UCP Minister barred from speaking at Black Lives Matter event

Kaycee Madu, Alberta’s Minister of Affairs was barred from speaking in Edmonton at an anti-racism protest held by Black Lives Matter, according to True North.

Madu released the news on Twitter when he was asked why there were no UCP members at the protest by another user.

“Hi Omar, I had agreed to speak at the event, but was told by organizers that I could not. I respected their wishes and visited friends at Africa Centre instead,” tweeted Madu.

The Western Standard reports that Madu believes the “NDP and their allies” are the ones responsible for banning him as a speaker.

Rakhi Pancholi, an NDP MLA took to Twitter to point out why Madu was not welcome at the event.

“Labeling people as ‘leftists’ (read: the ‘enemy’) is the opposite of equality, justice & human dignity. [Kaycee Madu] should reflect more on WHY he was not welcome to speak. This is about the movement, not about him. Put away the ego & division, Minister. And listen,” Pancholi tweeted.

“I have always spoken honestly about my lived experience with racism. I was looking forward to standing in solidarity with the organizers and community. Your team and others worked quickly to prevent that. Your tweets are disgusting and shameful. You only know division,” Madu replied.

On Monday, the conflict continued in the legislature when Madu suggested that the opposition was showing division.

“Unfortunately the NDP and their allies did not want me to attend that rally last Friday. On this side of the aisle, all they want is division and this is a matter that affects all of us regardless of political parties,” Madu said.

After the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, anti-racism rallies started taking place throughout the United States and quickly spread to Canada. Demonstrations have now been held in most of Canada’s major cities.