We are not always the loudest in our defence of freedom. But our actions show we often live up to calling ourselves the True North Strong and Free.
As Canada faces growing internal and external threats ranging from the rapid militarization of the Authoritarian Axis, dismissive remarks about our sovereignty from the incoming U.S. Administration, and a government that has left our nation effectively leaderless at a moment of maximum vulnerability, many are grappling with what it means to be Canadian and what defines our country.
Of course, this is a question that will never be fully decided, nor should it be. As a relatively open, free, and democratic country, the idea of what it means to be Canadian will always be in flux. It will be settled, and then unsettled, over and over again as new generations come to prominence and as the world impacts our country, just as we will impact the rest of the world.
And no country, no matter how seemingly patriotic or rigidly controlled, is ever ‘done’ defining itself. Americans are constantly debating what it means to be American and what their country stands for, and the version of America that presents itself to the world often comes down to the votes of a few hundred thousand people in 50/50 elections.
Seemingly ‘stable’ authoritarian states like China and Russia are anything but. When they ‘debate’ what it means to be Chinese or Russian they tend to do so only when one version of their regime collapses.
So, Canadians should not feel that our difficulty in defining who we are is some sort of defect. We should be glad that we are still free enough to question what it means to be Canadian, and we should view it as an ongoing process of constantly refining and adapting our self-definition as a country.
With that said, it makes sense to look for ways to define Canada that are broad-based enough to include a wide range of Canadians, while also holding up to being tested by the facts.
In that spirit, I would argue that Canada can best be defined as a nation that defends freedom when it matters most.
Slavery vs Freedom
At a time when the United States was still debating whether enslaving human beings was acceptable, Canada was a haven of freedom, the ultimate destination for many on The Underground Railroad:
“The Underground Railroad was a secret network of abolitionists (people who wanted to abolish slavery). They helped African Americans escape from enslavement in the American South to free Northern states or to Canada. The Underground Railroad was the largest anti-slavery freedom movement in North America. It brought between 30,000 and 40,000 fugitives to British North America (now Canada).”
There is no more clear-cut way to show you value freedom than being a haven for those fleeing a place where they were denied even the most basic right of being treated as a human being.
Canadians should be proud that our land was a place where freedom was valued and protected, and where those who were enslaved could have their freedom and dignity restored.
The First World War
Canada entered The First World War on August 4, 1914. Despite our population being just 11 million at the time, roughly 650,000 Canadians served in the war, a significant percentage of our overall population.
The United States entered The First World War on April 6, 1917.
The significance of this could perhaps be questioned by noting that Canada did not independently control our foreign policy at the time, but it is still significant that this country mobilized such a large percentage of our population to fight against Germany and the Central Powers.
The Second World War
There is no such ambiguity about The Second World War. Canada had full control over our foreign policy, meaning we were not obligated to enter the War when the United Kingdom and France responded to Fascist Germany’s invasion of Poland.
Canada entered the war on September 10, 1939, and proceeded to mobilize what would end up being among the world’s largest armies, navies and air forces by the time the war concluded. Given our population, Canada played a significant role in defeating the Axis, helping to win a battle against one of the most evil and ruthless enemies of freedom the world has ever seen.
Of note, Canada entered the war despite not having been directly attacked, whereas the United States didn’t join until over two years later when they were attacked by Japan on December 7th, 1941.
Note, that this isn’t to criticize the United States. The United States played a massive role in defeating the fascist Axis, and hundreds of thousands of brave Americans paid the ultimate price. Canadians, Americans, the British, the Australians, and many others fought side by side as nations unified around core values of individual freedom and democracy. Those values remain strong to this day. What I am pointing out however is that Canada entered the war at a time when we could have theoretically remained neutral, and at a time when the Axis was seen as ascendant and almost unbeatable. It took a lot of guts for Canada to do so, and history has looked kindly on our courageous decision to enter the war immediately.
Brian Mulroney & Ending Apartheid
Canada – under the leadership of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney – played a lead role in ending Apartheid in South Africa. Nelson Mandela’s first visit to a foreign parliament after his release from prison was to Canada in February of 1990.
In 2015, Mulroney was given the highest honour South Africa can bestow upon foreign citizens for his “exceptional contribution to South Africa’s liberation movement and his steadfast support for the release of Nelson Mandela.”
Under Mulroney, Canada showed significant moral leadership on the world stage:
Mulroney played a long(ish) game. When South African President F.W. de Klerk announced in February 1990 the immediate release of Mandela from a prison off the coast of Cape Town, he did not simultaneously agree to dismantle the laws enforcing apartheid.
Despite this, by Mulroney’s telling, he was under immediate and intense pressure from Thatcher to support the lifting of sanctions. Mulroney refused to do so until the system of racial separation in law was dismantled.
“The broader context is important here. The Berlin Wall had fallen the year before and the world was experiencing a menacing uncertainty. Mulroney knew that the creation of a broader rules-based order with greater international security, more trade and more, not less, reconciliation depended deeply on defending democratic values. Those values had to be as deeply defended in South Africa as they were in a soon reunified Germany. They could not be abandoned as soon as attention moved elsewhere.”
By contrast, the United States under Ronald Reagan was more conciliatory towards the South African Apartheid regime. At one point, the U.S. House of Representatives even overrode Reagan’s veto of a bill sanctioning the South African government.
Of course, Reagan’s overall foreign policy was quite strong, and he played a huge role in helping to rally the world against the Soviet Union, an achievement that will live for all time.
With that in mind however, Canadians can be proud that our nation took a strong stance in support of freedom under Brian Mulroney, even as many of our allies were somewhat reluctant to do the same.
Afghanistan
While the outcome in Afghanistan was awful, Canadians can be proud that we answered the call of our ally by assisting the United States in their time of need, and that we fought not only to defeat terrorist groups that could threaten the West, but also give the people of Afghanistan a chance at building a free society. It should be noted that the only time Article V of NATO (an attack on one is an attack on all), was after the United States was attacked by Al Qaeda on September 11th, 2001. Canada lived up to our NATO commitments when it mattered most, and our participation in Afghanistan proved our worth as an ally and demonstrated our commitment to keeping our promises.
Individual rights
Canada doesn’t generally go around talking about freedom all the time (though in a world that is seemingly becoming less free, we should probably do so). Yet, we often earn the right to call ourselves the “True North Strong and Free.”
When it comes to Women’s Rights, rights for minority groups, and rights for the LGBT community, Canada has often been a world leader in recognizing the importance of removing government restrictions on the liberty of the individual. At times, this has contrasted with our neighbours to the South, particularly when it comes to abortion rights. There is far less support in Canada for the kinds of draconian restrictions on women’s rights that we see in some states.
Canadians may not brag about it, but we have shown ourselves to be a country that quite often strongly defends the freedom of the individual.
Of course, we also fall short in this regard at times. Canadians have rightfully expressed concern regarding property rights, some of the COVID-era restrictions, religious freedom, and free expression. These are ongoing debates, and Canada should not consider itself perfect when it comes to defending freedom. But acknowledging that we have more work to do doesn’t discount the fact that we are still freer than most nations and that we have often defended the freedom of our citizens when it matters most.
This isn’t to discount some of our most serious historical errors either, including Residential Schools, refusing to allow the MS St. Louis to dock in Canada, the Chinese Head Tax, and the Internment of Japanese-Canadians during The Second World War.
Looking at what has been compiled above, I think we can see a consistent theme emerging. Canadians would be fully justified in seeing our country as having been built around an understanding of the importance of freedom and having defended freedom at some of the most crucial moments in history.
As Canadians, we thus have every right to define ourselves as a nation that defends freedom when it matters most, and that’s a definition that provides a strong foundation to build on in the years, decades, and centuries ahead.
Spencer Fernando
