By John Dokurno
“Let the 5,000-mile border between Canada and the United States stand as a symbol for the future. Let it forever be not a point of division but a meeting place between our great and true friends.”
-Former President Ronald Reagan, 1988
There’s been a great outpouring of national pride in the news these days ever since newly re-elected President Donald Trump announced his desire to annex our great nation of Canada into the 51st state of America. Laughable and improbable maybe, but never has there been a surge of nationalism on such a level that I can equate to what is happening now. Normally a quiet and reserved bunch, Canadians have raised their voices in displeasure over these recent ridiculous threats from Mr. Trump and some of his misguided administration. There are hats and t-shirts declaring our sovereignty, our flag is flying everywhere and politicians are defying Trumps tariffs and threats. We are fighting back with U.S liquor and tourism boycotts, Canadian product labels, songs and memes of all sorts poking fun at the audacity of our neighbours to the south.
Thinking back, there have only been a few times that I remember where national pride of this level was on display in our country. V-Day and the end of World War 2 and the return of our brave fighting men and women would undoubtedly top the list, but this was before my time. I can only imagine the sense of pride that swept our nation as we welcomed back our soldiers who had proven to be such a powerful ally in the successful fight against Germany. Since then, we Canadians haven’t been blessed with an abundance of national pride. We often look at ourselves as underdogs to our good friends to the south. To them, our weather is a source of jokes, our dialect is ridiculed, the metric system upsets and confuses them, athletes don’t want to come here because of taxes and weather, doctors flee after med school, the list goes on! I must admit, this recent ice-age-like weather we have been experiencing is not a source of pride in my mind and I understand the reluctance to live here but this year it seems we are dealing with it in a most Canadian way. Almost seizing it in defiance with an “Is this all you got?” mentality. Images from across the country of Canadians battling the onslaught shows that we are of a different breed. School kids wait at the bus stops in shorts and T-shirts. Ice fishing is finally happening. Skidoos roam the streets. Ahh, now that’s Canadian, eh! But this is wholly different. This is about more than just pride. Its about keeping our Canadian identity intact. Here’s my take on the events, as I remember them, that swept our country in recent years, instilling great national pride and spirit.
As a young lad in school, I remember the day when our grade 7 teacher wheeled in a TV into our classroom, closed the curtains and turned on the final Russia-Canada Summit Series game in 1972. With the famous last-minute goal by Paul Henderson, it became a cold war victory, showing the world that Canada was indeed the pow- er house of hockey at the time. To put things in a national perspective, it was estimated that 15 out of 20 million Canadians watched that final game! An event celebrated on our 2022 Toonie.
Who can ever forget the impact one brave young man from Winnipeg had on our country’s unity when in 1980 Terry Fox embarked on a cross-country journey after losing his leg to cancer in 1977. The Marathon of Hope instilled a pride in this country rarely seen before, as people lined the streets and highways across the country to support Terry and his mission to raise money for cancer research. Today, he is still considered a national hero as evidenced by the many statues, parks and buildings named in his honour across Canada, as well as the annual Terry Fox run held every September, which to date is the world’s largest single-day fundraiser for cancer research, with millions of participants around the world.
More recently, the Blue Jays back-to-back World Series wins also galvanized the country from sea to sea like never before. Being the lone Canadian team in a sport steeped in tradition, we
were mocked by network broadcasters and booed by American fans at every ballpark we visited. Even our beloved anthem was disrespected by these disgruntled boors. Unfortunately, this is still a problem today as witnessed during the re- cent 4 Nations Face-Off Tournament, with both sides displaying this disgraceful behaviour. Aren’t we better than that?
The tragic events of 911 highlighted, on a national level, our country’s commitment to help our neighbours to the south in any way possible. From assistance with emergency personnel in New York, to the diversion of flights into friendly airspace, we were there when chaos prevailed. A small airport in the Town of Gander Newfound- land took in 38 aircraft with 7,000 passengers and with typical east coast hospitality welcomed them into their homes. What a proud moment for all of us. It later became the subject of the highly acclaimed musical Come From Away, premiering in San Diego in 2015 and in Toronto in 2016. In fact, the play is currently on a North Ameri- can tour that started in Florida and will end in Moncton, New Brunswick in May. How’s that for keeping our legend alive!
The passion that many Canadians have for sports, regardless of who the home team is, was on full display when in 2019 the Toronto Rap- tors won the coveted NBA Championship. As the lone Canadian team in the league, Canada embraced the team from coast to coast with 44% of the country tuning in to watch part of that historic game.
Few songwriters have captured the essence of being a Canadian more than the likes of Gordon Lightfoot, Neil Young, Gord Downie, Stompin’ Tom and our very own snowbird Anne Murray to name a few, each echoing the Canadian way of life in song.
So, Mr. Trump, we as Canadians are not amused by your rhetoric. We are a country unified by our history, our accomplishments, our unique cultures and our tolerance to despicable weather. No, we want nothing to do with your insane proposition of taking over our great nation of Canada. I couldn’t imagine your image on our currency. The only coin suitable would be the Loonie.