I Am Canadian
As an immigrant, I came to Canada as a young child -- I remember Guyana as a child would, and I have no interest to see the country as an adult. If I went back there today, I would be a tourist. Although I have citizenship and was born in Guyana, I am a Canadian citizen first -- I am Canadian. A short while back, a colleague at work forwarded me a story of a murder in Guyana that may have been politically motivated. The victim was a Canadian citizen that went back to Guyana to take a post as a government minister. He was not a Canadian. He was Guyanese, who simply claimed Canada as a haven while it was too dangerous for him in Guyana. It may be remarkable to some, but I actually had no interest in the story. I read the news report. It was a sad story. But it didn't get my blood boiling. It didn't make me want to go off and fix things there.
Today, there are many who carry the Canadian passport, but are not Canadians. They may be permanent residents or even have citizenship in our great country -- but they are not Canadians. Their hearts are not here. They don't respect our values. They don't attempt to integrate into, accept or respect our society, while expecting the respect to flow to their culture. They support the institution of sharia laws; they raise money to fund al Qaeda, Hezbollah, the IRA and other murderers; they use Canada to escape the draft or as an AWOL destination; they use Canada for citizenship, then run home -- only returning when trouble starts. Worse, they sometimes go to war against Canada -- either plotting to kill us here in our country, or pointing a gun at our soldiers policing conflicts around the world. You know who they are. You know if you're one of them. You're not Canadian.
Canada is a country rich in cultural diversity, and with immigration, it gets richer with every year, with every new immigration that calls it home. Toronto is one of the best examples of Canada. We have unimaginable wealth because of our diversity. Walking the streets of this city, you'd be amazed at the beautiful people -- beautiful shades of skin colour; hair colour and clothes. Just take a walk starting at the bottom of Yonge Street and you'll find yourself a global culinary destination at your feet. Toronto -- Canada -- celebrates its diversity. There are the Celtic and British Isles festivals; African, Asian and Caribbean festivals; and the festivals that celebrate North American cultures. There isn't a part of the world that you can't find here in Toronto. We have the globe here.
Yet what we have here is fragile. Its fragile because of those who don't belong here. I love my country. I want it to remain tolerant of diversity. I want a Jewish boy to be able to marry an Arab girl. I want Chinese girl to date an African boy. I want same-sex couples to have the rights I'm entitled to. I want to be able to choose which part of the world I will dine at this weekend. These things are Canada. Cultures can be celebrated and respected without investing in foreign politics and war. If you're Canadian, you do not go off to Lebanon and Israel to kill each other -- neither do you do it here. You do not face off in those foreign wars against Canadian soldiers who may be sent there. You do not go off to declare war against a nation Canada is not at war with. You remain here, at home, and you voice your opinions; you don't call for the death of others -- because you are Canadian, and these are Canadian values. If you can't live up to that, kindly leave my country and don't return.
This was written after reading The ticket to get back home [1 2 3 4 5] from this weekend's Toronto Star.
Today, there are many who carry the Canadian passport, but are not Canadians. They may be permanent residents or even have citizenship in our great country -- but they are not Canadians. Their hearts are not here. They don't respect our values. They don't attempt to integrate into, accept or respect our society, while expecting the respect to flow to their culture. They support the institution of sharia laws; they raise money to fund al Qaeda, Hezbollah, the IRA and other murderers; they use Canada to escape the draft or as an AWOL destination; they use Canada for citizenship, then run home -- only returning when trouble starts. Worse, they sometimes go to war against Canada -- either plotting to kill us here in our country, or pointing a gun at our soldiers policing conflicts around the world. You know who they are. You know if you're one of them. You're not Canadian.
Canada is a country rich in cultural diversity, and with immigration, it gets richer with every year, with every new immigration that calls it home. Toronto is one of the best examples of Canada. We have unimaginable wealth because of our diversity. Walking the streets of this city, you'd be amazed at the beautiful people -- beautiful shades of skin colour; hair colour and clothes. Just take a walk starting at the bottom of Yonge Street and you'll find yourself a global culinary destination at your feet. Toronto -- Canada -- celebrates its diversity. There are the Celtic and British Isles festivals; African, Asian and Caribbean festivals; and the festivals that celebrate North American cultures. There isn't a part of the world that you can't find here in Toronto. We have the globe here.
Yet what we have here is fragile. Its fragile because of those who don't belong here. I love my country. I want it to remain tolerant of diversity. I want a Jewish boy to be able to marry an Arab girl. I want Chinese girl to date an African boy. I want same-sex couples to have the rights I'm entitled to. I want to be able to choose which part of the world I will dine at this weekend. These things are Canada. Cultures can be celebrated and respected without investing in foreign politics and war. If you're Canadian, you do not go off to Lebanon and Israel to kill each other -- neither do you do it here. You do not face off in those foreign wars against Canadian soldiers who may be sent there. You do not go off to declare war against a nation Canada is not at war with. You remain here, at home, and you voice your opinions; you don't call for the death of others -- because you are Canadian, and these are Canadian values. If you can't live up to that, kindly leave my country and don't return.
This was written after reading The ticket to get back home [1 2 3 4 5] from this weekend's Toronto Star.
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