On February 5, 2026, one day after Frances Widdowson and Anthony Hall, along with their respective spouses, were assaulted, intimidated, harassed, and had their property damaged and stolen for trying to engage in a Spectrum Street Epistemology session at the University of Lethbridge, an email exchange took place between professor and Gender, Equity & Diversity Committee Chair Patrick Wilson and Provost Michelle Helstein. This email shows the totalitarianism that is actively encouraged by faculty and administrators, answering the question as to why students at this institution have become so deranged.
In this email, Wilson asserts that Frances Widdowson is not engaged in “evidence-based inquiry”, and implies that she is putting forward “hateful rhetoric” and “misinformation and disinformation”.
This leads to the following response from Provost Helstein. Helstein discusses three different “perspectives” on Widdowson’s Spectrum Street Epistemology session – 1) it should be cancelled (Wilson’s view); 2) it should be ignored so as not to “amplify” Widdowson and give her “what she wants” (cancellation); and 3) give opportunities to people to show how Widdowson’s ideas are “not accepted/acceptable”.
Wilson then responded by asserting that he “was incredibly proud of our students who came out en masse to show that those views are not accepted or acceptable”.
Helstein then forwarded Patrick Wilson’s messages to the “Provost Committee”, along with her message to the University of Lethbridge Faculty Association (ULFA).
It is still not clear what the communication was between Provost Helstein and ULFA.
