Canadian values ever changing

Re: ‘Values’ proposal helps Leitch in campaign, Sept. 13

On Sept. 26, I celebrated the 60th anniversary of my family’s arrival in Canada. This got me thinking about my former Conservative parliamentary colleagues, Kelly Leitch and Tony Clement, and their recent comments stating that new immigrants should be screened to see that they adhere to “Canadian values.”

Let’s look back at Canada in 1956, when my family arrived, to what would have been considered Canadian values.

It was OK to beat the Indian out of the indigenous child, rip them from their homes and into religious and government institutions (where many suffered from sexual and physical abuse). It was acceptable to openly discriminate against our African brothers and sisters. It was OK to jail people for being gay or lesbian, and to fire them from their place of employment. It was commonplace to sexually harass women in the workplace. It was standard practice to openly pollute our air, soil and water, as well as to have one drink for the road, and to smoke in public places.

My thanks to the government of the day for not asking my parents, on behalf of my family, to accept these standards.

You see, Kelly and Tony, Canadian values have changed in 60 years. And although we’re nowhere near where we should be as an equal society, we are moving forward. We trust the day will come where Canada (and the world) reaches respect, equality and dignity for all persons. As J.S. Woodworth once said, “What we desire for ourselves, we wish for all.” Peter Stoffer, former NDP MP, 1997-2015