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BC Election 2019 Category
Opinion
Election 2019
Federal Politics

Why This Election Should Be about Hate

Rising racism, xenophobia and religious prejudice are on display. Voters and politicians need to say no more.

Graeme Truelove 1 Oct 2019TheTyee.ca

Graeme Truelove is the author of the critically acclaimed biography Svend Robinson: A Life in Politics (New Star Books, 2013), which was shortlisted for a 2014 BC Book Prize. His most recent book is the upcoming Un-Canadian: Islamophobia in the True North, to be published by Nightwood Editions on Oct. 5, 2019.

There were days the 2015 federal election felt less like a candidate-selection process and more like a referendum.

Just one question — whether Muslim women could wear niqabs during citizenship ceremonies — dominated headlines for days, sank the NDP in Quebec and, arguably, vaulted Justin Trudeau into power.

After the lawn signs came down, Canadians’ obsession with what Muslim women wore on their heads continued. Quebec used the notwithstanding clause to pass a bill preventing public sector workers from wearing religious symbols on the job and requiring all citizens to uncover their faces when receiving public services.

While the bill didn’t explicitly mention Muslims, honest appraisal of the context surrounding it clearly leads to one conclusion. Nobody is panicking about Christians wearing crosses. The brunt of public hysteria remains aimed at Muslims. Hate crimes targeting Muslims have continued to rise.

When a motion condemning all forms of religious discrimination, specifically including Islamophobia, was presented in the House of Commons, some of the resulting debate was level-headed and rational. Supporters saw the motion as a straightforward acknowledgement of a highly visible form of prejudice. Critics questioned whether a condemnation of all religious discrimination should single out only one religion when there are others that also face appalling prejudice. Why not condemn anti-Semitism at the same time, some asked? It was a fair question, with several fair answers.

But in the streets, the debate was far from reasonable. Even though the motion was just a non-binding moral statement and not a legal one, hate groups held rallies where they furiously condemned the new “law” that they claimed criminalized their right to free speech. On the Internet, alt-right activists and personalities histrionically concluded that Canada was about to become an Islamic nation under Sharia law.

Now, it’s election time again. In 2015, progressives worried over an increasingly prevalent Islamophobia. In 2019, we’re suddenly discussing white supremacists. These racists are louder, bolder and — perhaps because of what we’ve seen outside Canadian borders — they seem to believe that they can influence mainstream politics.

Already, we’ve seen candidates speak openly of an “Islamist menace” they allege have infiltrated the Canadian political system. We’ve seen giant billboards decrying “mass immigration” and swastikas scrawled onto campaign signs. The Canadian Nationalist Party, which unabashedly calls for Canada to maintain a “European-descended” majority, has been declared eligible to register under the Canada Elections Act and begin issuing tax receipts to its donors.

Naturally, shocking revelations of past racist actions by others haven’t helped balance the discourse. Ritika Goel has written eloquently about how Canadians can learn from the photos of Justin Trudeau in brownface. If those photos can teach us anything, it’s just how many people need to take a long look in the mirror.

The first visible-minority party leader in Canadian history, the NDP’s Jagmeet Singh has had to contend with a seemingly inexorable belief that he’s Muslim. At the same time, despite having arguably the least ethical baggage among party leaders, a recent poll measuring who Canadians saw as the “most ethical” placed Singh in a distant last among the four major party leaders. Why? It could be because Canadians have studied up on Singh enough to decide they don’t like what they see — but not enough to have learned that he’s Sikh.

Or maybe it’s something else. As American comedian Hasan Minhaj put it, “I just can’t put my turban — I mean, finger — on it.”

Singh’s ultimate success or failure should be attributable only to his policies or the quality of his campaign. If there is a perception that his political fate is determined by his skin colour or assumptions about his religious beliefs, what message will that send to other racial or religious minorities who might one day consider running for leadership of a political party?

Such a scenario cannot be allowed to happen.

Politicians need to get ahead of this. Even if they are the unwitting or passive beneficiaries of racist thinking, they need to make it clear to racists that they are not allies and not friends, that they don’t want their donations, and don’t want their votes.

Certainly, we have seen some sincere efforts to do this. One candidate was dropped after previous declarations of his “white pride” and desire to see Muslims banned from immigrating to Canada came to light.

But revulsion for these views needs to be so ingrained in the DNA of political parties, from the chauffeured leader down to the envelope-stuffing volunteer, that such a candidate would never even have dreamed that they’d be welcome in the first place.

Americans have had to take a profound look in the mirror in recent years. Progressives have uncovered enemies they didn’t know even existed. Their numbers are not as worrying as their momentum.

I’ve always been encouraged by a quote of uncertain origin that has presaged many important social advancements over the years — “First, they ignore you. Then, they laugh at you. Then, they fight you. Then, you win.”

Today, though, that message feels haunting.  [Tyee]

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