Reflections of a Frustrated But Hopeful Canadian

I cannot say that I ever expected to see a time when the President of the United States would openly state that he wants to economically destroy Canada so that we would be forced to agree to an annexation.

At first people laughed it off. Donald Trump, long before being president, knew how to work the media and to get attention. He also has a habit of demanding the sun and the stars and then negotiating down to still getting more than he would originally have gotten.

However, things do seem to be getting out of hand. We find ourselves in a trade war and people on both sides of the border are now facing uncertain financial futures.

Canadians have the reputation of always being apologetic. While politeness is a part of our identity, it is not the only part. We try to be trustworthy to our friends and we expect them to be trustworthy.

Many Canadians feel betrayed. Not by the American people in general but by Donald Trump and by those who support him in all of his recent endeavours. This is creating some anger.

“Elbows up!”

This is the cry of many Canadians these days. This is a phrase used by hockey players when they are ready to fight.

The battle will be an economic one. Canadians are prepared to dig our heels in. We will seek to buy Canadian and support local businesses. There are more Canadian flags out than I have ever seen. We are ready to stand our ground and to demonstrate our moral strength.

Having said that, there are some things I would like to share. I do not speak for all Canadians but I hope my thoughts would be common to many.

The American people are not Canada’s enemy. We love Americans and we love the United States. While it may take a while to reconcile, we all look forward to being friends again. As much as we are concerned about what life will look like for us, we are concerned about the United States right now as well.

I love that Canadians are seeking to buy Canadian. This of course is more complicated than it sounds. Our economies are so interwoven that there are many products cross the border multiple times in their production.

There are Canadian companies that sell American products and there are American companies that have hundreds of Canadian employees who do not want to lose their jobs. I will seek to buy Canadian but I recognize that there are many grey areas in this discussion.

I also want to acknowledge that buying only Canadian is a part of economic privilege. It is easier for some families to buy Canadian than it is for others. We should not shame people for trying to make ends meet and not being able to participate in any economic boycotting.

Finally, I want to say that I am proud to be a Canadian. I do not claim that Canada is the perfect country but there is no other country that I would want to live in.

I have seen some good things come out of this conflict. There is increased patriotism and a greater self-respect for identity as Canadians. I truly believe that Canada will stand strong throughout this situation.

This post was not written in my role as either a pastor or a chaplain but only as an individual Canadian.