Suffering Should Never Be Weaponized

Feb. 12, 2026

‘Scapegoating vulnerable groups does not make communities safer,’ says a municipal councillor in the wake of the Tumbler Ridge tragedy.

There are moments when words are inadequate.

What happened in Tumbler Ridge is a tragedy. Lives were lost. Families were shattered. A small community is now carrying a soul-crushing grief that will live long after the headlines fade. That is where our attention should begin, and where it should remain.

Yet almost immediately, the tragedy was pulled into the public domain and repackaged. Not to support the grieving or help a traumatized community heal, but to advance ideological positions and turn suffering into rage farming.

That is not reflection. It is exploitation! Full stop! The shooter has been identified as a transgender individual with severe mental health challenges. Those facts have been selectively seized upon by some to promote ideological claims that have nothing to do with the lives lost in Tumbler Ridge. It is opportunism.

To be clear, this tragedy is not “about trans people.” Just as acts of violence are not “about” race, religion, or sexuality simply because a perpetrator belongs to a particular group. Violence is not explained by identity labels, and grief is not eased by scapegoating.

I write this not only as a columnist and municipal councillor, but as a former police officer in British Columbia. I have seen firsthand the devastation left behind when vulnerable people are not supported, when mental health needs are ignored until they become crises, and when communities are left to the consequences. I have seen how a segment of our population is quick to apply blame.

Scapegoating vulnerable groups does not make communities safer. It makes them more fragile. It pushes people further to the margins, discourages them from seeking help and deepens the conditions that lead to harm.

When tragedy is forced to fit a preferred narrative, victims are reduced to symbols. Their lives and losses become background noise in someone else’s debate.

What matters now are the families sitting in shock, the friends replaying conversations that will never happen again and a community struggling to make sense of the unthinkable.

It also matters to recognize the burden carried by first responders, teachers, neighbours and local support workers who will deal with the emotional aftermath.

There will be time later for discussion about mental health services, access to care and how people fall through the cracks. That conversation must be grounded in evidence, compassion and humility. It will not be helped by social media, dog whistles or rage farming.

Facts are not opinions. Grief is not an opportunity. And suffering should never be weaponized.

Even those far from Tumbler Ridge will feel the impact — parents, educators, first responders and families everywhere who are reminded how suddenly the world can change. I struggle to make sense of this tragedy.

In the coming weeks, one meaningful response would be to do deliberate acts of kindness in our own communities. Check in on someone. Write a thank-you note to a teacher or a first responder, buy a stranger coffee for no reason, or simply tell someone you love them. Be kind. Offer grace instead of judgment.

The effects of this tragedy extend far beyond one town and we are all touched in different ways.

If we truly care about community safety, mental health and human dignity, our response must reflect those values. That means refusing to let fear or ideology cause further harm.

Some moments call for fact-based debate. This one calls for humanity.

Ken Matheson is a councillor in the district municipality of Clearwater, B.C. He is also a filmmaker, a podcast host and a retired RCMP officer in Fort St. John, Masset, Trail and Kamloops. 

[Top photo: A couple embraces in front of a memorial honouring the victims of a mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, BC on Feb. 12, 2026. Photo by Christinne Muschi, the Canadian Press.]