VJM school and St. Albert Catholic school district should be ashamed.
Using children as political pawns is disgusting. Manipulating those children in an attempt to take away the rights of others is even more deplorable.
I was disappointed to see that at least one of our local St. Albert schools chose to take young children to a completely inappropriate, potentially dangerous and politically charged event – March for Life, Edmonton, Thursday, May 9, an event from which there had been a number of reported incidents and assaults from previous years – to further their own political and religiously ideological ends.
Moreso, that they diverted hard-earned education tax dollars (and teachers) away from the classroom to fund this "school field trip" – taxes paid by the very women whose rights they were attempting to remove.
One can only be horrified at the manipulative language used in the "field trip form" the children brought home: "At this event all are welcome and needed. One would be in the good company of families, students, Bishops, Priests, Religious Sisters and members of your parish ... may you know your presence will say absolutely everything for another who can say nothing. Let us remember; Jesus stated that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters, we do for Him."
Those aren't the words of a publicly funded school field trip form. This was an all-day event to attend first a Mass and then a political rally that should have been organized AND PAID FOR through a local church or anti-choice organization.
To really grasp the shameless manipulation of children and hypocrisy involved is to understand they were trying to coerce 12-year-olds, some that DIDN'T EVEN KNOW WHAT AN ABORTION WAS to attend an event to prevent women from being able to choose to have one!
This is unacceptable political manipulation of children and a complete misuse of public education funds. Vincent J. Maloney Catholic school and the Greater St. Albert Catholic school district should be ashamed of themselves and need to commit to not abusing the absolute privilege of full public funding this way in the future.
Luke Fevin, St. Albert
