Erstellt am: 17. 11. 2012 - 10:46 Uhr
What does it mean to be a Canadian today?
Back in May, I visited Vancouver for the first time since the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. While that trip had been all about sports and journalism, the purpose of this year's trip was intended as something else altogether.
Johnny Bliss, 2012
Reality Check Special (12-1): What does it mean to be a Canadian today?
The truth was, many things had happened to Canada - and my home city of Vancouver - since I'd left it behind for good in 2006. In the city alone, real estate prices had skyrocketed, and entire neighbourhoods had been bulldozed to make way for new housing developments. Where I had remembered a laundromat and a pizzeria, there now was a shopping mall.
Johnny Bliss, 2012
The differences across Canada were no less severe; more so, you could say. A scandal in 2005 had led to the entire Liberal government getting thrown out in 2006, the year I moved to Austria. Since then, the Minority conservative government won a second election, to become a Majority government and the Liberals lost their position as official opposition party.
In 2010, I watched in horror from afar, as the G8/G20 Summit in Toronto was marked not only by violent protests, but (more worryingly) by the largest mass arrests in Canadian history, with over 1,100 people arrested, including journalists with cameras, tourists, non-protesting residents, and (!) quite a few peaceful protesters as well.
Since then, there have been any number of disturbing stories from Canada which have made headlines, from the robo-call scandal during elections, to the 'muzzling' of environmental scientists, to massive education protests in Quebec followed by an emergency law, making large public protests difficult or illegal.
At the same time, many traditional topics seem not to have developed at all. Queen Elizabeth of Britain, for example, remains our constitutional head of state, Canadians still apologize immediately if you bump into them, and Hockey remains the popular national religion.
Johnny Bliss, 2012
I suppose part of the intention of my visit to Canada some months ago, was to piece together the Canada I remembered leaving, with the one I'd presently returned to. As (essentially) some sort of tourist, however, my view of the situation remained all-too-narrow.
To gain a better perspective, I needed some help.
Johnny Bliss, 2012
The Cast of Characters
- Meet "Angela", a progressive activist who requested anonymity for our interview. She previously spent years living with First Nations people on a farm in the Yukon Territories, and, perhaps as a result, takes a dim view of Euro-Canadian nationalism. With that said, she believes very strongly in the power of direct democracy, and she laments the apathy that has led to many young progressive Canadians simply not voting.
Johnny Bliss, 2012
- Meet Patrick, a young tradesman who studies Environmental Policy at UBC. While he generally feels pretty positive about the 'personality' of the Canadian people, when I asked him about our outlook on the environment, he sounded a lot more skeptical. A strong proponent of 'green' energy and investment in wind, solar, and geothermal fuel sources, he provided a very strong argument for Canada's need to change course, and soon.
Johnny Bliss, 2012
- Meet Meera and Kavita, childhood friends who were raised in the Vancouver area and who identify very strongly as Canadians. However, Meera was born in Kenya and Kavita's family is originally from Fiji. In some places, this would lead to racial discrimination and a lack of opportunities. But not, they assured me, in British Columbia. They had a lot to tell me, both about modern Canada, and our colonial past.
Johnny Bliss, 2012