Person and country are different entities. The Canada that was 100+ years ago aren’t the same as today. Countries are an abstract construct. None of the people in charge back then are alive and why should you apologize?
Then I should apologize to England for my forefathers viking raids? All I am saying... when it’s so far back that none are left alive, there’s a point in time it gets a bit selfserving and little to do with the actual persons from back then.
But I know it’s not the political correct viewpoint, but just my opinion anyway. Lets agree to disagree...
European countries could be apologizing 24/7 then anyway lol
If you apologize, you are stating the fact that what happened should not happen again.
I am confident that there will not be internments in the future. Nor will there be any head taxes imposed on immigrants and there will won't be any more residential schools to try to strip aboriginals of their cultural identity.
If these kind of things threaten to rear their ugly head, I am confident that my fellow countrymen/women will stand up and not let it happen again.
These are all positive steps in the growth of the nation of Canada.
I'm not a PC person but I also don't turn a blind eye when my country is morally and ethically wrong.
Then I should apologize to England for my forefathers viking raids? All I am saying... when it’s so far back that none are left alive, there’s a point in time it gets a bit selfserving and little to do with the actual persons from back then.
The thing with the new world is that the abuses that Canada or the United States committed is still relatively recent.
The last residential school closed in 1996, the head tax ended in 1923, and the Japanese internment in 1949. There are citizens in Canada that are direct descendants or were directly impacted that are still living in Canada and with the residential schools especially there were tons of communities that were affected enough so that the impact caused is still widely felt. There's a wide sense of reaching for Reconciliation with our Indigenous peoples and through that we also have to re-examine our history and reconcile with the fact that not everything done by Canada in the past is worth being patriotic and proud over. Believe me we don't expect Mongolia to apologise for the actions of Genghis Khan or have Angela Merkel apologise for the German actions during the Crusades but with countries with much shorter histories, like the US and Canada, its a national conversation that needs to be had.
On a side note it's just a smart thing to do here politically, whether your left or right wing. The immigrant and minority vote is huge here, and I'd argue that its a lot more critical in deciding the fates of elections in Canada then the US. For a politician to say "What we did to your nation was wrong" does help get votes.
The discussion of "Should we apologise for the actions of our predecessors" is an important one and I fully respect your opinion, I just hope you respect mine.
I am very happy that Canada is pursuing the exoneration of Tribal leaders such as Poundmaker, as someone who has worked with Indigenous groups, it really is a step in the right direction.
Canada did the right thing in exonerating Poundmaker.
There are many First Nations people alive today who were abused in residential schools.
Toronto's motto is "Diversity our Strength," which reflects Canada's attitudes towards diversity as a whole.
A good patriot is one who is able to see the mistakes his/her country made in the past. Blind patriotism goes nowhere. Every country in the world is flawed to some degree, without any exception (and yes, arrogance is a flaw).
Ah good.. so we can now play Poundmaker and the Cree as world conquering mass murderers now that all this is settled. I thought he's already been pardoned. But I guess not, or maybe not officially.
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I thought he's already been pardoned. But I guess not, or maybe not officially.
