Whether we want to admit it or not, whether we agree with it or not, it is becoming more and more clear that Canada has entered an era of cultural wars and we need to take serious note of this. We can no longer be comfortable that this is just happening in the United States and shrug our shoulders and say it will never happen here, because it can, and it is.
While some will want to make it so, this is not a partisan issue. This era of culture wars is a function of both the left and the right in Canada.
We have seen it in the so-called truck convoys, we see it in a movement toward more individual rights rather than collective rights and we are seeing it in an atmosphere of growing intolerance for any points of view that are contrary to our own, often with serious consequences.
The cultural tug of war here also includes a weakening of the importance of truth, a more than tepid acceptance of ‘alternate facts’, and a penchant for historical revisionism. There has been little expressed outrage about the tearing down of statues or renaming of institutions or streets. We are also seeing this in the erosion of parental rights and a lesser emphasis on the importance of family life.
I also wonder if we are witnessing a dilution in the rule of law here. People with criminal backgrounds are released on bail, back into society with little thought about the safety of others. Further, similar to what is happening in the United States, there are those among us who view activists arrested for breaking the law as heroes rather than criminals.
Of course, the latest incident in this cultural war is in the Region of Peel where all books prior to 2008 are being removed from school libraries. Some are saying that this is a misunderstanding and of course, those who dislike the Ford Government are blaming the Minister of Education. Frankly, I don’t really care if he is to blame, or if the Peel Board is to blame, or if activists are to blame. The outcome and the consequences are the same.
Young people are being denied access to age-appropriate literature based on someone’s opinion about what they should be allowed to read. Harry Potter is on the hit list. So are The Hunger Games and The Diary of Anne Frank. Some books on Canadian history, antisemitism, and literary classics have been removed and essentially banned.
Really? The last generation of young students grew up with these books and others, like Catcher in the Rye and To Kill a Mockingbird, or A Prayer for Owen Meany. Most of them turned out just fine and learned something along the way. The Bible was written prior to 2008 and so was the Koran. These are both books of great significance. I wonder if they have been banned.
The Chair of the Peel Board said that some of these books were in poor shape and needed to be gone. That’s fine, but they need to be replaced. Otherwise, this is censorship, pure and simple.
It was also said that the reason for the removal of some books was equity-based. Nonsense. You don’t create equity by denying access to specific points of view or historic events. You create equity by providing as many points of view as possible.
One senior politician put it this way: “Libraries have become the newest target by a movement that claims to pursue equity while actually projecting authoritarianism.” I agree with that and the potential of that is scary.
While corrections may be made by the Peel School Board as a result of the intervention by the Minister of Education, the fact remains that what has happened in Peel School libraries is part of a cultural war. If it can happen in Peel, it will happen in other parts of Ontario.
I have a high regard for the school librarians I have known. I am sure that most, if not all teachers who work in the library, are against censorship and want available the most extensive inventory of literature possible. They know when these books are age-appropriate for students. I am content to leave decisions to them about what books should be in their libraries. I am not content with activists who have other controlling agendas interfering in that process.
It is important to note that the situation in Peel with school libraries is a symptom and not the entire disease as it relates to culture wars. There are so many other examples of this creeping into our Canadian society that the preponderance of them is a real concern.
Of course, that does not mean that we should resist change when it is needed and appropriate. Climate change is a good example of that. It is real and needs to be addressed. But it, and other important issues can be, and would be more effectively dealt with if they are not dragged through a cultural war of historical revisionism, censorship, confusing alternative facts, and my way or the highway inflexibility.
As an example, pouring paint on valuable paintings in the name of climate change does nothing to promote it and in fact, turns some people off in relation to this important issue. Civil unrest can have the same effect.
In dealing with necessary change, we must be very careful about how we go about it if we want success rather than failure. We do not need to be involved in culture wars in order to effect necessary change.
In fact, in my view doing so would impede real progress for things that really need to be addressed. It could also result in throwing the baby out with the bath water.
Surely, we do not want that.
Hugh Mackenzie
Hugh Mackenzie has held elected office as a trustee on the Muskoka Board of Education, a Huntsville councillor, a District councillor, and mayor of Huntsville. He has also served as chairman of the District of Muskoka and as chief of staff to former premier of Ontario, Frank Miller.
Hugh has also served on a number of provincial, federal and local boards, including chair of the Ontario Health Disciplines Board, vice-chair of the Ontario Family Health Network, vice-chair of the Ontario Election Finance Commission, and board member of Roy Thomson Hall, the National Theatre School of Canada, and the Anglican Church of Canada. Locally, he has served as president of the Huntsville Rotary Club, chair of Huntsville District Memorial Hospital, chair of the Huntsville Hospital Foundation, president of Huntsville Festival of the Arts, and board member of Community Living Huntsville.
In business, Hugh Mackenzie has a background in radio and newspaper publishing. He was also a founding partner and CEO of Enterprise Canada, a national public affairs and strategic communications firm established in 1986.
Currently, Hugh is president of C3 Digital Media Inc., the parent company of Doppler Online, and he enjoys writing commentary for Huntsville Doppler.
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I understand that change will happen, necessary or not. However, it seems to me “cultural differences” are used to quickly sort us into tribes – a circumstance fueled by the fast paced information age we live in. People are not always so easily “sorted” in reality And only if we allow ourselves to be.
We almost need a caution labelling, “consume a steady diet of this news/information source your own risk”; “count on the fact that the internet algorithm will sort you like a bean” by introducing more of what you want to hear, so your position can be solidified in cement.
I suggest an opposite of “war” is “detente” and conversation.
Well said Hugh, we cannot go down a road of censoring, editing, or banning those thoughts and ideas which will provide the food for creative thought in our children or society.
Obviously those proven ideals which are untrue, wrong, or damaging need to be looked at more closely.
Thank you.
Good grief! The PDSB has already weeded out (trashed) The Very Hungry Caterpillar, a beloved children’s book I mentioned in my previous comment!
I wonder. “The Chair of the Peel Board said that some of these books were in poor shape and needed to be gone.”
Maybe these books are in “poor shape” because they have been used a lot??
I wonder if the (probably highly paid) chair of the Peel board would feel good about being replaced because they were in “poor shape” and probably dated prior to 2008 too!
Rather than just toss books other than the newest ones, maybe they should replace some of their older ones, or repair them? I thought that was what libraries were for. To let us see the past more clearly by reading books from the past. One can then sort of review past thinking and current thinking and actually learn from it all. Just because it is old does not necessarily mean some things or thoughts are no longer of any value.
If one cannot read a book that you disagree with your education is in pretty poor shape.
Librarians that I know make higher wages than teachers. Our future criminals don’t spend their time in libraries. Students that do are probably mature enough to read the occasional racy or taboo paragraph without it negatively affecting the outcome of their public education. Teachers in grade 9 to 11 should continually remind students to not trust the news media or even their elected members of parliaments. The CBC offers daily examples of tainted news reporting, including opinions and analysis based on provable untruths, and these emotionally charged and misleading articles could be used to help young people understand the insincerity and confusion that has gripped society while it staggers under the weight of the new culture wars created and fueled by selfish politicians that have nothing to offer but deceit and paranoia.
Hugh has described this concerning trend well. Regardless of what it is labeled (cancel culture, wokism, intolerance, etc ), it’s not good for the country. The causes may be many, but high on that list sits PM Justin Trudeau. His divisive words and actions & special interest catering, all designed for retaining power, has divided the country badly and legitimized these kind of bizzare actions. It’s taken 8 years for many Canadians to understand this. Over to you Mr. Singh!
Before jumping on a bandwagon to ban a book, read it in its entirety. Consider the audience. If you have concerns, speak with the library/teacher.
What’s next on the to-be-banned book list? The Very Hungry Caterpillar? Alexander’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day? Uncle Jed’s Barbershop?
Having really listened to Lindsay Graham on CBC’s program “Hard Talk”, I have to say there is not one redeeming feature to any of his arguments and that includes (duh) book censure of any kind. Graham’s voice and timber seem to lull a person into thinking his words are rational or I tell myself that because I can’t believe people could be so stupid as to believe his political tripe. I don’t think he really believes any of it..he’s just furthering his own political agenda, just like the book censure right wing nut bars. Leave all libraries alone and mind your own business I say. We need to absolutely not accept what Peel has done and not let the far right virus infect our libraries and children’s minds.
WELL SAID Hugh !!!
” Culture Wars” have apparently been around for decades. I now understand that some groups, including more conservative persons, feel threatened by increases in cultural, religious and racial diversity, and yes this is the result of our growing ability to communicate, travel, and trade with places around the globe. Our minds have been opened to wider possibilities and different ways of seeing. We breathe in all this in wonder and curiosity.
The problem is fear of change. Economic changes, technological changes( imagine AI) and now climate change are all happening at an accelerating pace. No one can control / reverse/ stop Change. So take a moment to yell, mourn Yesterday, then fire up the creative for Today and all the Tomorrows with open hearts for each other. Let’s change the channel from Fear to Hope. One Day at a time.
School librarians….No, there are technicians now who work in the library because it’s too expensive to have a certified teacher doing that job.
Hugh with regard to book banning in the Region of Peel you have just touched the tip of the iceberg with your comments. Tensions have been building throughout the USA on this topic between parents and most school boards. Hugh, Lindsey Graham does also talk about how much authority librarians should have in the attached clip. The new books librarians are replacing the old books with is what fires up parents more.
A Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on book bans took a racy turn Tuesday, as Republican senators (John Kennedy) (Lindsey Graham) and a witness read scenes of various sexual content into the congressional record to defend the banning of multiple titles from U.S. schools. I want to emphasize the hearing is focused on – is this content ok for children not on the LGBTQ community.
Respectfully to all genders please listen to the attached clip. Warning: This content maybe offensive (starting at minute 12:10).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gHZXBZAKZY&t=127s