Kelsi Sheren

Combat veteran, podcast host, entrepreneur

For years, Kelsi was one of many silent heroes with unknown stories - one of the nameless faceless who serve to protect their nation. In 2009, at just 19, she was deployed to Afghanistan, facing the worst of the war, and returning with PTSD.

Tormented by her affliction, Kelsi’s therapist suggested turning to art. Incorporating her trauma into her newfound escape, she started making jewellery from spent shell casings. She would later turn this new hobby into a successful enterprise: eyewear and jewellery brand Brass & Unity.

2023 saw the release of her wildly popular autobiography of the same name, detailing the horrors of Afghanistan and the mental fortitude she summoned to see it through. Since then, she has sat down for long-form interviews with Jordan Peterson, Lex Fridman, and, indeed, TRIGGERnometry. Today, she hosts the Brass & Unity Podcast, where she welcomes a plethora of public figures to share their stories of “leadership, resilience, and personal growth.”

So why did we invite her on?

We had Kelsi on last year to share her story and peel back the curtain that conceals the true horror of war. Kelsi was shockingly frank, making for one of the most emotionally devastating interviews we’ve ever conducted.

This time, we wanted to talk about something different. Canada’s government has been under the microscope a lot lately. One such scandal is the emergence of MAID - medical assistance in dying. While always a divisive issue, the temperature surrounding this subject has slowly crept up. Is it going too far?

We wanted to hear it from Kelsi. We weren’t prepared for what she said.

What’s happening?

“Let’s call it what it is - it’s eugenics … This is a movement to remove burdens on society. This is not compassion or care. This is about removing ‘the problems’ from society.”

Kelsi’s fury is palpable. It’s a fury that results from forensic research into the subject. She comes to us with statistics, figures, and case studies that are so unbelievable they seem to border on myth. The stories Kelsi shares would render a dystopian novel unreadable for being too fantastical. And yet, it’s happening, right now, in a major Western country.

MAID is pitched politically as a straightforward advocacy for dignified death. Individuals who are suffering immeasurably, already in their final throes, opting for a painless escape. What Kelsi illustrates, however, is that this isn’t how it’s being practised. Euthanasia is now an option for anyone with an affliction. Herself included.

”I qualify to use MAID today … all I have to prove is that my condition[s] are so bad that I can’t live this way.”
Konstantin retorts: “[But] that could apply to almost anything.”
“He’s getting it now…”