Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is usually adept at speaking truth to power, but his recent address on antisemitism fell short. Speaking at Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto, he identified the rampant problem of antisemitism but failed to offer a meaningful solution or address those responsible. More critically, he misunderstood the very nature of Canada.
Carney's Flawed Narrative on Canada's Foundation
Carney stated that Canada was not founded on a single creed, race, language, or faith, and that pluralism is the framework of the nation. He highlighted the French and English accommodation after a long period of struggle. However, this prevailing Liberal narrative is inaccurate. Canada was indeed founded on two creeds: an English-French duality of languages, faiths, and legal traditions that shaped its customs and institutions. This entrenched Judeo-Christian values in Canada's common culture.
Pluralism as a Result, Not a Framework
It is precisely because of these Judeo-Christian values that Canada could welcome and absorb successive generations of immigrants of all faiths and creeds. Pluralism is not the framework of the nation, as Carney claims, but rather the result of its founding values. These values, rooted in the Judeo-Christian tradition, preach tolerance and respect for the rights of all people. Many countries rooted in other faiths and cultures are not pluralist, compassionate, or respectful of individual will. For instance, Sharia law in fundamentalist Muslim countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen mandates veiling for women, amputation for thieves, and stoning for adulterers, and imposes the death penalty for same-sex acts.
The Two-Way Street of Citizenship
Carney emphasized that when people come to Canada, they bring their faith, tradition, language, and story, but must leave behind their wars and animosities. However, he failed to acknowledge that some individuals' whole identity is rooted in that animosity. They see Canada as a place to continue their grievances, and until now, they have been allowed to do so. Citizenship is a two-way street. Newcomers have a responsibility to respect the laws and customs of their chosen home. When they not only fail to embrace Canada's basic values but actively repudiate them, there must be consequences: fines, arrests, deprivation of liberty, and for non-citizens, removal from the country.
The Responsibility of Ensuring Everyone Can Be Their Whole Selves
Carney claimed that Canada has the responsibility of ensuring that everyone can be their whole selves. But if being your whole self means terrorizing fellow Canadians—shooting bullets into Jewish schools, yelling threats and epithets for hours in front of seniors' homes, or taking over public spaces—that is not welcome here. Carney should have articulated that Canada's values are not negotiable and that those who reject them must face repercussions. Instead, his speech offered a hollow acknowledgment of the crisis without addressing its root causes or proposing concrete actions.
