Saying yes to the dress

Prime Minster Justin Trudeau returned from his fashion-filled trip to India with a not-very-impressive trade deal in his hands and a whole lot of explaining to do.

Trudeau’s trip – with family colourfully in tow – began inauspiciously with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi failing to greet his visitor with a welcoming tweet, as is his habit, and generally appearing to be quite uninterested in anything Trudeau had to say. Following this initial ‘snub,’ young Justin proceeded to traipse around the country posting endless pictures of his crew decked out in regional costumes in a manner that reminded many Indians of “a cheap Bollywood musical.” It wasn’t until the final day of the visit that Modi deigned to meet with his illustrious guest, far too late to rescue the public relations component of the trip, photogenic fecundity notwithstanding.

The trip veered from the comically inept to the diplomatically asinine when it was revealed that an official invitation to a reception had been given to one Jaspal Atwal a man convicted of trying to kill Indian cabinet minister Malkiat Singh Sidhu during a visit to Canada in 1986. He was also charged but acquitted in the 1985 beating of Ujjal Dosanjh, a vocal opponent of Sikh extremism who later became a federal cabinet minister. He was later convicted as part of an auto insurance fraud scheme.

Atwal is not your ordinary murderer, however. He was motivated to try to kill Sidhu by his Sikh independence sympathies at a time when Sikh extremism was reaching an ugly peak in Canadian history. An invitation to Atwal, who was visiting India for personal reasons, could not fail to send a message to Modi that Canada harboured Sikh separatist sympathies, an impression not demisted by the presence of several Sikh activists in his cabinet. To be sure, the Sikh separatist movement does not represent the majority of Sikhs, but in Canada, Sikh politicians have found it almost impossible to avoid some contact with its sympathizers.

All of this should have been in the forefront of the Prime Minister’s Office and the Department of Foreign Affairs in planning the trip and, to be fair, there was no way they could have foreseen Atwal’s unexpected appearance at a Trudeau event. Even so, somebody should have been on the alert for a problem of this nature and made sure to avoid it. Atwal is a convicted terrorist, after all, and his invitation to an official event could not have been seen other than as a direct insult to a united India. No such insult was intended, of course, but that really doesn’t help much. Nor did the lame excuses the government has given for the bumbling mistake. One need only imagine a visiting dignitary inviting a convicted FLQ murderer to a reception on a trip to Ottawa to understand the reaction. Trudeau managed to save some face by getting a commitment for a $1 billion worth of trade – an agreement that skewed heavily in India’s favour – and finally getting his meeting with Modi.

Sadly, Trudeau’s trip was also overshadowed by the visit of one Donald Trump Jr, who was there trying to peddle some pricey real estate and was treated like a conquering hero. He was paid all possible attention and the press reported on his activities as if he was Taylor Swift. This is important because India’s Modi has much more affinity for the violence and intolerance that Trump represents than he ever could for Trudeau’s sunny ways. This, in fact, places the success of a Canada-india free trade agreement – which is actively being pursued – in a very precarious situation. Modi is a bigoted Hindu nationalist and has pandered to some of the country’s most violent proclivities. He’s not the kind of guy Trudeau could expect to impress with colourful costumes.

Ever since his meteoric rise to power, Young Justin has played the role of compassionate good-guy in a world full of mean-spirited leaders. Compelled by the contrast between him and rising western leaders like Trump Sr. Benjamin Netanyahu, and Rodrigo Duterte, who rely on fear and force to move their agendas forward, Trudeau’s reputation as a tolerant, compassionate, and progressive leader, aided by his good looks, has jettisoned him into the realm of pop culture superstardom. He has become o symbol – to foreigners at least – an icon of the anti-trump, anti-dictator movements around the world and has been handed a ‘greatness’ he has never earned. Like all pop-culture stardom, however, his is also subject to rapid and sometimes violent change of attitudes that always follows effusive, unrestrained praise. Meanwhile, back home, the shine has tarnished considerably as his government struggles to come close to keeping the promises it made during the election campaign. The long-awaited Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women has struggled along unblessed as it has lost so many members of the commission to resignations tinged with disgust and frustration and native peoples are no closer to resolving their third-world issues than they were under previous regimes.

The legalization of marijuana, which appeared to be a move toward common sense when proposed, has become a miasma of federal-provincial tensions and opposition that is in the process of becoming just another way to rip off regular pot users while handing over billions to large corporate interests. In Quebec, legalization will mean increased police aggression against ‘legal’ users and do virtually nothing to take the trade away

DEAR FUTURE GAITERS,

Bfrom the criminal gangs that have managed the trade for decades. Those under the legal age will continue to purchase their weed where they always have, as will many long-term users who trust their dealr far more than they do the government.

Trudeau also famously abandoned his commitment to long-overdue electoral reform, ostensibly because it’s hard. Who would have thought?

Despite his obvious flaws, and those of the party he leads, Trudeau remains a veru bright liht on a very dark international stage. Rookie mistakes notwithstanding, what he represents on the world stage is a direct challenge to the hatefulness o rampant in the world today and, despite the fact that he can never live up to the progressivism he has come to symbolize, the symbolism itself is important. He may sometimes appear to be a bumbling fool, but idealists often are. His apparent idealism represents hope in a world that provides us with very little.

Young Justin has reached the point where he has to be prepared for this kind of backlash and the critical eye that now falls upon him as he prepares for next year’s election, where he will face two new opposition leaders. Fortunately for him, neither the Conservatives’ Scheer nor the NDP’S Singh appear likely to compete in terms of ‘cool,’ but the Liberals are providing them with plenty of talking points. But that won’t save him forever. It’s time to step up! ishop’s University respects freedom of expression and supports thoughtful, peaceful dissent. Education is vital to the advances of society and in producing more thoughtful, more tolerant, and more compassionate human beings. As a community, we are at our strongest when we unite, speakup for those that cannot, and let their voices be heard.

We are aware that many high school students across the United States plan to engage in peaceful actions over the coming weeks to protest gun violence and to call for more stringent laws on gun ownership. Some high schools and superintendents have indicated that students may face disciplinary action for doing so. If you are considering Bishop’s, we want to make it clear that we are inspired by you and stand with you: Admissions offers will not be adversely affected by suspensions or other disciplinary actions at your high school in support of your positive and constructive engagement in pursuit of your values and convictions. Be a Change Maker. Be Purple. BU.

STANDING TOGETHER, MICHAEL GOLDBLOOM, C.M. PRINCIPAL AND VICE-CHANCELLOR #NEVERAGAIN

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