By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on July 3, 2023.

OTTAWA—Is Canada broken? Canadians celebrating our national day across the country don’t seem to think so.

And neither does the world.

Just last week, three of Canada’s cities ranked in the top 10 of world livability, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Our most livable city, Montreal, didn’t make the cut but Toronto, Vancouver, and Calgary did.

Millions of Canadians who live in other places believe their community is best.

Newfoundland is known worldwide for its friendly people. CNN broadcaster Anderson Cooper made his way to St. John’s, N.L., to cover the tragic loss of the Titan submersible, but could not leave the city without a special shoutout to the generosity of the people.

Just last week, Canada became one of the first countries in the world to guarantee equality in professional sport payments.

Tennis Canada announced the change in a release which said it would fund increased women’s prize money via a hike in the number of days of competition and a revenue share increase with the Women’s Tennis Association.

The announcement means a huge financial boost for women’s tennis. In the 2023 Canadian tennis tournaments next month, men’s prize money is $7.623-million while the women’s purse is only $2.788-million.

It will take five years to reach equality, but women are ecstatic that Canada is taking the lead in an area that will have ripple effects around the world.

The tennis move should also send a message to other sports, where women’s participation is grossly underfunded.

Just last week, millions of Canadians joined in a celebration of our country’s LGBTQ-plus diversity.

From small communities to megacities, Canadians joined to celebrate the right to be who we want to be and love who we want to love.

In Caraquet, N.B., at the same moment New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs was making life more difficult for transgender teens, the community was repainting its crosswalks in pride colours.

Higgs’ obstinacy on transgender issues has cost him several cabinet ministers, and his job as premier is now on the line.

The Progressive Conservative party has already started a process to replace Higgs, largely because of his decision to ram through legislation where schools must inform parents if a student chooses to change the pronoun identifying their gender.

Higgs’ response to cabinet objections was to ignore complaints about his leadership style and simply dump dissenters.

In small and large towns across the country, people wore the pride colours positively in recognition of the fact that Canada is a country where we can embrace our differences.

When the wildfires hit in Nova Scotia, Canadians from across the country reached out to help with financial support and firefighting expertise.

As the smoke still filters across the land, we know that we are in this together.

Do we have problems? Yes, housing affordability is top of the list for young people who cannot pay the high price of housing in most parts of the country.

Homelessness and mental health challenges mean urban centres are magnets for those who have nowhere else to go. In a country like Canada, help for those most in need should be top of mind on our Canada Day to-do list.

The effects of colonization and deculturalization on Indigenous Peoples are only now being tackled in a serious way with financial reparation and collective recognition of the damage that has been inflicted.

Reconciliation is still a work in progress, as is the attempt to build a country where race and religion play no role in your capacity to grow as a person or community.

We are not there yet. But the fact that most Canadians can see equality of race, gender, religion, and sexual orientation as a positive goal is something to celebrate.

The old saying that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence does not apply here.

The grass is already much greener on our side of the fence.

Canadians don’t need to win a lottery. We have already won in the lottery of life, either having been born or having migrated to a country that strives for success for all its citizens.

Individual rights are not paramount in Canada. And that is a good thing.

Instead, we understand to build a nation we need to strengthen communities, geographic and demographic.

There is much work ahead, but, on this Canada Day, we can say with certainty that our country is not broken.

Instead, we are a work in progress.

Happy Canada Day!

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

Lionizing illegal occupiers has nothing to do with freedom. Instead, it is an attempt to overthrow the social compact that Canada was built on.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on July 4, 2022.

OTTAWA—Freedom obviously means different things to different people.

In some parts of the world, freedom is survival.

If you don’t have access to food or water, how can you worry about anything more than securing the basics of life?

If you are a woman in some countries, you do not even have the right to leave home unless accompanied by a male member of your family. Absurd though it may be, your son may actually have the authority to keep you locked inside.

If you are a girl in Afghanistan, you don’t have the right to an education. Even if your family could afford to send you, schools are verboten for those who have been born with a vagina.

If you are not a straight male, there are many places in the world where you could be imprisoned or even killed simply for loving someone.

You are not free to be who you are, but must either hide your sexual orientation or simply bury your sexuality to be free.

In some countries, there is no freedom.

But that is not the case in Canada. And as we celebrated our national holiday on July 1, it is time to start calling out those fakers who claim they are fighting for freedom in our country.

Can you imagine any other country in the world where you are so free you can park a bouncy castle in front of Parliament for weeks, paralyzing the operations of government, without being arrested?

Threatening judges and disobeying court orders is common amongst those who claim they are fighting for our freedoms.

Our “freedoms” involve infecting others with variants of COVID simply because they refuse to embrace the reality that vaccines make us all safer.

Why would any political party want to associate themselves with a bunch of fake freedom fighters whose main claim to fame is an illegal occupation of Canada’s capital?

Last week, interim Conservative leader Candice Bergen authorized all caucus members to meet with these fakers, in the name of democracy. She told CTV “I support peaceful and legal demonstrations, and if my MPs want to be there, they’re free to do whatever they want and they’ll answer to their constituents.”

Conservatives are currently battling with the People’s Party of Canada for the favour of those illegal occupiers who continue to display their disdain for the very system they claim to support.

Illegal convoy organizer Tamara Lich was released from prison in March after she agreed to bail conditions which prevented her from inciting another illegal occupation.

Instead, her lawyer confirmed she was arrested last week in Medicine Hat, Alta., for allegedly violating bail conditions. Meanwhile, political parties battle to share the spotlight with Lich.

“This is disgusting,” tweeted Maxime Bernier, leader of the People’s Party of Canada. “Tamara Lich is a political prisoner and the Liberal regime is persecuting her like all authoritarian regimes do with dissidents. We will continue to support this courageous woman.”

Meanwhile, one judge involved in convoy prosecutions is alleging claims of harassment, intimidation, and even death threats.

In an interview with Radio Canada under concealed identity, the judge said multiple threats forced them to change the locks on their home, vary their daily path to work and consider moving their children out of the family residence.

This is harassment and intimidation from a group that claims to be fighting for freedom. The fact that any of these illegal protest organizers could be characterized as political prisoners illustrates just how bizarre our political narrative has become.

Even more strange is the fact that any legitimate political party would want to be associated with this group of twisted malcontents.

Conservative front-runner Pierre Poilievre constantly peppers his speeches with references to freedoms, underscoring that his political goal is to give liberty back to Canadians.

There may be many challenges facing our country, including the bite taken out of our wallets by rising inflation, but it is pretty hard to absorb the notion that we live in a country replete with political prisoners.

That claim has zero credibility.

As we celebrated our real freedoms on Canada Day last week, let’s not fall into the trap of legitimizing the goal of those who use illegal means to make their message heard.

Shutting down communities, blocking roads with bouncy castles and hot tubs, lionizing illegal occupiers has nothing to do with freedom.

Instead, it is an attempt to overthrow the social compact that Canada was built on.

Living in society comes with collective responsibilities.

Happy and Free Canada Day!

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

If he doesn’t connect with the truckers who are promising weeks of disruption, he runs the risk of being outed as a non-supporter. If he does stand with the truckers, he runs the counter-risk of facing the ire of citizens in the Ottawa region, including those in his own Ottawa riding, Carleton.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on June 27, 2022.

OTTAWA—Pierre Poilievre’s Canada Day celebrations may blow up in his face.

If he doesn’t connect with the truckers who are promising weeks of disruption, he runs the risk of being outed as a non-supporter.

If he does stand with the truckers, he runs the counter-risk of facing the ire of citizens in the Ottawa region, including those in his own Ottawa-area riding, Carleton.

They handed him a healthy plurality in the last election but just last week, Mainstreet Research published some interesting data about how the trucker-Pierre tango was viewed by voters.

Amongst 555 constituents polled by Mainstreet between June 13-14, Poilievre enjoyed a healthy 10 per cent majority over his closest opponent in the last election.

If that same election were held today, Poilievre would still be in the lead, but his margin of victory would shrink by half.

According to respondents, the single biggest factor in their dissatisfaction was Poilievre’s support for the Ottawa convoy blockade.

Forty-nine per cent of those polled said they would be less likely to vote for the Conservatives if the riding representative was Poilievre.

It appears as though the trucker occupation played a huge rule in Poilievre’s fall from electoral grace.

The Mainstreet question was clear: “During the trucker occupation … Pierre Poilievre met with and encouraged the freedom protesters. How has this impacted your opinion of your Member of Parliament?”

Fifty-six per cent of those interviewed said they had a “much less favourable” opinion of Poilievre because of his blockade support. An additional 10 per cent said they had a “somewhat less favourable opinion.”

By contrast, only 15 per cent said they had a “much more favourable” opinion, while three per cent claimed a “somewhat more favourable” opinion.

In the next month, the truckers have vowed to return to Ottawa to disrupt Canada Day and remain in the capital throughout the month of July.

They may be pleased to return to the scene of the crime, but Poilievre and the Conservatives can’t be too thrilled.

So far, Poilievre’s support of the truckers has not made much news beyond the nation’s capital.

It really is an “inside the beltway story.” But inside the beltway is Poilievre’s own constituency, and he could vault to the top of the Tories, only to be spurned by local voters in the next election.

Most party leaders are supported by their constituents. It is only when the party faces dire straits that the leader is defeated. Witness the rejection of Liberal Leader Steven Del Duca in his own riding the recent Ontario election.

But being a representative in the nation’s capital is not the same as other ridings across the country.

There, people do expect you to stare down the Freedom Convoy and support the residents, not vice versa.

Last January and February were brutal times for the 30,000 people who live in Ottawa’s downtown core.

According to a friend who lives there, the only dialogue that happened between truckers and residents was a volley of epithets that started with “f” and ended with “u.”

The city is bracing for the same nastiness next week. And Poilievre has to make up his mind whether he represents his constituents or the freedom convoy, because, if the Mainstreet poll is accurate, it cannot be both.

It remains to be seen whether Poilievre can translate his obvious internal popularity into votes across the broad spectrum of Canadians.

But the early signal from his riding sounds a warning bell.

Swinging so far right may win support within Conservative party circles.

But that swing also alienates the majority of mainstream voters.

With the crash of crypto-currency and the pushback on his view of the governor of the Bank of Canada, Poilievre appears to be resonating within his own party.

His situation is so strong that, not only did Patrick Brown’s co-chair bolt, as referenced in last week’s column, but also Brown’s campaign manager quickly followed Michelle Rempel Garner, abruptly leaving Brown’s campaign to work for her potential Alberta leadership entry. Rempel Garner has since decided not run for the UCP leadership.

Jean Charest continues to insist publicly that “I will win this.” He is pumping up his supporters with audacious declarations of victory. But his own numbers do not appear to back up those words.

Poilievre and Brown membership sales allegedly amount to 75 per cent of the total, so it is tough to see how Charest will win.

Poilievre is definitely ahead.

How he handles the Canada Day convoy will signal much about his capacity to win an election.

Like Icarus, flying too close to the truckers might burn him badly.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

But the full return of Parliament will also focus more attention on Liberal mistakes, as the opposition parties will do their best to change the channel away from COVID solidarity.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on July 6, 2020.

OTTAWA—The COVID-19 political bump has bounced the Liberals back into majority government territory.

That is quite a comeback from a time when the party literally limped into power following a gaffe-filled election campaign last fall.

The prime minister and all provincial premiers appear to be benefiting from a rise in public support attributed to their handling of the pandemic.

Daily communications have softened and strengthened images of each leader. That may seem like an anachronism, but most Canadians expect their leaders to be strong and approachable.

Leaders have also benefited from the absence of pandemic critics.

In a world outbreak, people expect political parties to work together, so it is very difficult to attack the life-saving measures being taken across the board.

Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer, who was out early and often in heated attacks at the beginning of the lockdown, suffered criticism from within his own party for missing the mark.

The country expects leaders to work together in time of crisis, and they have been doing so.

For a brief period, even Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has set aside his Ottawa-bashing in an attempt to find common ground.

But the danger of this bump is that it is directly linked to a sense of danger.

If Canadians believe the third phase of COVID containment is going well, they will focus on issues other than the country’s stand in the fight against the coronavirus.

News reports say there are several vaccines which will be undergoing massive human test trials starting at the end of this month.

If any are successful, the path to a vaccination may be marked by months, not years.

The Canadian government has already stockpiled enough syringes to vaccinate the whole population. That could mean an end to the social distancing and bubble-making that have become a way of life for all of us.

Canada Day in the nation’s capital was a shadow of its usual self.

Virtual fireworks and concerts just don’t cut it.

So, a vaccine would liberate us from the spell that the lockdown has cast over the whole country.

But that also brings its own political risks.

With no national danger in sight, political leaders in regions across the country will fall into their old habits of blaming other provinces or the federal government for their challenges.

Kenney dropped the corporate tax rate last week because he said he wanted to make Alberta stand out as a magnet for business.

The financial markets responded to the stimulus plan, which included $10-billion in infrastructure spending this fiscal year, by cutting the province’s credit rating.

American-based Fitch announced a downgrade from Double A to Double A minus, citing the province’s heavy borrowing to fight the economic crisis.

Alberta is also facing the ongoing, worldwide crash in oil prices, which has been exacerbated by the COVID economic slowdown.

An international move away from fossil fuels is not likely to change anytime soon so Alberta will be facing continuing jobs pressure.

And with the safety of a vaccine, the spectre of COVID prompting interprovincial cooperation will dissipate quickly.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also faces the challenge of election timing.

The current numbers point to an early vote, but if the government moves too quickly, it will likely be accused of opportunism, sacrificing any residual goodwill from the crisis.

The full return of Parliament will also focus more attention on Liberal mistakes, as the opposition parties will do their best to change the channel away from COVID solidarity.

Racial and Indigenous inequities, post-COVID changes to the health-care system, and economic recovery will dominate the parliamentary agenda.

There will be criticism of government deficits, given the unprecedented payouts to millions of Canadians who were affected financially by the pandemic.

Canadians will also expect government action on migrant workers’ abhorrent conditions, and the patchwork of regulations governing long-term care facilities across the country.

There is plenty of fodder for parliamentary debate that will quickly overshadow the question of pandemic management.

If the economy rebounds well, the government will be rewarded in the next election.

Canada has been relatively successful in navigating the crisis, largely because governments spoke with a single voice, and citizens were vigilant in following instruction on lockdowns, distancing, masking and bubbles.

Canadians have not been subject to the same mess of mixed messaging and anti-mask libertarianism that has afflicted the United States.

And our return to normalcy will be more secure because of our sacrifices.

Thankfully the worst Canada Day in history is behind us.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By SHEILA COPPS

First published on Monday, July 10, 2017 in The Hill Times.

OTTAWA—Thank goodness the sesquicentennial only happens every 150 years.

Nobody can pronounce it anyway, and the birthday hangover still has Ottawa buzzing.

A half million people descended on the capital to join in the Canada Day party and it was a blast. Contrary to media reports about the downsized crowd, there were about 100,000 waiting in line at the two entrance points one had to pass to get on to Parliament Hill.

I know, because I was one of them.

Given my advanced age, (64), I briefly contemplated watching the noon-day celebration from the comfort of my own living room. But I could not resist the lure of the real thing.

During my eight years as Heritage minister, July 1 was a heavy workday. With speechmaking, artistic programming and multiple important visitors, the team was always on high alert to make sure nothing went wrong. Inevitably, something always did.

One year, we festooned the VIP seats with paper flags sponsored by a national organization representing Canadian chicken farmers. We did not realize that the ink of Canada’s ruby red flag stamped on cheap paper had not set. So when every diplomat rose sing O Canada, I watched in horror as a ragged red flag outline was permanently imprinted on all bespoke diplomatic garb.

One year, Queen Elizabeth looked curiously bemused as two well-hung male circus performers wrapped in nothing but swaddling cloth, performed gyro technics that required the head of one to perch comfortably on the butt of the other. On the same occasion, Her Majesty was introduced to Inuit throat singing, which requires two singers to literally pass the music from one throat to another, again requiring unusual human contact.

Most Canada Days pass without too many hitches, as did our 150th.

Of course, the naysayers could probably point out that when the prime minister did a shout out to all parts of the country, he forgot, of all places, Alberta.

It certainly was not Freudian, as Justin Trudeau has made a special effort during his time in office to reach out to a province that has not always been so friendly to the Liberals.

Luckily, the program was long enough that Trudeau was able to recant his error and proclaim his undying love for the forgotten province in time for the closing song.

There were a couple of other snafus. In one instance, the king of Canadian broadcasting got a more fulsome intro than the real future King, The Prince of Wales, ever the diplomat, took it in stride, delivering a beautifully bilingual speech which sought to underscore the wonderful benefits of being Canadian.

During his visit, the future King was elevated to the highest recognition that Canada could offer, Extraordinary Companion of the Order of Canada.

But that honour was awarded in a private ceremony, which did not run the risk of further bifurcating the Canadian identity.

Amongst republicans, and many elites, our relationship with the monarchy is tepid at best and frosty at worst. Many believe that when the current reigning monarch passes on, the institution should follow suit.

Because of the schizophrenic connection to the Royal Family, Canada Day organizers are always balancing the challenge of honouring any Royal attendees while not appearing to be too obsequious. A tall order at best.

The retirement of Canadian Broadcasting Corporation icon Peter Mansbridge, timed to coincide with his final day of coverage at the 150th birthday, was the perfect frame to segue into an introduction of the Prince of Wales. Mansbridge received high praise in the program and his spouse, Cynthia Dale, even got to sing O Canada on the air.

No such warm welcome was offered to visitors from the Royal Family, with barely a nod given to the Duchess of Cornwall, who has always been overshadowed in life by the memory of the deceased Lady Diana.

All in all, the celebration of 150 years of togetherness was truly Canadian.

The prime minister embraced aboriginal protesters and even managed to bring them onside, mentioning their grievances at multiple turns in the ceremony.

Even the appearance of Irish singer Bono caused the crowd to thrill with his message that we are a welcoming nation, unlike the bridge burners that seem to be taking over south of the border.

All in all, it was a great celebration. We reflected on successes and the many mistakes Canada made in the first 150 years.

Learning from both, we are all the better for it.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By SHEILA COPPS

First published on Monday, July 3, 2017 in The Hill Times.

OTTAWA—In Canada, the 150th birthday bash seems to have taken on a double meaning.

Bash connotes a happy time when everyone joins together in an unforgettable party.

Bash can also mean a chance to take a dump on the very birthday celebration that drew hundreds of thousands of Canadians to Parliament Hill.

Some of the worst birthday bashers were the aboriginal naysayers who erected a protest teepee on Parliament Hill to protest ‘our home on native land.’

They achieved their goal, garnering headlines about legitimate aboriginal grievances that have not been rectified during the lifetime of Canada’s existence.

In so doing, they missed a huge opportunity to build a bridge instead of burning it.

How easy would it have been for the original fathers of Confederation to walk away from the agreement to create Canada because of differences of language and different religion? To welcome those differences into one political construct took courage, and a willingness to reach out.

Real leaders know how to step beyond divides and bring people together.

U.S. President Donald Trump has shown how easy it is to build walls. He nurtured a political base founded on racial and religious resentment.

That strategy was politically profitable in the short term. Demagogues and despots have always understood how easy it is to divide people on the basis of race, religion and colour.

It should be our collective responsibility to support bridge building and decry division.

That is why the decision of aboriginal protesters to try to undermine the nation’s celebratory mood on Canada’s birthday was a mistake. That is why the recent ban on police participation in the Toronto Pride parade was also a mistake.

The Black Lives Matter movement, that spearheaded the police ban, has legitimate beefs related to racial profiling, discrimination and biased treatment by police. So does the gay community.

Some of us are old enough to remember the horror of the Toronto bathhouse raids.

But to go from that unhappy period to a situation when gay supporters from the police join in celebration of diversity can only be viewed a huge step forward.

What does blocking police accomplish in the effort to eliminate bias and discrimination?

If anything, the Black Lives Matter movement is simply reinforcing reverse discrimination. Just like police should not be stopping people on the streets and randomly asking for proof of identity just because of their colour, so parade goers should not ban all police on the basis that some have been, and continue to be homophobic and/or racist.

Surely the intention of leaders in the black, white and indigenous communities should be focussed on bridging the gaps between races, not systemically reinforcing the notion that one group is an overlord of the other.

By attempting to pour cold water on the Parliament Hill celebrations of Canada’s birthday, some aboriginal leaders have done a disservice to their own history.

The indigenous peoples welcomed Europeans to our shores. Without the Mi’kmaq, Montagnais and the Innu, Samuel de Champlain would never have survived Canada’s cruel winters.

So why turn their backs on the very ancestors that their forefathers welcomed?

Some will argue that it is all about making a political point. The point that the birthday of an occupier nation is not worth celebrating.

Really?

After 150 years, Canada as a construct is actually worth celebrating. Is it a perfect country? Certainly not. Have mistakes been made in political and religious leaders decisions to displace children and wipe out indigenous languages in the name of civilization?

Of course, and rectifying the scandalous legacy of residential school deculturalization has preoccupied governments for the past quarter century. To be successful, reconciliation cannot be unidirectional.

All healing involves recognition that the aggrieved and the aggressor will set aside their rancour and reach out to accept the other.

It involves an understanding that supporting police who support minorities is a part of the healing process.

Assuming that the mistakes of the past can only be solved in a one-sided demonstration of guilt simply reinforces reverse prejudice and discrimination.

When those early leaders sat down in Charlottetown in 1864 to fashion a country, they were 153 years ahead of their time.

In today’s global world, different peoples, with different religions, and different languages need to find a way to live and work together.

The survival of the human race depends on it.

The creation of Canada was at the core of that diversity.

And 150 years later, it is time for all of us to celebrate.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.