With three weeks to go in her job as a Senate Page, Bridget Marcelle decided to quit that job with a splash. She decided that her political allegiance to a particular political party (I’m told she is a Dipper) was more important than the commitment she made to her employer to remain non-partisan.
Bridget Marcelle being escorted from the Senate
This was not brave, or at least it showed no more personal bravery than rock climbing or driving in Richmond. She had very little to lose, as she was losing her job in 3 weeks anyway. The immediate reaction from the disgruntled left shows that, if anything, she has improved her job prospects rather than hurt them.
This was not an act of civil disobedience. The Greenpeace protesters who scaled the Parliament Buildings a couple of years ago? That was civil disobedience, and brave. Civil disobedience is about risking something, usually criminal charges, to stand up for what you think is right. Ms. Marcelle didn’t actually risk anything, but has seemed to gain an awful lot.
If this was the act of a person deeply troubled by the current situation and wanted to take a principled stand, she should have quit her job, walked up to the first reporter she found, and said “I just quit as a Page in the Senate because I believe that we must stop Harper!” If she was lucky, and had picked the right reporter, she might have gotten a short story out of it. If she had climbed the Peace Tower and hung a banner, I’m sure it would have been a bigger story.
I have a hard time believing this wasn’t a 21 year old grabbing her 15 minutes of fame in order to improve the result of her upcoming job search. I have no doubt that she opposes Harper. But this wasn’t the impulsive act of defiance that everyone is making it out to be. She had a plan, and she executed it perfectly, right down to having a press release pre-written for the occasion.
You can applaud the sentiment, and I do. You can applaud the personal bravery it must have taken to carry through with her plan, and I do. But I want to see what all of her supporters are going to say if Jack Layton ever gets to give his Throne Speech, and some disgruntled Conservative Page decides to hold up a “Stop Layton” sign.
I do hope that the NDP give this young women a job. Because I want to see their faces in 3 years when Jack does something she doesn’t like, and she calls a press conference from the steps of the NDP offices. If she did it to one employer, what makes you think she won’t do it to another?
Let the flames begin.