As we look at the ineptitude and incompetence of the current Liberal government, it is tempting to look at alternatives. We see Conservative leader Erin O Toole trying to "move his party to the centre" and coming up in polls. Perhaps this is a good time to remember why in 2015 Canadians overwhelmingly voted to kick out Stephen Harper and his Conservatives, many of whom still remain in Erin O Toole's party to this day.
Racism.
No political party or government in Canada is or ever will be overtly or blatantly racist. But subtle and indirect forms of racism did persist in the Harper Conservatives and PM Stephen Harper was an expert in playing dog whistle. Let us see some examples.
- During the evacuation of Lebanese-born Canadians from that war-torn country during the Lebanon-Israel conflict in 2006, many of Harper's ministers including Immigration Minister Monte Solberg, criticized Lebanese Canadians for living abroad most of the time and allegedly returning to Canada only for health care and social benefits. The Conservatives questioned these people’s “loyalty” to Canada. No mention was made about Canadian celebrities such as Wayne Gretzky and Celine Dion, who also live outside Canada for extended periods while retaining their Canadian citizenship status.
- “West of Winnipeg, the ridings the Liberals hold are dominated by...immigrants.. who live in ghettos and are not integrated into Western Canadian society.” -- do you know who said this? Stephen Harper.
- In unveiling Bill C-51, Harper singled out Canada's mosques as the place where people became radicalized. This drew widespread condemnation, as there was no basis for that statement.
- Even as Canada's domestic terrorism (aka white supremacy) was being targeted by CSIS as a big danger to Canada, Harper and other officials repeatedly cited jihadi terrorism in speeches and comments about the changes proposed in Bill C-51. More on Bill C-51 later. In fact, during the January 2015 Charlie Hebdo incident, even as the suspects remained on the loose, Harper said "the international jihadist movement has declared war” and ascribes a hatred towards “anybody who does not think and act exactly as they wish they would think and act”.
- It wasn't just Muslims who were targets. The Conservative Party ran an online petition asking for "more transparency for First Nations governments” — despite having already passed a First Nations Financial Transparency Act. The Conservative Facebook page was subsequently overrun by racist commentary from supporters.
- Stephen Harper announced that he would appeal a court ruling allowing a Muslim woman to perform the citizenship oath while wearing her niqab (a veil covering her face). So much for those values of “freedom, openness and tolerance”. It is now a point of note that EVERY single argument their government had made is now destroyed in this era of covid19 and masks.
But by appealing the ruling, Harper found a wedge issue he could ... harp on ... dividing Canadians. He himself began to exaggerate this divide, by famously talking about "old stock Canadians". - Who can forget the famous "barbaric cultural practices" hotline that Harper planned to institute? It was another wedge issued initiate to divide opinion against Muslim Canadians, who make up less than 2% of Canada, and play on their stereotypes. Indeed Jason Kenney tweeted a picture of Shia Muslims and mistakenly (I am assuming) labelled them as 'ISIL' .
- Harper famously stated, "Islamicism is the biggest threat to Canada".
- And who can forget the famous bill C-51 that would make a whole category of Canadians second class citizens? You could be stripped of your citizenship, based on the decision of a Minister (not a judge), and deported to a country where you have never been to and a country to which you are a foreigner.
This is not an exhaustive list. But the highlights. Yes, Erin O Toole is not Stephen Harper. But it is till the Conservative Party. Mr. O Toole will have to work a lot harder if he has to convince us that things have changed.
New links:
Muslim groups troubled by Harper's Mosque remark:
Harper racism timeline:
Niqab controversy:
Barbaric Cultural Practices Hotline:
Harper on Threat to Canada:
