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My hope for Canada in 2016

The year 2015 will go down for me as a definitive one, one that saw a lot of reflection and debate about the future of this country and the world at large.

The year 2015 will go down for me as a definitive one, one that saw a lot of reflection and debate about the future of this country and the world at large.

In this year more than others, the debate at times descended into wedge politics that made me feel very concerned about xenophobia in the 21st century. Whether it was talking about women veiling as they took the citizenship oath, accepting more refugees from war-torn countries, setting up a barbaric cultural practices snitch line, or the country’s ability to strip one set of Canadians of their citizenship, I felt the federal election debate ran the risk of turning two sets of people against each other: Canadians from a white, European background against everyone else, particularly those of the Muslim faith.

My feeling is the Liberals winning a majority government in the federal election had less to do with people supporting leader Justin Trudeau’s party and more to do with people repudiating what came to be seen by those who shared my views as divisiveness.

But the kind of vicious, angry, hate-filled talk that we saw in the federal election campaign has not shown any sign of disappearing.

Albertans have been understandably angered about the lack of consultation on Bill 6; what was not so understandable were the threats by some people to kill the premier or who threatened NDP MLAs over the bill, threats which Wildrose leader Brian Jean – to his credit - made clear were totally inappropriate and outside the realm of decency.

Recently, the CBC took the step of disabling its comments section on any First Nations stories, because of what it said would see a disproportionate number of “racist” and “vitriolic” comments on such stories.

Donald Trump, the Republican presidential candidate, has made frightening and incendiary comments about banning Muslims from traveling to the States and making them wear special badges, evoking nightmarish scenes of the Holocaust. Scarier than his comments is the fact many Americans seem to champion them, with Trump leading the crowded field of candidates.

I share many people’s concerns and fears about the rise of extremism and home-grown terrorism. It’s a subject my husband and I talk about frequently, wondering, like many, what the right answer is. But I cannot and do not believe the answer lies in turning against each other. Love and acceptance, to me, will always trump fear and hate.

We don’t all have to agree with one another. We certainly don’t have to agree with our government – in fact, it is our duty to voice our dissent and to debate the matters that affect this country. But we can do it in a civilized, respectful way.

I might be a first generation immigrant, but I’ve never known any other country than Canada and this will always be the home of my heart. So in 2016, I hope that the people of this country will recognize we are all humans, all sharing more similarities than differences, and that we are stronger when we work together rather than against each other. Most of all, I hope the example of this country is a beacon of light to others in the darkest of times.




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