Editorials - March 28, 2025

The last few weeks may have felt like we were walking across a waterbed mattress, with the topsy-turvy politics of Trump wreaking havoc on the world, and especially Canadians. The presence of such a foe has resulted in a national pride that none have seen before.

 

Last weekend saw thousands turn out in Toronto for an “Elbows Up” rally, the new rallying cry of Canadians across the country in response to tariff threats and annexation. Other cities and towns are also planning protests in the coming days and weeks. We are also seeing some social solidarity from our neighbours to the south. Another rally was held on Saturday in Windsor with a mirror rally taking place across the river in Detroit. Organizers hoped the dual rallies would show the U.S. administration that Canadians and Americans stand together in rejecting threats to tariff and annex Canada. 

 

The movement inside the United States is gaining momentum with progressive Senator Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, who are rallying thousands of supporters on their “Fight the Oligarchy” tour. An estimated 34,000 people showed up at Denver’s Civic Center Park and the Arizona rally had 15,000 in attendance, with more than 120,000 viewing online. Americans, even those who may have voted for Trump, were not expecting the presidency that they are now facing and are beginning to protest the overreaching abuses of power. 

 

Canada, we are not alone. – DS

Last Saturday in the sleepy Toronto suburb of Ajax, a 25-year-old woman assaulted another woman. She tried to remove the victim’s hijab before dousing it in an unknown fluid and attempting to set it alight, according to Durham Regional Police. The crime is being treated as hate-motivated and charges have been laid.

 

In a statement, the victim has described the “absolute horror” of the attack, which she says has played over in her head since it occurred, and the fear for the future of her daughters, all of whom wear hijabs.

 

Hate crimes in Canada have nearly tripled between the years of 2015 and 2021 with every indication that their sharp increase has continued in the years since 2021. This metric certainly coincides with a period of politics turning inward and shifted sharply to the far right. Politicians, U.S. President Donald Trump chief among them, have stoked fear of the “other” in their countries, feasting on the division and fear between those who see themselves as the “natives” to a parcel of land and those who were born somewhere else or who look different. And, while for some it’s all fun and games to make jokes in an effort to get votes or to share on social media, increasingly this behaviour is spilling into the real world and the incident at the Ajax Public Library, victimizing a woman who was busy studying in a place that evokes feelings of safety and the pursuit of knowledge, is the latest example.

 

The fear of violence for your religion, choice of dress or colour of your skin should be ancient history, but there are some hellbent on not letting it die. Canada should rise above this kind of hate, as it’s not who we are, and these stories should be relegated to history books. – SL 

Elections are supposed to be the ultimate tool of accountability in a democracy. They offer citizens the chance to pass judgment on those who govern them, weighing promises against performance. Yet, recent events have turned elections into little more than a game of timing; a political manoeuvre to seize the moment, rather than a reckoning for those in power. Take Ontario’s February election, a sudden winter blitz that left voters scrambling to make sense of why they were being called to the polls more than a year early. Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservatives coasted to another majority government, not by running on their record, but by stoking fears about the looming Donald Trump. 

 

Fast forward a month, and Canada finds itself in a similar situation. Mark Carney, fresh off his victory in the federal Liberal leadership race, called a snap election before the opposition could topple him in Parliament. Rather than allowing voters a measured assessment of his leadership, Carney decided to gamble on momentum. The result? Another election in which timing, not governance, is the deciding factor. And once again, Trump’s presence overshadows domestic issues.

 

Municipal politicians, meanwhile, don’t have this luxury. When a local mayor or councillor makes a controversial decision, they have no ability to shuffle the calendar in their favour. There are no surprise elections or sudden appeals to voters before a scandal takes hold. 

 

This should be the standard for all levels of government. The power to call an election should not be a tool for political survival but a mechanism for public accountability. If democracy is to mean anything, elections must serve the people, not the politicians looking for the perfect moment to avoid the consequences of previous actions. – SBS