Nonpartisan Hacks

When Democracy Becomes Dangerous with Marianne Meed Ward

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What happens when serving your community means risking your personal safety?

In this episode of Nonpartisan Hacks, recorded live at the AVICC convention in Victoria, Joel Grenz and Sean Wood sit down with Marianne Meed Ward — Mayor of Burlington, Ontario and co-founder of Elect Respect — to talk about the growing crisis of harassment, abuse, and outright threats facing elected officials at every level of government. Marianne has received death threats, been told by police not to attend her own public meetings, and watched a colleague leave elected life entirely because of the abuse. Rather than stepping back, she helped launch a national movement.

Elect Respect is now a cross-country campaign with hundreds of elected officials and over 60 municipalities signed on. The pledge is simple: commit to respectful democracy, lead by example, and ask the same of colleagues and constituents.

Listen in for:

  • The real-life incidents — including death threats linked to a local development application — that pushed Mayor Meed Ward to act
  • Why the tools available to municipalities to deal with misconduct are dangerously limited (and easily weaponized)
  • How social media, bots, and post-COVID anonymity turbocharged political toxicity at the local level
  • What Elect Respect is actually asking people to do, and how any elected official or member of the public can sign the pledge today
  • Why changing the culture has to start with politicians themselves

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    Find all our episodes at nonpartisanhacks.com and drop us a line.

    Sign the pledge: electrespect.ca

    🎵 Theme music: "Cruising" by Sky Gienger via Uppbeat | License: JNRTTK70QSW4XR8V

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    Nonpartisan HacksBy Joel Grenz and Sean Wood