Canada has had more good days than bad

We must acknowledge our mistakes and our virtues and move forward

Let's talk about a country called Canada.

The conversation, however, isn't as many have heard recently, with an overwhelming cacophony of soul-searching, finger-pointing and self-flagellation. Sadly, such a state of affairs is becoming somewhat of a national pastime.

Yes, of course, bad things happened in this country's past, particularly involving its Indigenous population. Some bad things continue. But the will, heart and desire are there to right wrongs, both past and present, and thereby make the future shine a little brighter for everyone.

And let's not forget, a lot of days have gone into the gradual making of this country — vastly more good ones than bad.

So, to move beyond the current depressing narrative for a moment, let's turn instead to the vastness of Northern Canada and its overwhelmingly Indigenous population to see what different messages we might learn about our country during this worrying pandemic.

Actually, it was the spread of a host of viruses, inadvertently brought to these shores by European adventurers centuries ago, which did the most damage to the various Indigenous peoples who resided not just in Canada but throughout the length and breadth of North and South America.

But things do change. We can learn from history and there are times when the fine words and promises about reconciliation and reparations are put to the litmus test to see if actions will speak louder. Time indeed to put up or shut up.

So what changed when another deadly virus was brought to our shores almost 18 months ago? Did we, the vast majority of Canadians, simply let First Nations folk sink or swim in the COVID-19 tide, as was often the case hundreds of years previous?

Immediately, the North was given priority. Vaccines per capita flowed to Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut at a rate vastly higher than they did to the rest of the country.

Meanwhile, across the southern provinces, in deciding which groups should be given a preferential place in the vaccination line, a collective decision was made to put their various Indigenous populations at the comparative head of the queue.

Did other Canadians — undoubtedly worried about their own health and welfare — complain about such preferential treatment?

If so, any grumbles were the exception and certainly not the rule.

People understood instinctively this was the right thing to do. If that isn't a real example of reconciliation for the sins of history, then what is?

Still, it is one thing sending vaccines to the North, it is another matter altogether dealing with the logistics of getting them into enough people's arms to be effective across such a huge and lightly populated land mass.

So, where did the government turn? To the Canadian military, another organization which can't seem to buy a decent headline or sound bite these days.

Under Operation VECTOR, the Armed Forces successfully transported vaccines to some of the most remote parts of this country and gave Indigenous communities a head start over their fellow citizens in getting vaccinated.

By the middle of June in First Nations' communities across Canada, more than 82 per cent of individuals aged 18 and older had received at least one jab, with 43 per cent receiving both doses.

The COVID-19 case rate and, much more importantly, the death total in those three northern territories is a testament to the success of such a massive logistical operation.

As of this writing, the number of people who have died of COVID-19 in Nunavut is four; Yukon stands at five, and in the Northwest Territories, it's zero.

How many countries on our planet would have moved so quickly to protect their Indigenous citizens as this country did? Perhaps there are some but they'd be few and far between because they'd fear the wrath of those other citizens asked to stand aside.

So, by all means, revisit the past, there are things to be learned, and some of those lessons are hard to stomach. But there comes a point when enough is indeed enough and we need to move forward.