I don’t like much of what I see happening politically south of the border, but I do respect the spirit of righteous anger that sometimes rises up when Americans finally confront wrongdoing. I wish we saw more of that here.
In British Columbia, the government got away with the enforcement of MAiD on the Delta Hospice Society and the seizure of its property because so few people spoke up about it. The society’s proposed move to Alberta may embarrass this government, but likely not enough to spark real change.
In the meantime, citizens can protect themselves. Delta Hospice Society offers a form forbidding any health professional or MAiD practitioner from discussing government-sponsored death with you. Once signed, it can be filed with your family doctor and added to an advance directive. Delta Hospice will also register your name in a national directory of people who wish to be excluded from MAiD and send you a wallet card confirming it.
Sadly, this has become necessary as seniors, especially those in care homes, are now being quietly solicited as potential candidates. We may soon find someone at our door offering an end to suffering and urging us to “just sign here.”
Let’s keep raising the pressure with our prayers, our petitions, and our refusal to be silent until this wall of resistance finally collapses.
Larry Gill
Victoria
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