Day 175: Pelee Island Winery Boycott and the Ontario Autism Program

The story of the week in Ontario is #BoycottPeleeWinery. Judging by Google News, it’s not going well for the Ontario Government and the Winery:

As the dog drinking coffee would say, “This is fine”.

As you can tell by the screenshot above, I’m one of the parents with kids on the spectrum who will not be purchasing products from this winery any longer. As always, I can only speak for me, but the reasons I’m doing so are simple:

I am wholly against the Ontario government providing free advertising, at taxpayer expense, on their propaganda network “Ontario News Now” to Progressive Conservative party donors. As a parent of a child on the spectrum who is spending thousands each month paying for health care that should be covered by our tax dollars, this abuse of resources is particularly galling. Why on earth would I take what’s left in my wallet and hand it over to a company that engages in this donations-for-taxpayer funded advertisements system?

And let’s be clear, this is a donations-for-taxpayer funded advertisements system, as shown by a recent Queen’s Park Briefing piece.

One question I’ve been receiving a lot is “do you think this boycott will affect the company’s bottom line? My response:

1. Probably not.
2. That’s not why I’m doing this.

My reasons for doing so are simple: I’m not going to be able to enjoy their product if I know the company is using that revenue to undermine my fight for healthcare for kids with autism. I’d much rather purchase products from one of the roughly 180 other wineries in Ontario, 17 (or so) who, like Pelee, are in Essex County. It’s funny — had Pelee raised their prices slightly or changed their product somewhat, nobody would have an issue with me taking my business to one of their many competitors. But instead they do something that is far more harmful to my family than rising their prices a quarter, and my changing brands is surprising to people.

The Windsor Star piece on the issue did raise the question of whether families like mine who were boycotting Pelee “ were buyers of Pelee Island Winery products to begin with”. I find that somewhat strange — why would families with children on the spectrum have significantly different purchasing patterns than the rest of the population?

Next time I’m at the LCBO, I’ll be looking for a different brand, ideally from Essex County. Anyone have a recommendation?