W5 visited Richmound, Sask., to learn more about the self-described 'Queen of Canada,' who controversially moved to the rural village with her followers last year.
It’s a fine line. My mother believes Q-adjacent anti-vax bullshit that her manic bipolar boyfriend spoonfeeds her. She’s otherwise a competent, independent adult. She knows who the Prime Minister is (and that he’s satan incarnate) and pays her bills on time. She believes insane bullshit, but she’s not dangerous to herself or others.
She’s not forcing anyone to send her money, she’s saying crazy things that somehow resonate with people who are to some degree mentally ill but not dangerous, like my mother. People do stupid shit all the time, and if we criminalized that, we’d have to turn all of Alberta into a prison.
As for the threats, she’s not a genuine threat, and arresting / locking her up would turn her into a martyr to her followers, which could cause bigger issues. The people who tried to arrest police in Peterborough got what was coming to them, and they were made an example of. Cult leaders don’t want their followers getting locked up where they can snap out of it.
It’s a fine line. My mother believes Q-adjacent anti-vax bullshit that her manic bipolar boyfriend spoonfeeds her. She’s otherwise a competent, independent adult. She knows who the Prime Minister is (and that he’s satan incarnate) and pays her bills on time. She believes insane bullshit, but she’s not dangerous to herself or others.
She’s not forcing anyone to send her money, she’s saying crazy things that somehow resonate with people who are to some degree mentally ill but not dangerous, like my mother. People do stupid shit all the time, and if we criminalized that, we’d have to turn all of Alberta into a prison.
As for the threats, she’s not a genuine threat, and arresting / locking her up would turn her into a martyr to her followers, which could cause bigger issues. The people who tried to arrest police in Peterborough got what was coming to them, and they were made an example of. Cult leaders don’t want their followers getting locked up where they can snap out of it.