Parliament’s flag is still at half-mast. Why?
CANADA’S CONSERVATIVES KNOW THEY’RE GOING TO FACE A NON-STOP BARRAGE OF ATTACKS FROM THEIR POLITICAL AND MEDIA OPPONENTS. — MICHAEL TAUBE
From my home in Ottawa, I look directly toward the Peace Tower at Parliament Hill, and it’s always reassuring to seeing the flag flying high. On those occasions when I see it lowered to half-mast, and don’t know why, I check to see the reason, and this gives me the opportunity to reflect on the sad circumstances leading to the flag being lowered.
The flag both on Parliament Hill and all federal buildings was last lowered on May 30, in the wake of the Kamloops discovery of unmarked graves of Indigenous children at the site of a former residential school. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau correctly lowered the flag in remembrance of the victims. Bizarrely, he set no end date on the official period of remembrance as is the norm when, for example, a head of state or a dignitary passes away. The flag has been at half-mast for nearly three months and now when I look at it, I take it as routine. Something is not right with this picture.
The solemnity carried by lowering the flag to halfmast only has meaning if it is time bound. If the flag is lowered for months on end, it loses any significance and the symbolism behind it is cheapened. After a period of mourning or remembrance, a sense of normalcy must be restored as we recommit to the foundational values of Canada. An indefinitely lowered flag suggests a country in a state of perpetual self-loathing, unable or unwilling to move beyond trauma toward reconciliation and hopefully redemption. What is more, the potency of lowering the flag degenerates into a form of symbolic politics which does nothing for the cause of Indigenous Canadians.
Erin O’toole has commented recently on the anomaly of the indefinitely lowered Canadian flag, something that occurs at the pleasure of the prime minister and which only he can reverse. O’toole said: “I do think we should be proud to put our flag back up. It’s not a time to tear down Canada. It’s a time to recommit to building it up to be the country we know it can be. I think to recommit to Canada, you have to be proud of Canada.”
His remarks struck a chord. As someone who chose Canada as my home, and who is not here as a matter of birthright, I take pride every day in the Canada that welcomed me and allowed me to pursue my aspirations in a society committed to fairness, inclusiveness and which rewards excellence and hard work. Those are still Canada’s defining features and indeed it’s high time we re-engage with those ideals, and not live in a state of perpetual self-flagellation and unending trauma.
A flag is a potent symbol of nationhood; whether it is flown at government buildings, embassies abroad, sports and cultural events
AFTER A PERIOD OF MOURNING ... A SENSE OF NORMALCY MUST BE RESTORED.
or even when emblazoned on a T-shirt or a lapel pin, it says to the world, we’re Canadians and there are values we cherish and live by. When the prime minister orders flags to be lowered at halfmast indefinitely, it sends a message that Canada is so broken that we cannot take pride in one of the greatest symbols of our nationhood. This is on par with cancelling Canada Day, another corrosive way of chipping away at nationhood and our identity as Canadians first.
So, Mr. Trudeau, can you tell us when we’re allowed to fly our flag with pride? Is it perhaps the day after your return with the majority that you crave?