As was mentioned in Episode 1 and 3, two of the “examples” given in President Tim Rahilly’s termination letter were that Widdowson had “contributed significantly to a harassing and toxic workplace environment” (#7) and that “a number of [Widdowson’s] former colleagues have indicated that they have departed the University” because of her actions (#8).
One of Widdowson’s “contributions” concerned a satirical letter. This was prompted by MRU Racial Advocacy’s “An Open Letter to Mount Royal University” that was publicized on June 30, 2020. The open letter demanded, among other things, that “all faculty should attend mandatory training and courses in anti-racism…”. The letter also referred to the need to oppose “anti-Indigenous rhetoric” at MRU, which Widdowson thought referred to her academic work.
This led Frances Widdowson, on July 1, 2020, to post a satirical letter about it on her private Facebook page and Twitter accounts.
Although Widdowson’s satirical letter did not mention any colleague by name, it was found to “[degenerate] into ridicule and [be] demeaning of others” and “sarcastically undermine and mock proponents of a viewpoint”. This resulted in the finding that Widdowson was guilty of “Personal Harassment” and had contributed to “tension and toxicity in the workplace”.
