After what I saw on Monday, it’s evident that we will be apologizing forever. Justin Trudeau made an announcement on Monday that he will get up in front of the House of Commons on May 18th and make a national apology for the Komagata Maru incident. If you are unfamiliar, this took place in 1914 and resulted in a number of potential immigrants being turned around once they hit the shores of Vancouver as they were refused entrance into Canada due to what Trudeau says were, ‘discriminatory laws of the time’.
For effect, Trudeau dawned an orange turban while making this announcement. It’s a, purely, political move and not one based out of sincerity. In 2008, Stephen Harper stood in front of 8,000 people in BC (I’m assuming most of the people were of the same race and culture as those that were turned away in 1914) and offered his apology on behalf of Canada. A number of Sikh people rushed to the podium and said that wasn’t good enough and that they wanted it done in the House of Commons. To me, sorry is sorry. I’d prefer an apology to my face and not said in a grand standing way in front of a bunch of politicians, but I didn’t have ancestors on that ship, so I guess I’m not entitled to an opinion.
Which brings me to my next point: Trudeau made this proclamation (as I mentioned) while wearing an orange turban. Again, I don’t have a dog in this fight, but I find it somewhat offensive that Trudeau would wear this garment if he’s not a practicing member of the Sikh community. I’m not, nearly, passionate about anything in my heritage so I can’t draw a parallel to this; but I’m going to suggest that if someone came up to me and visited with me holding a Bible that he had no intention of opening or using beyond his meeting with me, I’d be a little annoyed. But, I guess that’s not how it goes because Trudeau has been, widely, applauded and the polls show this is the kind of leadership Canada desires. We don’t care about things like deficits, unemployment amongst those who work in the oil sector, or stressed healthcare systems due to the influx of refugees.
We care more about a leader serving food at a Greek supper in Halifax or showing off for the camera to announce an apology is coming in about a month.
Frankly, I don’t see why an announcement needed to be made a forthcoming apology. I mean, it’s 102 years old. I think it’s okay if we just wait another month for him to get up in front of his political allies and foes and deliver this dramatic message. I see no need to announce when he will apologize.
Is there anything we won’t make a deal about to apologize over? I think the message is clear. If you come from a specific group that did bad things over a hundred years ago, you, your kids, your grandkids, and beyond should be ashamed forever. Hang your head. Be proud of nothing. Your forefathers were awful people and that means you have no right to say, “Look that’s enough. I’m sorry to anyone who was wronged in the past, but let’s focus on the present and future and not continue to live in the past.” To be honest, I’m surprised there aren’t more skeletons in the closet of other races, cultures, and religious organizations. It always seems to come back to one particular group and we all know who that is.
In 100 years, do you think distant relatives of Ronald Goldman should seek out the relatives of OJ Simpson and demand an apology for Goldman’s senseless murder?
Last week, the manager of the Toronto Blue Jays was caught in a politically correct firestorm after he suggested maybe his players should wear dresses after an umpire made a ruling that a slide into second base by Jose Bautista was too rough and the intent was to injure the second baseman. I think the time has come to call out trouble makers who go around looking to get others into hot water for saying things that we have deemed as ‘politically incorrect’. The reality is that the statement made by Gibbons was not offensive to those who are sports fans.
I think the wrong person heard it and decided to make it an issue. It’s also the media’s fault for running with it and making a big deal out of nothing. The meaning is also open for interpretation. When he said maybe his players should go out and wear dresses, I took it to mean that maybe they should make sure they don’t get dirty or play too rough. I didn’t think he was insinuating women are weak.
Nice person mentions this week: Ron Arnst, Jeff Wiebe, James Shewaga, Kevin & Cyndy Mundt, and Scott McOuat.
