More protests similar to one at Allard’s home likely as negative effects of the pandemic persist, expert says

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An Alberta-based de-radicalization organization believes that the economic and mental stressors associated with the pandemic have created heightened levels of mistrust and anger never seen before, and has prompted people to initiate protests like the one seen at the home of MLA Tracy Allard last weekend.

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Earlier today, the RCMP announced that they were seeking help from the public in identifying those responsible for the display of a wooden gallows with a rope that read “End the government. Hang them all. No to masks, ”outside Allard’s home on October 31.

“I think it is just one of many protests that have taken place in the context of what is happening with the pandemic,” said John McCoy, executive director of the Organization for the Prevention of Violence (OPV).

The OPV is an Alberta-based organization that conducts research and interventions related to what they call hate violence and extremism. His research is used to inform politicians and professionals such as psychologists or social workers, who may be helping people with these problems.

“This is something that is going to continue to produce these types of protests, especially with the level of polarization that we see in Canadian society and some mistrust of the government, doctors and journalists,” McCoy said.

McCoy says that while the pandemic has created the perfect conditions for extreme thinking, the general mistrust associated with politicians and authority figures has been a long-standing problem.

“We have seen a decline in the level of trust in government and faith that government can be a positive force in people’s lives for decades,” McCoy said.

“This type of event just took this trend to a new level,” McCoy said.

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McCoy believes that there are many factors that are driving the levels of anger and distress that exist in certain segments of the public, including economic fears related to job loss.

According to McCoy, another reason that has led to further polarization is the fall of traditional media, the rise of alternative media, and the emergence of people who profit from the spread of misinformation.

“People are moving further and further away from what is happening in their own communities, away from local news sources, and are acquiring information from sources that could promote misinformation,” McCoy said.

McCoy says another major cause of extreme thinking and behavior is isolation, something that has also been exacerbated during the pandemic by public health measures that reduce contact with friends and family.

“At the individual and family level, the negative impact that loneliness and social isolation can have on people cannot be underestimated.” McCoy said.

“These are clearly correlated problems that are linked to things like domestic violence, the growth of populism and the growth of extremist movements,” McCoy said.

According to McCoy, all of these stressors add up, creating a sense of crisis and fear among a group of people, which in turn causes those people to consider increasingly extreme courses of action in response.

“I think what we are seeing now is that there is a growing sense of crisis and a negative structure of certain groups, including politicians, as representatives of some kind of enemy,” McCoy said.

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McCoy says all of these tensions create an environment in which people living in the same community find it increasingly difficult to live in harmony.

“I think all of this is contributing to a sense of polarization, both political and social, among Canadians, who have increasingly negative views about those who have different political views,” McCoy said.

These negative sentiments, according to McCoy, may be one explanation for the growing disagreement around pertinent public issues like climate change and vaccines.

McCoy believes it is a huge challenge facing politicians around the world, especially given the long-lasting economic and social stresses of the pandemic.

“It’s a huge challenge, and I don’t know if legislators and governments anywhere at this point have figured out how to control this level of polarization that we are seeing,” McCoy said.

According to McCoy, it is time for Canadians to find ways to develop a better sense of empathy and show that we have more that unites us than what separates us.

“I think there is a real need to get away from this us versus them mentality, whether it’s between people of different ethnic backgrounds, or between people who are vaccinated or not, or however people are being framed,” McCoy said.

“I don’t know if the government can do this on its own, especially now with the level of trust that we see, or the level of faith that we see in the government,” McCoy said.