Poilievre Doesn't Represent Young Canadians

This day our Generation, does Rule the population.

My friend, Michael Marin, would like you to read below and get involved.
I forward this along because I believe that we, the generation of RIGHT NOW, can actually do something about the crap that some people in power decide they have the right to do - be a bad role model that is. If I was this MP's mother I would be ashamed. The key word in ashamed is of course, shame. Shame on Peirre Poilievre. And shame on me if I don't, at least, attempt to do something about this kind of role modeling.

I would with kids - camp kids, and if Peirre was a camper I would have sent him home by now.

Read below. Mike Marin suggests all kinds of ways you can start getting involved to make a change.

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever does” ~ Maraget Mead

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MIKE MARIN WRITES:

Hi friends,

I write to you because you are some of the most influential people I know and I need your help. As many of you know, Pierre Poilievre, Canada's youngest M.P., made ignorant and bigoted comments about Aboriginal Canadians last week. His comments are outrageous not only because of their hurtful content, but also because they are being dismissed as simply a product of Poilievre's youth. As young leaders who are making positive contributions in your respective communities, I think it's important that you tell people that Poilievre doesn't represent you.

For those of you who haven't heard Poilievre's remarks, you can listen to them at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ws2Jc5692TY. If you share my outrage for Poilievre's comments and think Prime Minister Harper should fire him as Parliamentary Secretary, here's what you can do:

1. Join the Facebook group I've created at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=19933651970 and invite your friends to joing (to the many of you who already have, thank you).

2. Sign one of the form letters on the group and email it to the Prime Minister at pm@pm.gc.ca

3. Forward this email, or write your own, to as many people as possible.

4. Write a letter to the editor or an op/ed column to your local newspaper. For inspiration, you can consult the piece below, which I'm preparing to submit.

5. Follow the discussion of this controversy on your favourite websites and blogs and post comments about this campaign.

6. If any of you want to become administrators of the Facebook group, so that you can post items, please let me know.

7. Do whatever else you can think of to spread our message.

It would be a shame if Poilievre and his defenders were allowed to use his youth as an excuse for his behaviour. Let's work together to denounce these comments and show Canadians that we don't stand for Poilievre's values.

Thanks for your support.

Mike

Poilievre's comments weren't youthful indiscretion

Last Thursday was supposed to a hopeful day for Canada. The stage was set for the federal government to make a historic apology to Aboriginal peoples for the residential schools tragedy, a meaningful gesture that would lead to healing and reconciliation. But, just hours before the delivery of those long-overdue words, Pierre Poilievre, Canada's youngest M.P., shattered the solemnity of the occasion by reviving the same hurtful stereotypes that were behind the assimilation policies of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Poilievre's comments are not, as some of his colleagues have suggested, the product of youthful indiscretion. To blame Poilievre's youth for his ignorant and hurtful words not only diminishes their severity, but also casts young Canadians in a very negative light. Whatever their views on how to address the social and economic crisis facing Aboriginal people, the vast majority of young Canadians do not share Poilievre's bigotry and arrogance. Despite not having the same platform as their outspoken peer, many young Canadians work tirelessly to support minorities in their communities. All Canadians need to know that Poilievre does not represent his generation.

There are two specific features of Poilievre's comments that make them abhorrent to so many young Canadians. First, Poilievre doubted the "value" of financially compensating victims of residential schools. He did this by lumping compensation together with other government spending on Aboriginal affairs and denouncing the whole concept of giving money to Aboriginal Canadians. We mustn't be fooled by Poilievre's deceptive rhetoric. Compensation is not, as he suggests, an investment on which a return should be expected, but a victim's right stemming from the physical, psychological, and sexual abuse they suffered at the hands of the Canadian government.

This distinction is an important one to make because many of Poilievre's defenders argue that it's legitimate to question the effectiveness of spending alone as a solution to the problems in Aboriginal communities. If Poilievre's remarks were so confined, they'd have a point. Sadly, they were not. Since compensation is a function of the harm suffered, his skepticism for the former reveals skepticism for the latter. In other words, Poilievre's comments can only indicate that he either thinks the victims of residential schools haven't suffered enough to be entitled to compensation, or that the federal government isn't to blame for their suffering. Both views are ignorant and wrong.

The second, and more outrageous, aspect of Poilievre's comments is his suggestion that Aboriginal people are to blame for their own misfortunes. According to the youthful Parliamentarian, we need to stop throwing all this money at Aboriginals because it's their lack of "values"—specifically, "hard work... independence and self-reliance"—that's to blame. What's so shocking about this comment is that it mirrors the paternalistic and racist attitudes that were at the heart of the residential schools. The assumption behind these destructive views is that Aboriginal people are inferior and must be forced to adopt majority traditions in order to progress. Or, as Poilievre likes to put it, we need to "engender" them with new "values." These views are not only bigoted on their face, but also demonstrate appalling selfishness and lack of judgment uncharacteristic of young Canadians.

For weeks the whole country was preparing for this historic day. Everyone knew the apology was important for the victims and their families—people who had been ripped away from their parents, stripped of their identities, subjected to unspeakable abuse, and forced to live with the seemingly eternal consequences of their childhood injustice. They had been waiting for this day for so long. Of all the days Poilievre could have chosen to shoot his mouth off, he chose this one. On an occasion that everyone realized was bigger than individuals, Poilievre couldn't resist the urge to thrust himself into the spotlight and reopen the wound that was on the cusp of starting to heal. The mentality that underlies this kind of behaviour is truly beyond description. It would be unbecoming of an elementary school student, let alone Canada's youngest M.P.

I have never met a young person, regardless of political persuasion, who holds views as toxic as those Poilievre expressed. More importantly, I have never met a young person who would be as cruel and calculating as to pick the moment when his audience is most vulnerable to pollute the airwaves. The young people I am honoured to know are tolerant, compassionate, and respectful. While being diligent students, hardworking employees, and devoted relatives, they work selflessly to make their communities better. They are concerned about the welfare of others at home and abroad. They are positive role models. They will be tremendous leaders. They are the antithesis of Pierre Poilievre.

As a result, if young Canadians are to maintain the confidence of elder citizens, we must denounce Poilievre's actions in the strongest terms. Whether we like it or not, as Canada's youngest M.P., he is our face in Parliament. Canadians need to hear about all the positive contributions that our generation is making instead of being misled about us by the carelessness and ignorance of an individual with whom we share only our age.

As is often the case when confronting negative stereotypes, voices will emerge suggesting that the matter be put to rest—the offender has apologized so let's get on with our lives. The response to these calls is that complacency is never the solution to ignorance. The only way to confine the spread of dangerous ideologies is to attack them aggressively, exposing their intellectual bankruptcy and holding accountable those who propagate them. In this spirit, young Canadians need to make their indignation at Poilievre's comments heard and join the people of all ages who are calling on Prime Minister Harper to remove Canada's youngest M.P. from his post as Parliamentary Secretary. In so doing, we will reflect the true values of our generation.