An insurrection could happen here, too
The storming of the U.S. Capitol in Washington was inconceivable to many Americans, and to many Canadians it seems even less likely something similar could happen here.
“Not so,” says Yasir Naqvi, the CEO of Inclusion Canada and a former attorney general of Ontario. “Canadians are often smug when it comes to American politics. We like to believe that we are more progressive than our southern neighbours, that we could never elect our own Trump, that we are somehow better, less corrupt, nicer.”
He said he believes “that thinking is more than ignorant, it's dangerous.”
It's dangerous because we can be blind to the threats that give rise to an insurrection such as what was witnessed in the United States.
The key elements to be aware of, according to Naqvi, are “a rise in alt-right media, the undermining of science and facts, violence against others and the chipping away of trust in public institutions.” All of these elements are present and active in Canada.
The responsibility of citizenship in a democracy is to debate in a civil manner, to endeavour to enhance society with courage, to seek justice and compassion. We all have that responsibility, which is to challenge misinformation, to defend the rights of all and to work through challenges in pursuit of better communities.
Naqvi joined a Conversation That Matters about the state of democracy in Canada, the ever-present threats and our responsibilities as citizens. See the video at vancouversun.com/tag/ conversations-that-matter. Conversations That Matter is a partner program for the Morris J. Wosk
Centre for Dialogue at Simon Fraser University. The production of this program is made possible thanks to the support of viewers like you. Please become a Patreon subscriber and support the production of this program, with a $1 pledge at goo.gl/ypxyds