Multibashing recurs during an anniversary year
(Canscene) — Is it coincidental that the current outbreak of contrarianism occurs during the 35th anniversary year of Pierre Elliott Trudeau’s declaration of multicuturalism as a national policy?
The animosity currently being fanned by some Canadian journalists; closet racists; 15-minute fame seekers and just plain fools is, in the present climate of apprehension, worrying.
After the Spanish and UK bombings by “home-grown” terrorists, after race-based rioting in France and Australia, voices have been raised demonstrating that multiculturalism isn’t working: that in fact it has contributed to ghettoization which in turn has alienated millions against existing regimes allowing them to be manipulated by ideologues. So, they say, if it’s not working in those countries, it’s following the same path in Canada. QED.
Allan Gregg, pollster raised these arguments in an article in The Walrus, March issue. Surprisingly, Rocco Galati, who defends immigrant-deportees, came out the belief that multiculturalism has degenerated into ghettoization. . And following the arrest of 17 men and youths on suspicion of a terrorist plot Robert Fulford led a week-long charge of multibashing articles in the National Post; among other subscribers were such right-wingers as Andrew Coyne and George Jonas.
Canadian multiculturalism unique
Canadian multiculturalism – bashers have made the false assumption that Australia, Britain, France and Spain being multicultural countries were governed under the same enlightened policy of multicuturalism as Canada. Indeed they were not. Those countries never enjoyed an enunciated policy of multiculturalism, later to be included in a Charter of Rights and Freedoms and finally enshrined in an Act of Parliament.
Does our multicuturalism look like a charter for terrorism?
Indeed on June 19, at the UN World Urban Forum in Vancouver, Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s positive statement on Canada’s diversity and emphatic denial that diversity supports terrorism should give the right pause for thought.
Because of those who still see Trudeau as the devil incarnate it’s not surprising that this anniversary year evokes strangely distorted takes on Canada’s own particular brand of multiculturalism, envied throughout the civilized world.
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