Chestermere–Strathmore MLA Chantelle de Jonge says remarks in Legislature were “deeply offensive”

Tensions flared in the Alberta Legislature this week after Edmonton–Riverview NDP MLA Lori Sigurdson compared the United Conservative Party to Nazis while speaking in Question Period.

Sigurdson invoked the Holocaust while criticising the government’s use of the notwithstanding clause, quoting the famous poem First They Came by Pastor Martin Niemöller, which reflects on Nazi Germany’s persecution of Jews and other groups. She said, “First they came for the teachers, and I did not speak out because I was not a teacher,” likening Alberta’s current labour dispute to genocide.

Chestermere–Strathmore MLA Chantelle de Jonge issued a sharp response, calling the comments “appalling and deeply offensive.”

“Invoking the Holocaust and comparing United Conservatives to Nazis to score political points trivializes one of the darkest chapters in human history,” said de Jonge. “Every member of the Assembly has a duty to speak with respect for the millions of victims who were murdered during the Holocaust. It is abhorrent to exploit their suffering for partisan attacks.”

De Jonge said there’s a “clear moral line that must never be crossed in politics,” and that the NDP “crossed it yesterday.”

She also called on NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi to condemn the remarks and ensure his caucus understands the seriousness of what was said.

“The Holocaust is not a political talking point,” said de Jonge. “Lori Sigurdson must apologise.”