Monika Schaefer Denied A Busking Permit Because of Her ‘Non-inclusive” Ideas

Don’t worry if you missed the witch hunts of the 17th century, you can catch the same type of intolerant hysteria in Alberta this summer.. Move over, Salem, Massachusetts, there’s a new witch hunting hotbed and that’s Jasper, Alberta.

Don’t be fooled by all the politically correct prattle about cherishing “diversity” and “inclusiveness”. That inclusiveness does not extend to diversity of opinion.

Back in June environmentalist and violin teacher Monika Schaefer posted a You Tube — https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=E0_BZphQ7Qo&feature=youtu.be. apologizing to her parents, now deceased, for having berated them, as a teenager, for not having done something to stop the so-called holocaust. They explained they had not known about it. In 2014, this inquiring, freethinker came to realize that the story hammered into Europeans by 71 years of relentless propaganda was substantially false. The video has gone viral, with over 70,000 hits. However, repression was swift to follow.

Miss Schaefer had lobbied town council to permit busking — musicians playing music — saxophone, guitar, banjo, or, in her case, violin — on public sidewalks and inviting contributions from passersby. This Spring council agreed. Hers was the first application and, on July 23, she received a stunning rejection from one Dave Baker, Director of Habitat for the Arts.

“We have considered your application for a busking permit in Jasper. In light of your recently publicly proclaimed non-inclusive beliefs we have decided to decline a permit to you at this time….Please see the attached Values and Principles statement.”

One struggles to grasp Baker’s meaning.. Yes, one understands he doesn’t like Monika’s views. But what do her views on WW II have to do with her playing the violin. She has frequently volunteered for benefits and has been a generous and giving member of the Jasper community for 35 years. “Non-inclusive views” — what does that mean? Almost any opinion is non-inclusive: if you support the Blue Jays, you reject the Yankees and the Orioles. If you are pro-Conservative, you reject the Liberals and the NDP. Perhaps, actions may be inclusive. Monika will play for ALL passersby. In fact, she is inclusive.

Miss Baker recalls: “As soon as I left the call, I found the offending email in my inbox from the “Habitat for the Arts” in which they told me that because of my “publicly proclaimed non-inclusive beliefs”, they declined my request for a busking license. So my spidy senses from the encounter the day before had been correct. Irony of ironies, not only because I was at the forefront of getting busking to be legal in Jasper, but also because I have been playing my violin in this town for decades, donating my time and music to countless fundraisers, community functions, old-age home, hospital, you name it, I have donated my music to them. Now that I speak in a way that they deem politically incorrect, I cannot go busking, just when it is finally permitted! It is also important to note that I have NEVER used my “violin stage” as a “soap box” to pontificate about political issues. Never. Sometimes I think I should have, but I didn’t.

Parks Canada has been hosting a little music/culture event twice a week open to everybody, tourist and local alike, right downtown in the old firehall space. A close friend of mine, Marie-Helene is the host. She invited me to participate and so I have been doing that. I was really happy to do it, just to make a point that I am still playing and volunteering, showing my face in public, and of course all the tourists love it. Already last week Marie-Helene told me that Parks had a complaint about me being there and the complainant declared that they should not let me participate. Marie-Helene told me that she had firmly insisted with her boss that she was taking 100% responsibility for me being there, and her boss agreed, they could not stop me from being there.

Well, today I got the call from the boss, and she told me that a certain person (who remains anonymous) was threatening a protest at the event if I was there, so the boss told me that now it is all about the program, they don’t want to have a spoiled program. I agreed not to attend this week, but I made no promises for future events. I said I needed to think. Again, this is small town, and the stress right now is big.”

Many Canadians, including CAFE fired off e-mails to Mr. Baker urging him to get off the witch-hunt band wagon and reconsider his thought control banning of Monika.

However, Baker continues to want to silence Miss Schaefer. She explains:

Dear Dave,

Thank you very much for showing me yesterday exactly where you stand on the issue of my busking permit. Before having finally seen you face-to-face for the first time this summer, I had given you the benefit of the doubt. I believed that surely someone else is whispering in your ear, giving you direction. I believed that, because I did not recognize the Dave Baker that I have known since many years, in the curt email which you sent on 23rd July 2016, quoted here:

The hostility with which you treated me yesterday, at the “soft opening” of the new library-and-arts facility, gave me quite a clear picture. It became much more obvious to me that it must indeed be you who has made the decision to arbitrarily deny me a busking permit. Your attitude was belligerent and quite frankly, cowardly.

“You – already – have – the – only – answer – that – you – will – get.”

You and I have been generous with each other and with the community in the countless endeavours that we have participated in and shared over the years. Is that all forgotten? It seems you have left your humanity behind.

You have designated yourself judge, jury, prosecutor, and enforcer all at once, on a spurious assumption that I am guilty of a crime, when in fact I am acting in good conscience to rectify past wrongs. My actions are based on my new understanding that the Hollywood version of history we have been taught is indeed full of factual errors.

You made it perfectly clear that answers are not forthcoming to my two questions which I asked in my email of August 1st quoted here:

“There has been a stunning silence from you since the cursory email you sent me on July 23rd, 2016 … I am wondering who you are accountable to, and who the “we” refers to in your (original) message to me. These are two very important questions and I expect that you will be forthcoming with an answer to these…. Monika”

I asked those questions again yesterday, peacefully and in person, and you repeatedly told me “I will not discuss this here, I will not discuss this now. This is a sacred place.” So I asked when and where? When would the answers be coming? Could we set up a meeting please? You then told me point blank “You – already – have – the – only – answer – that – you – will – get.”

I see… final judgement has been made, and the proverbial jail key has been tossed out.

My first question was about accountability. I received a partial answer from the cover of this week’s Fitzhugh newspaper. The caption under the front-page picture of happy buskers says “Music in the Streets… thanks to a new pilot-project between the municipality and Habitat for the Arts.” For that reason I am sending this to all the town councillors and mayor, as they have a role to play in this. Are they also playing the role of thought police?

The Habitat “Values and Principles” statement is very good. The second paragraph follows (emphases mine), to show the absurdity of your accusation of “non-inclusive beliefs” against me. I contend it is you who is being non-inclusive.

“We believe that learning never stops
We know it enhances social inclusion, active citizenship and personal development.
We embrace new challenges and ideas.
We welcome new methods and change.
We help each other grow through knowledge exchange and support.”

Dave Baker, since you do not want to talk with me, then you simply become part of the wider story. My ‘bcc’ list is growing ever larger, as more and more people from around the world are taking an interest in this story. It is beginning to look like this pretty little town in a National Park and a World Heritage Site is becoming a leader in the totalitarian anti-free-speech direction that Canada is taking.

Sincerely,
Monika Schaefer