Canada Day: a day to honour and celebrate what we have achieved as a nation. A day to celebrate our country’s heritage, culture, and history. At 159 years we have a lot to celebrate – and a lot to remember.
In recent years Canada Day has become more and more controversial as its citizens have learned more about the darker sides of Canadian history. Some choose to mark this day in remembrance rather than celebration, while others choose to focus on the good and celebrate what makes Canada special. There is no right or wrong way to celebrate and everyone is welcome to celebrate however they feel is right on this special day. However, it is important to be knowledgeable about what this day represents.
Canada as a nation has a proud and strong history. We have remained an independent nation (within the Commonwealth) for 159 years. We have made a name on the international stage. Without Canada we would have no insulin, no canadarm, no pacemaker. We would not have phones, we would not have basketball, and we would not have the modern idea of peacekeeping as a nation.
We are a multicultural nation that embraces the idea of a cultural mosaic. We welcome immigrants to add to our cultural tapestry rather than striving to protect something that would not exist without them. On Canada Day, we have a lot to celebrate, and a lot to honour. Canada represents many ideals that should be held up as an example on the world stage.
However, Canada also has darker moments that it has strived to forget. Only in recent years have these events and facts become public knowledge, and as such, people use Canada Day to share these moments in history that should be remembered and not forgotten. Like any country founded on colonialist ideals, we need to remember actions that were taken to get us to this moment.
The most famous of these moments is the history of the Residential Schools. A conservative estimate supposes that over 160 000 Indigenous children were sent to Residential Schools, where they faced a cultural genocide, sexual and physical abuse, and left with physical and mental scars that would take generations to heal. Even after Residential Schools became less common, the 60s Scoop attempted to assimilate Indigenous children through forcibly relocating them through foster care programs. Practices on a smaller scale exist even today.
Residential schools are not the only dark period in Canadian history. Starlight tours became a practice in many rural communities as recently as the early 2000s, where police would abandon Indigenous people outside communities – often severely beaten – to potentially die in the elements. Immigrants from Asian countries such as China and Japan have faced life-altering discrimination through programs such as the Chinese Head Tax and the forcible internment of Japanese-Canadians during WW2. During the Cold War government targeting of 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals ruined many lives, while Inuit families were forcibly relocated to preserve Arctic sovereignty, sent to live in remote Arctic regions with little food or shelter. They were left to starve while publicly being celebrated to promote the idea of Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic.
These facts barely skim the surface of Canadian history – good and bad – and are not a uniquely Canadian problem. There are few countries in the world that can boast a history free from oppression and who have not built their reputations on the suffering of others.
But what makes Canada special is our understanding of the past. We know our history and we can both recognize both the good and the bad on Canada Day. We are a flawed nation who has done many wrongs, but who is continually striving to improve as we move forward. The second we stop striving to improve is the second we no longer have things of which to be proud.
There is no right or wrong way to celebrate Canada Day, and your day may look different from your neighbour’s. But regardless of your history or ideals, you are welcome in Canada, and we will try to do better.
If you want to celebrate Canada Day in the Highlands there are many options, whether you spend your day in Minden fishing in the derby and watching fireworks, or relax on your dock wearing an orange shirt and drinking a beer. The freedom to choose and respect our own ideals and consciences is what makes Canada great.