Our imperfect political leaders represent an imperfect Canada
‘May you live in interesting times’, goes the purported ancient Chinese proverb; and considering the options available to Canadians casting a ballot in the upcoming federal election, interesting times we live in, indeed.
The leader of the Liberal Party, our incumbent Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has recently been found to have had something of a youthful (a term used lightly, being as he was in his late-twenties in one instance) fascination with using others’ race and creed as a cheap party gag – having been repeatedly photographed in black-or-brown face as a young man. Not to be outdone, the leader of the Conservative Party, Andrew Scheer, compared legalizing gay marriage to counting a dog’s tail as a fifth leg in a speech delivered in 2005 as a back-bench MP in the House of Commons. Further, to-this-day, Mr. Scheer refuses to participate in, or celebrate, LGBTQ-Pride marches and festivities. The leader of the New Democratic Party, Jagmeet Singh, was hesitant to condemn the terrorists responsible for the Air India bombings after being asked to do so following his becoming NDP leader, and has also been caught on video speaking on a panel alongside known extremist Sikh separatists. Last but not least, Maxime Bernier. What to say about the leader of the People’s Party, rather than he has never been caught wearing black-or-brown-face, has never compared gay marriage to a dog’s tail, and has never been slow to condemn terrorism; and yet still has as inflammatory and controversial of a past as any of the party leaders previously mentioned. Need we look any further than his recent Twitter comments making fun of 16 year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg for having Asperger syndrome?
This, of course, leaves us with two major party leaders without any obviously apparent offensive past comments or actions: Elizabeth May, leader of the Green Party, and Yves-Francois Blanchet, leader of the Bloc Quebecois. The issue here, however, is that while Ms. May and Mr. Blanchet may not be divisive figures themselves, their parties certainly are – a radical environmentalist movement largely relegated to the margins of Canadian political discourse in the case of the former, and an extremist Quebec-separatist movement largely relegated to the margins of the national Canadian political discourse in the case of the latter. So, the political choices on offer this October leave much to be desired for any fair minded, polite and well-mannered Canadian.
However, I suspect that much like the myth of the egalitarian, multicultural and cartoonishly polite Canada; the fair minded and well-mannered Canadian voter is a misconception as well. Canadians, like our country, are a bit more rough around the edges than we would like to admit. Sure, we are one of the world’s most tolerant and pluralistic societies, but we are also an ongoing colonial project built largely on a stolen continent. Certainly, our cities are a testament to the multi-racial and multicultural societal fabric with which many claim will enable us to meet the challenges of the 21st century, but they are in stark contrast to our overwhelmingly White rural communities; which seem to indicate not a society living in harmonious shared spaces, but rather, one increasingly segregating itself along ethnic, cultural, and regional lines. And, of course, our nation is one blessed with a mostly stable government, with a long history of strong and fair governance. However, is this not ignoring the constant calls for separation and independence by those both in Canada’s East and West?
We Canadians are indeed a hard-working, smart, entrepreneurial, and caring bunch, but we should be wary of becoming liars, both to the world and ourselves. Our political leaders are not an aberration; they are fitting symbols of where we as a country are today. This is what our political leadership represents – us. We Canadians have created one of the most successful societies in human history, and one of the best places in the world to raise a family. This is something to be proud of. Yet, we are still a country with many blemishes, and we remain a society that is a work-in-progress. On October 21st, we will elect a leader, and a party, with a lot of problems. Good thing, because no matter who you cast your ballot for, at least we as Canadians can all share one thing in common; we aren’t perfect, and neither are our political representatives. My name is Corey LeBlanc, and that’s just my opinion.