What Bill 54 Gets So Wrong About Alberta, Canada, and the Meaning of Leadership

There’s been growing concern across Alberta about Bill 54, a piece of legislation passed by Premier Smith’s government that gives sweeping power over public lands. While she’s framed it as a step toward provincial autonomy, many Indigenous leaders and legal experts see it as a direct threat to Treaty rights.

These aren’t just political disagreements. They’re constitutional, legal, and moral issues that go to the heart of who we are as a province and as a country.

I’ve been genuinely stunned by what Premier Smith is saying and doing. I kept hoping she’d realize that being elected to govern Alberta doesn’t mean she owns it. It means she’s responsible for upholding the law, protecting democratic institutions, and serving all Albertans, not pushing through an unwanted political agenda.

But that’s not what we’re seeing.

She’s asserting control over land that doesn’t belong to her. That land is subject to Treaty rights which are legal agreements between the Crown and Indigenous Nations that are protected under the Constitution. These rights aren’t optional. They aren’t symbolic. They’re binding.

Chief Tony Alexis of Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation called Bill 54 “a violation of the spirit and intent of Treaty,” while others have said it echoes past colonial attempts to erase Indigenous governance. Legal experts have raised serious concerns that the bill could violate Section 35 of the Constitution, which affirms and protects Indigenous rights in Canada.

Bill 54 isn’t just bad legislation. It’s a disgraceful act that undermines the very agreements that define this country and dismisses the sovereignty of Indigenous Nations in ways that are both dangerous and deeply disrespectful. It opens the door to referendums that could ignore or override Treaty obligations. And it does so without meaningful consultation or consent.

This isn’t leadership. It’s overreach.

You can be proud to be Albertan and still speak up. In fact, that’s exactly what this moment demands.

Alberta and Canada are stronger together but we must all uphold the legal and moral foundations that make that unity possible.

To my fellow business and civic leaders: silence doesn’t protect our future. It erodes it. We’re accountable not just for what we build as a province, but for what we let stand unchallenged.

This isn’t just politics. It’s a clear line being crossed, and we need to say so.

What do you think?

I’d love to hear your thoughts, especially from those in Alberta or working with Indigenous communities. How are you thinking about Bill 54 and what it means for our province and our country?