really underscores our willingness to help.
James Forrest
Director of Communications
RCMP Veterans’ Association
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