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Michael Higgins: Canada's most dangerous professor

Frances Widdowson challenged the Kamloops graves story. She ended up in handcuffs

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Prof. Frances Widdowson has reserved a special place for the University of Lethbridge in her “Halls of Shame” list — the places she says are the worst for free speech and academic freedom. 

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Her view may be coloured by the fact that for treading the halls of that academy last week she was handcuffed and hit with a $600 fine for trespassing. 

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The university sees Widdowson, a former associate professor in the department of economics, justice and policy studies at Calgary’s Mount Royal University, as a disruptor and a health and safety risk and has banned her from its premises. (Widdowson was terminated from her position in 2021, over what her and the faculty association claims was a breach of academic freedom. An arbitrator ruled the the termination was a disproportionate response from Mount Royal, and the Alberta labour board is currently reviewing the case.)

Widdowson sees the University of Lethbridge as infected with oppressive woke ideology that is killing free speech and leading to totalitarianism across Canadian campuses. 

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“Universities are in serious trouble because they’ve been seriously impacted by equity, diversity and inclusion ideology. That’s the idea that in order to be inclusive you need to stop certain ideas from being discussed,” said Widdowson in an interview with National Post on Monday. 

“This is across the board in universities in Canada. There’s some obviously that are worse than others, but the University Lethbridge is the worst of all of them.” 

In news stories, Widdowson is often referred to as “controversial.” She could equally be called defiant and determined. 

She believes that if free speech is not safeguarded — on universities especially — then democracy itself will be undermined. 

“There’s a lot of self-censorship going on and a lot of direct censorship where universities take a political position and they make life difficult for anyone who challenges that position,” she said. 

“My ultimate objective is to make universities academic spaces once more. I’m trying to sound the alarm about how important universities are for democratic societies.” 

Universities view Widdowson as a danger because of her politically incorrect opinions around the Kamloops graves controversy. 

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In May 2021, the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc Nation alleged that ground penetrating radar had found unmarked burial sites containing the bodies of 215 children on the former Kamloops Indian Residential School grounds. 

After five years, and $12 million in federal funds, no human remains have so far been found.  However, to question the prevailing narrative is to be condemned as a “denier.”  

“I argue that there’s no evidence at this time for the existence of clandestine burials at Kamloops,” said Widdowson, a position so dangerous and toxic that it’s a health and safety risk, apparently. 

Widdowson said she was told the university believed that her position was putting “the established truth” under threat. 

She said the University of Lethbridge was so troubled about one of her visits that it sent an email to staff and faculty “saying that I was a controversial figure with upsetting and disrespectful views.” 

Widdowson is obviously a challenge for the school, tensions that go back years.

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In 2023, the university allowed — and then cancelled — a speech by Widdowson called “How ‘Woke-ism Threatens Academic Freedom.” There is an on-going court case with Widdowson asking for a judicial review of that cancellation. 

In February of this year, Widdowson’s presence on the Lethbridge campus for an event provoked a large protest from students who banged drums and shouted abuse. Following that appearance, the university decided to issue a trespass notice against Widdowson — even though it was students doing the protesting. 

“You were observed engaging in the ‘interference in or disruption of the operation of the University, including the interference with or disruption of the normal business of University staff, students and visitors’ contrary to the University of Lethbridge Trespass Policy,” says the trespass notice. 

In a statement to the Post on Monday, the university said of the February appearance that it was an unscheduled event and noted “safety concerns and significant disruptions” at other universities where Widdowson had appeared previously. 

Widdowson’s presence caused a major protest but she was allowed on campus for six hours to express her views, said the university.   

“When it became clear the situation would not de-escalate, and that safety could no longer be maintained and core operations were being disrupted due to institutional capacity, the University issued a trespass notice which was served on Widdowson by the police. When she did not leave, the police removed her,” said the statement. 

On Friday, April 24, Widdowson returned to the university but police and security were expecting her and deterred her from going on campus.  

Although she did not have an event planned, Widdowson returned the next day, Saturday, and was in the cafeteria talking to someone she knew, a member of the public and not a student, when security told her to leave because of the trespass order.

Widdowson told security she considered the trespass notice invalid because she wasn’t doing any disrupting at the February event.

When she continued talking, “they called in the police and put me in handcuffs and dragged me out and put me in the paddy wagon and then gave me a $600 ticket.” 

In its statement, the university said, “University security advised her of the trespass notice and asked her to leave. When she refused, security contacted police, who enforced the notice. 

“The University has reasonable grounds to believe that Widdowson’s presence would again result in significant disruption that exceeds the University’s ability to manage it.” 

“What they’re doing is they’re weaponizing the Occupational Health and Safety Act,” said Widdowson. 

At the universities, Widdowson gets students to engage in Spectrum Street Epistemology where they are asked whether they strongly agree, strongly disagree or are neutral on certain positions — like the Kamloops graves, for instance. 

After they make their choice students are asked what evidence they have for their belief. 

“It’s a very good way to get people to be thinking about the evidence that they are using to come to the understanding that they are,” said Widdowson. 

Meanwhile, the issue of free speech on universities is troubling the Alberta government with Premier Danielle Smith musing about the need for a law to protect freedom of expression and academic freedom in post-secondary schools. 

Widdowson said the government should threaten to withdraw funding from universities which would “bring them round in seconds.” 

She also hopes to bring about change through challenges in the legal system — she said she will appeal the $600 fine. 

“By putting pressure on the political side, with the politicians, the legal side, and the cultural side, by going in with direct action and exposing the unbelievable totalitarianism which is starting to emerge on these campuses, I’m hoping that I’ll be able to put universities in Canada back on an academic footing,” said Widdowson. 

One suspects that Widdowson’s Halls of Shame list will grow considerably longer before she has any success. 

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