Terry Newman: RCMP puts land, African Nova Scotian acknowledgements before missing kids
Article content
This has likely spread to the RCMP due to the initiative's fifth stated action to: 'Prioritize advancing the work of Dalhousie's Diversity and Inclusiveness Strategy, Indigenous Strategy, African Nova Scotian Strategy, and actions that reflect Dalhousie's commitment to an anti-racist culture.'
Article content
Now, putting the valid distinctness, histories, legacies, and contributions of African Nova Scotians aside for the moment, what use did the RCMP see in making this announcement? They're obviously not looking to be recognized as one of the world's leading universities.
Article content
Is the RCMP in Nova Scotia insecure about past and present treatment of African Nova Scotians? If that's the reason, say so. Deliver a clear, public apology for each and every wrongdoing, not at a press conference scheduled for an update on missing kids, but at an event tailored specifically to that purpose. Then, move past it. Change policies that may have led to such wrongdoings. If forgiveness is what the Nova Scotia RCMP seeks from African Nova Scotians, then ask for it.
Article content
Was it the RCMP's attempt to show African Nova Scotians that they can trust them? Well, there are better ways to do that, too. They can begin by stating outright that they are, in fact, seeking to earn their trust. They could become a more regular and warm presence at community festivals and participate in youth initiatives. If you want a community's trust, earn it with actions.
Article content
Article content
Just don't blow smoke up their backsides by delivering the vaguest of possible statements about their distinctness, histories, legacies, and contributions to the enrichment of the province. They know what they are.
Article content
Like the land acknowledgment which preceded it, this was a shallow ritual. Both were out of place in the context of an update on a search for missing children. Neither lead to any real-world effects, other than the delay of timely information being communicated to the public and a checkmark on some public relations expert's checklist.
Article content
Even from the most well-meaning of orators, acknowledgments like these are largely a form of self-flagellation for actual or perceived wrongs. They are an attempt for the speaker and/or those in attendance to cast off feelings of guilt in a pseudo-religious ceremonial way. Their underlying purpose is to deflect blame by avoiding direct specific apologies and/or actual efforts needed to put issues to rest. They do not solve cultural problems. Instead, they ensure their persistence by enshrining them as if they were scripture, behaving as if a particular groups' unfortunate conditions, stated or implied, will be a constant, continuing, and necessary feature of our society.
Article content
And where will these declarations end? Does the Nova Scotia RCMP have a hierarchy of groups it believes the public should be acknowledging? Which group is next? Will they be trickling them out one at a time? How do they make these decisions about groups and their contributions to the province? Clearly, they are no longer based solely on length of time spent in Canada. If so, Acadians — who were literally ethnically cleansed from Acadie in 1755 — would have been mentioned before African Nova Scotians. Or are they no longer 'distinct' enough, whatever that means? Will future acknowledgment choices be added based on the relationship between the RCMP and particular groups they police? How long can we expect future RCMP updates on missing kids to take, by the time they get to the end of their acknowledgments list?
Article content
It's not clear why such acknowledgments exist, at all, before RCMP updates. One thing is for sure — they certainly should not be reciting them in order to deflect blame, or to avoid apologies or the exertion of the genuine efforts required to actually engage with these groups, which they clearly see as disadvantaged, even if they do not admit it outright and, instead, state the exact opposite.
Article content
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
22 minutes ago
- CTV News
Five things to know about Canada's counter-tariffs on the U.S.
President Donald Trump speaks during an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden at the White House, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein) OTTAWA — After U.S. President Donald Trump boosted steel and aluminum tariffs to 50 per cent, some industry groups and the Official Opposition have called on the federal government to retaliate in kind. Here's a look at the counter-tariffs Canada has imposed so far. 1. What do the counter-tariffs cover? The Canadian government has imposed retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods three times since Trump's trade war began, aimed at what it says are imports worth $95.4 billion worth. On March 4 — after the U.S. imposed 25 per cent tariffs on all Canadian goods, along with 10 per cent on energy products — then-prime minister Justin Trudeau announced the first raft of counter-tariffs on $30 billion worth of U.S. goods. Those 25 per cent tariffs target things like orange juice, motorcycles, clothing and shoes, coffee, cosmetics and alcohol. On March 12, the U.S. added a 25 per cent tariff on all steel and aluminum products, which was stacked on top of existing levies on Canadian goods. Canada's response a day later was 25 per cent reciprocal tariffs on another $29.8 billion of U.S. goods, including steel and aluminum, tools, computers and sport equipment. On April 9, in response to another round of U.S. tariffs — this time targeting the Canadian auto industry — the federal government imposed 25 per cent duties on 'non-CUSMA compliant vehicles' from the U.S. and 25 per cent tariffs on the content of CUSMA-compliant vehicles from the U.S. The government says this covers $35.6 billion in auto imports from the United States. 2. What are the exemptions? On April 15, in the midst of the federal election campaign, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced that the government was exempting some products from tariffs for six months to help Canadian businesses adapt. The tariff holiday covers specific categories: goods used in Canadian manufacturing, processing and food and beverage packaging, as well as imports used to support public health, health care, public safety and national security objectives. And when it comes to vehicle tariffs, the government said 'companies that produce autos in Canada have been granted remission to ensure the ongoing viability of their Canadian operations,' but that it is 'contingent on them maintaining production levels in Canada and on following through with planned investments.' 3. Does this mean all counter-tariffs have been dropped? On Wednesday, Opposition House leader Andrew Scheer said the government 'secretly dropped those tariffs to zero during the campaign.' This line has been repeated often by the Conservatives since the release of a report by Oxford Economics on May 13, which said Canada paused counter-tariffs for six months 'on nearly all U.S. goods imports.' The report said it estimated the exemptions would cover about 97 per cent of the tariffs. The government said that's not true. A spokesperson for Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said the exemptions apply to 30 per cent of the $60 billion worth of goods that are subject to tariffs — a figure that doesn't include the auto tariffs. William Pellerin, a partner in international trade at McMillan LLP, said the exemption is not nearly as broad as what's been reported. 'I think that report caused a lot of consternation within the trading community and the legal community. It is absolutely, certainly not zero impact on our clients,' he said, noting many of them are paying millions of dollars in duties already. 4. Where does all this leave Canadian businesses? Pellerin said there's a lot of confusion out there about what's covered by the exemptions. The Canada Border Services Agency has issued a customs notice explaining how to interpret the exemptions, 'but in many circumstances it's simply not obvious at all,' Pellerin said. As an example, he said he has clients who have been told by the CBSA that imported agricultural equipment is not exempt. 'We actually think that that's legally incorrect, that they've poorly interpreted the order-in-council,' he said. That's the kind of thing his firm is trying to sort out while it waits and hopes for a long-term resolution. 'Whatever actions need to be taken to get back to a tariff-free world (are) absolutely necessary,' he said. 5. How much tariff revenue has the government collected and where is it going? Conservative MPs have been asking this question in the House of Commons all week. On Tuesday, Conservative MP Dan Albas charged that 'Liberals promised $20 billion in elbows-up U.S. tariffs, but later dropped them with no regard to affected Canadian workers or fiscal impacts.' Prime Minister Carney responded to say that tariffs are still in effect and $1.7 billion has been collected so far. The federal government's latest fiscal monitor showed Canada collected an extra $617 million in import duties in March, as compared to the year before. Figures for April and May have not yet been published. During the election campaign, the Liberals and the Conservatives both estimated Canada would collect $20 billion in tariff revenue this fiscal year. In its election platform, the Liberal party pledged that 'every dollar raised from these tariffs will support Canadian workers and businesses affected by the trade war.' Officials at the Finance Department said in a statement that the money is going into the consolidated revenue fund and being used 'to support those hardest hit by this economic disruption.' The statement said that is happening through programs like employment insurance work-sharing, deferral of corporate income tax payments and GST/HST remittances, or by offering liquidity support through Export Development Canada, Farm Credit Canada, Business Development Canada and the Large Enterprise Tariff Loan Facility. — With files from Craig Lord This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2025. Sarah Ritchie, The Canadian Press
CTV News
28 minutes ago
- CTV News
‘Forget about the past': Fans weigh in on criticism of Wayne Gretzky over Trump ties
Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, right, and his wife Janet Jones arrive before the 60th Presidential Inauguration in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025. (Kevin Lamarque/Pool Photo via AP) EDMONTON — It wasn't long ago that some Canadians were up in arms about hockey legend Wayne Gretzky's ties to U.S. President Donald Trump's administration. But as the Edmonton Oilers skate their way through the Stanley Cup final, hockey fans say it's time to let bygones be bygones. 'I don't think it matters,' said Craig Hiscock, a longtime Oilers fan, as he posed Wednesday for a photo with a statue of Gretzky outside Rogers Place in Edmonton ahead of Game 1. 'Let's forget about the past. What he did here was a lot for the city, a lot for hockey.' The statue was vandalized in March and smeared with what appeared to be and strongly smelled like feces. On Wednesday, a hip-high metal fence was up around the bronze figure. An online petition started in February calling for a new name for Wayne Gretzky Drive also has about 14,000 signatures. Gretzky, the Ontario-born hockey star who led the Oilers to four Stanley Cup victories in the 1980s, recently drew the ire of Canadians for his public support of Trump, who has repeatedly expressed his desire for Canada to join the U.S and become its 51st state. The Great One was photographed with Trump several times at the president's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida. In January, Gretzky and his wife, Janet, attended Trump's inauguration in Washington. Frustrations grew after he appeared as honorary captain for Canada at the 4 Nations Face-Off final with the United States. Video footage showed him giving the U.S. team a thumbs-up as he walked to the ice. Gretzky also congratulated Dallas Stars players in their locker room last month, after they advanced to the Western Conference final. The Oilers eliminated the Stars in five games and now have one win against the Florida Panthers in the Cup final. Game 2 is Friday night. Brian Foulken, who became a fan during the Gretzky era and collects Oilers merchandise, said Gretzky's accomplishments, including multiple scoring records that stand to this day, still resonate with people. As for the criticism, Foulken said people are going to have their own opinions. 'At the end of the day, (Gretzky) played here for a long time. The diehard Oilers (fans), we love him,' he said outside the arena before Game 1. 'He's an amazing player.' Foulken added that current Oilers captain Connor McDavid is inching closer to Gretzky-level greatness. Darren Rogers, a Gretzky fan since the Oilers' inception into the NHL in 1979, said Gretzky's leadership led the team to win multiple Stanley Cups. Politics aside, that accomplishment should matter more to people in the grand scheme of things, Rogers said. Gretzky was in Edmonton for Wednesday's game. And as storied as Gretzky is to the Oilers franchise, he appeared to still be catching up to this new generation's fan base. On an American sports network, he sat side by side with commentators, as they discussed the Oilers' new tradition of playing the pop song 'Pink Pony Club.' Players have been tight-lipped about the significance of the Chappell Roan hit, typically heard after the team plays 'La Bamba' by Los Lobos following a win. 'Pink Pony — is that a band or is that a song?' the 64-year-old Gretzky asked TNT Sports co-host Paul Bissonnette following the Oilers' 4-3 overtime victory in Game 1. '(Roan) sings a song, 'Pink Pony Club,' and it's famous. It's on the radio,' Bissonnette answered. 'It's the new generation, Wayne,' he added. Gretzky appeared disappointed to learn Roan isn't Canadian, but still seemed eager to check out the song. 'I gotta get that (as) my ringtone,' Gretzky said. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 6, 2025. Aaron Sousa, The Canadian Press
CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Listen: Conservative fundraiser caller casts doubt on vote recounts
CBC News obtained a phone call recording that shows a Conservative Party fundraiser casting doubt on whether all of the federal election votes were accurately counted. CBC's Kate McKenna breaks down that conversation.
