Sometimes it is necessary to speak up, even when it might hurt or offend some people. That is not the intent of what I write today, but I do believe there is a serious issue that needs to be addressed.
On Friday night, Ontario Premier Doug Ford sought an injunction to stop a rally and protest in Toronto called Al-Quds Day. This rally, organized by a militant pro-Palestinian group which critics have long maintained is affiliated with Iran’s IRGC, has been an annual gathering in Toronto for several years, as it has been in many countries around the world.
According to the Toronto Star, in Ford’s view, “This demonstration is nothing more than a breeding ground for hate and antisemitism. It celebrates terrorism. It has no place in Ontario. It has no place in Canada.”
The Court did not grant the injunction, and the rally proceeded this weekend.
The concern for Premier Ford and some Toronto councillors is that, as a result of recent events in the city, there is an increasing risk of violence and clashes between factions with strong, conflicting viewpoints. They believe the rally fosters hate speech, which is contrary to Canadian law.
In recent days, at least three synagogues have been attacked and vandalized in Toronto. As well, the United States Consulate has been fired upon in that city. One Toronto veteran told me recently that for years, a story about gun violence would hit the headlines periodically. Now, she opined, the top two stories every day seem to be about gun violence in the city.
Toronto the Good has changed. It has long been a thriving multi-cultural municipality where citizens could celebrate and share their cultures and still have strong Canadian values and identity. There was no attempt to change Canada. The rule of law was sacrosanct. There have been few special demands, and for the most part, people have been able to live peacefully within the Canadian mosaic and still be who they are.
Sadly, not anymore.
Now there are factions against factions. There are demands for special rights. There is an intolerance of different points of view, and there is the intention of some to impose their culture and practices on everyone else. Antisemitism is at its highest level in decades, and violence is growing by the day. There is a real danger of Sharia law raising its ugly head in Canada, a concept that promotes male dominance and the subjection of women.
This is not only a Toronto issue, of course, but it is a good example of what is happening globally and how it is beginning to affect life in Canada.
Now we come to the elephant in the room, and that is the need for immigration reform. Most people do not want to talk about it, and some will call it racism. But it is not that. Racism is the belief that people of one race are inherently superior or inferior to those of another and that those differences justify discrimination or exclusion.
I accept that definition. I strongly believe in the equality of humankind, black, white, brown, or whatever. I am also an advocate of equal opportunity, something that is lacking in our society today.
With the exception of First Nations people, Canada is the product of immigration, and we should never be prejudiced against people because of where they were born.
But we can, in my view, expect people who want to come to Canada to live to do so because they respect Canadian values, and not because they see this country as a platform for activism to remake Canada according to the political or cultural norms from whence they came.
With all due respect, I believe that the current immigration practices, probably once adequate, have led, at least to some degree, both in Canada and elsewhere in the world, to an atmosphere of conflict, a challenge to institutional traditions, and at times to violence. This belief is based not on who people are but rather on what they want to do when they get here.
Whether we like it or not, immigration issues have fostered concern and real anger in many parts of the world. Immigration reform in the United States is what brought Donald Trump to power, in spite of his complete inability to work within constitutional norms to accomplish that.
We never want to see this in Canada, but the seeds are present. Toronto, as it is today, is a loud and clear clarion of that.
Canada should always welcome immigrants. But the criteria to get here must, in my view, reflect traditional Canadian values and not dilute them. We need their skills. We need their ideas, and we need their active participation in national life.
Canada is certainly not perfect, but our immigration policies should not allow people to become citizens whose fundamental goal is to change who we as Canadians are.
I know that is controversial. I also believe it is something that needs to be both said and addressed.
Before it is too late.
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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Thank you Joanne Tanaka for your comments., mine align more with your thoughts.
Mr. Mackenzie, this is a weighty, complex topic that deserves more attention, with some statistical basis to support your questions and comments. You have managed to write well to encourage the feelings to your discussion. Personally, I can get plenty of the fear and outrage about immigration and terrorism from other sources, plenty of geopolitical comment as human migration happening due to wars and climate change disasters.
Frankly, I think you should support with data and expertise your statement, “but our immigration policies should not allow people to become citizens whose fundamental goal is to change who we as Canadians are”. Can you suggest evidence that such is happening? The whole phenomena of humans required to uproot and find a new place to safely live is a study in itself, as is living in diaspora.
My Danish father as an immigrant to Canada, represented his country’s values by learning English language and Canadian ways (you learn the ways of the country that you are in). However, his immigration to Canada was voluntary, not during a war or threat of extinction from a climate event.
Can’t help but to ask myself, what would I do if I and my family had to flee Canada for another country for safety?
The Ayatollah’s purpose for Quds was to “project Iranian power; export the Islamic revolution”. And if you got a pro Palestinian parade, I imagine the doctrine is the same. Our legal system doesn’t kick in until an indictable act is committed. The judge who ruled against Ford’s request just hasn’t been accosted yet. How often do we hear of the danger after the act was committed. A reactionary approach.
The kerfuffle in TO maybe never had Al-quds brigade members on parade (maybe?), but I’m sure the display was for the reason the Ayatollah decreed. And there was someone in charge. I never attended the show and I wonder if anyone commenting here on Doppler did. Likely not. Just paper tigers. Right!
There are a lot of parades and demonstrations in this country. A St. Patrick’s Day parade honors the saint. He wasn’t big on snakes, lived among leprechauns and had a penchant for shamrocks. Nothing really sinister there. Quirky maybe!
Our Santa Claus parades are generally for little kids and encourage the spending of large quantities of cash. And again, a dude who hangs out with elves, and generally only mobilizes for good.
Easter parades have a lot of bunnies, painted eggs and sweet treats. Likely a full scale affront to the enamel on little teeth. Sometimes duckies get involved. Pretty tame stuff.
But there is nothing soft, cuddle or sweet about any group whose purpose is to promote the eradication of a nation. The movement has been described as a “construct of the Khomeini regime” to promote hatred, the interests of Iran and local Iranian proxies.
We all see the turmoil and hatred that permeates the nations of the middle east. I don’t need that in this country. I can do without anything that might offer it a toe hold in Canada. The quds day demonstration was just the specter of Iranian dogma and influence here. Look to other cities; see what it can become and take the hint.
Unlike the judge, I would rather be proactive.
THANKYOU Dennis Talon for writing your responses so I didnt have to.
Your clear outlining of why Hugh’s points don’t hold any validity is clearly stated & appreciated.
Hugh does not clearly state what about the Canadian values are being theretend or what they even are.
As a 4th generation Canadian decadent of Irish immigration – I am grateful the Canadian rights & freedoms allows me to disagree with Hugh and say so loudly – without threat of violence.
Thankyou again Dennis & everyone else who is able to welcome & accept others into their world in BETTER way then our ancestors did 😊
I try to not get involved in political conversation, but I’m going to let my guard down on this one, after reading comments like “ cull the herd “ and “send them back to where they came from”.
To say that Canada is built on Christian values, may be a little archaic when less than half the population of Canada identifies as being Christian. I’m not demeaning Christian values, just saying that Jews and other cultures also have good values.
I asked some of my kids who have lived in Toronto for years, if they attributed the rising gun violence, to immigration, and they responded immediately “ no, it’s due to poverty”.
I would hope that “ Canadian values” do not include homophobia, racism or homelessness.
Dennis Talon I disagree with your March 17 letter.
The concerns raised here are real, and there’s an important distinction that may help this conversation move forward. A court reviewed the situation around the Al-Quds rally and found no evidence it met the legal threshold for intervention. People may strongly disagree with what was expressed, but in Canada, lawful protest and criminal activity are treated differently under the law.
Where it gets more complicated is when those separate issues start to blur into one explanation. Acts like vandalism or violence against religious institutions are criminal matters and need firm enforcement. Public protests tied to international conflicts are something else, often protected under the Charter even when they make people uncomfortable. Immigration policy sits at another level again, tied to capacity, housing, and long-term integration. When everything gets pulled into the same narrative, it becomes harder to respond clearly.
Most Canadians are still living side by side, working, raising families, and contributing in ways that don’t make headlines. That can get lost when tensions rise. The challenge isn’t eliminating differences, it’s making sure we continue to handle them within a shared framework of law, rights, and responsibility that applies to everyone.
Interesting how Joan Tanaka linked a racist attack in downtown Huntsville to a comment that said you have to be born in Canada to hold elected office. The comment is discriminatory, but not racist. If you had to be born in Canada to hold elected office then Tony Clement would not be allowed to hold office because he was born in England. Jaghmeet Singh was born in Canada so he could hold elected office. It would be a good idea though if you had to be a citizen of Canada for 18 years before you could hold elected office or vote.
Allen just proved my point better than I ever could.
You’re confusing two completely different things. Al-Quds Day is a protest. It happens every year in dozens of cities around the world. Palestinian Islamic Jihad is an armed group. These are not the same thing. Attending a rally in Toronto is not the same as fighting in Gaza. A Canadian court looked at the actual evidence and reached the same conclusion. You’re welcome to disagree with the judge, but you need more than a Wikipedia summary to do it.
Then you get to what you actually think: “The lot don’t belong here.”
Not “this specific act broke a law.” Not “this speech crossed a legal line.” Just…those people don’t belong in Canada. Who decides that? You? On what basis? Because they held signs you don’t like at a protest a court said was lawful?
You list rocket fire, armed attacks, suicide bombings as though the people at a Toronto rally did those things. They didn’t. But since you brought it up, let’s talk about the violence you left out. Palestinians have lived under military occupation, displacement, and blockade for over 75 years. Their land has been systematically taken. Their homes demolished. Their movement controlled. Their population besieged in Gaza with food, water, and medicine restricted. Israel has killed tens of thousands of civilians. It has flattened neighbourhoods and destroyed hospitals. When people resist that – whether you approve of how they resist or not – you do not get to equate the violence of an occupying state with the violence of the people being occupied. The colonizer and the colonized are not on equal footing. They never have been.
Canada has spent centuries telling people they don’t belong. It said it about Indigenous people on their own land. It said it about Japanese Canadians during internment. It said it about Jewish refugees fleeing the Holocaust and turned them away. Every single time, the justification was the same: these people are a threat to our way of life.
You are using that same justification now. The people at that rally were protesting the killing of civilians. A court ruled they had every right to do so. Your response is that they don’t belong in this country. That is not an argument. It is exactly the problem.
You can look up the platform and reasoning for the al- Quds and the al Quds Day. The group and day is a creation of Ayatollah Khomeini . You will find this to be the largest militant group in Gaza after Hamas, and active on the West Bank. Dedicated to the struggle against Israel. Hoping to liberate Palestine. They are known to engage in armed attacks, rocket fire and suicide bombings. They support Iran and hope to exterminate Israel.
There is lots more that can be found about the group that a myopic judicial system sees no harm in. What you will not find any mention of is where it says the country of Canada is anything more than a safe haven from the summary justice they face on the streets of various other countries. I suppose we can label them the ” not for battle faction.” In fact I didn’t find any remarks as to their being allowed to display on Canadian streets.
It seems that is expected as a right! The lot don’t belong here. We’ve got our rights wrong!
You are asking readers to follow a chain of reasoning that deserves scrutiny, because most of your claims do not hold up.
Let’s start with what is not in dispute. The attacks on synagogues in the GTA. Antisemitism is real. No honest person disputes that. But then you make a series of claims that are unsupported or flat-out false.
You frame the Al-Quds rally as self-evidently dangerous, quoting Premier Ford’s view that it is “a breeding ground for hate and antisemitism.” What you don’t mention is that an Ontario Superior Court justice heard the province’s case for an injunction and dismissed it, finding insufficient evidence that the rally presented a danger to the public or that previous rallies had led to violence or incitement.
The organizers’ lawyer told the court there was no history of arrests at the event and no evidence linking organizers to the synagogue attacks or consulate shooting. The Canadian Civil Liberties Association called Ford’s injunction attempt “an extraordinary and dangerous step” that threatened Charter-protected freedoms. None of this appears in your commentary. Instead, you present one side of an argument that was tested in court and rejected, as though it were settled fact.
Then comes the claim that “there is a real danger of Sharia law raising its ugly head in Canada.” This is fearmongering without a shred of evidence. There is no legal, political, or legislative movement to implement Sharia law in Canada. Ontario actually considered allowing faith-based arbitration for civil disputes in 2005 and explicitly rejected it. You offer no evidence for your claim because there is none. That sentence exists to do one thing: turn “immigration” into a Muslim problem. Readers deserve better than that.
You write that antisemitism “is at its highest level in decades.” What you omit entirely is that Islamophobic hate crimes in Canada have also spiked dramatically since October 2023. Statistics Canada data confirms this. If your concern is genuinely about rising hatred and factional violence, why mention only hate flowing in one direction? That omission is telling. It suggests the piece is less interested in diagnosing a real problem than in pointing the finger at one community.
Also, “Canadian values” is doing a lot of heavy lifting in your argument. You argue that immigrants should “respect Canadian values” and not seek to “change who we as Canadians are.” But you never define what those values are. I don’t think this is an oversight – it is purposeful. The phrase is left empty so that each reader can fill it with whatever they already believe. But if we take it seriously, Canada’s core values are enshrined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which includes freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, and freedom of religion. These are the very rights that the Al-Quds rally organizers exercised and that a court upheld. You cannot invoke Canadian values to argue against their application.
You pre-emptively insist that your argument is not racist, offering a textbook definition of racism as belief in racial superiority. But racism in 2026 rarely behaves that way. It works through exactly the kind of structure your commentary employs: take a real problem, attribute it to a vaguely defined group of outsiders, and propose restricting their presence as the solution. The word “Muslim” never appears in your piece, but the piece is clearly about Muslims. The references to Sharia law, to Iran, to people who want to “impose their culture” – your readers know exactly who is being discussed.
Finally, you warn that what happened in the United States with Trump could happen here, “but the seeds are present.” On this point, you are closer to the truth than I think you realize. The seeds are present…but they are not planted by immigrants exercising their Charter rights at a lawful demonstration. They are planted by commentary that treats an entire community as a threat to national identity, that presents discredited fearmongering as brave truth-telling, and that asks readers to accept as fact claims that a court of law has already found wanting.
Canada does face real challenges: with housing, with integration supports, with hate in all its forms. Those conversations deserve evidence and precision. They do not deserve commentary that uses the real pain of antisemitism as a Trojan horse for anti-Muslim sentiment.
Well said Hugh, and I might add without safety we have nothing.
Law and order, along with public safety, are widely considered the foundational pillars of a functioning, civilized society. They create the necessary structure for stability, enabling individuals to coexist, pursue opportunities, and live without fear. (Dept of Justice)
Equality of opportunity over equality of outcome is the only point we may disagree on Hugh.
“Woke is broke” now that we have experienced its everchanging definition and confusion.
Everyone born in Canada has to wait 18 years to vote…don’t they? If you had to be born in Canada to hold political office it would limit or eliminate foreign interference…which goes on!
I am upset by this article by a former mayor of Huntsville and esteemed Conservative advisor provincially -especially his statement that there are any immigrants whose “fundamental goal is to change who we as Canadians are” Mr Mackenzie presents no actual evidence that this is so. I am wondering if this is a response to the failure of Doug Ford’s attempted court injunction against the recent pro-Palestinian demonstration – failed because there was no evidence of risk of dangerous behaviour. It was their right to free speech and dissent. A Canadian value of democracy.Other than valuing Nature, being polite and hockey- respect for multiculturalism, individual freedoms, fairness and equality are core values that the machinery of AI listed for Canadians. Is AI giving us more credit than we deserve?
Also I do not understand the lack of empathy by some for the suffering of the Palestinian families that the Palestinian diaspora here also grieves. (The war in the Middle East grows now and the USA would like NATO to join his project) We are connected to all on this planet. Some Canadians seem happy to blame immigrants for all sorts of ills they imagine they cause. Without substantial evidence, this can only be called xenophobia. The comment I have read here about disallowing democratic participation in voting and holding office by those not Canadian born has been allowed to stand by Mr Mackenzie without challenge. No wonder the MPP visiting with his family was not safe from public abuse on the Huntsville Main Street.
Hugh, we’ve known each other for years. I’ve read probably everything you have written. But quite honestly, I’ve felt for the most part you tended to stick to the “middle of the road” so to speak. Now I’m not suggesting you have jumped the rails with your comments today, but I did feel you were more on topic. Me, I’m more of a “tell it as I see it guy”, to hell with the tweeners, I’m gonna say exactly what I feel, think, and believe.
However, I felt satisfied after reading your post today as it clearly framed the problem our immigration system has laid at our feet. Correct me if you will, but these terrorists gathering we are now watching on OUR streets, used to be watched on television from their own countries. My answer to this problem is, SHIP THEM BACK TO WHENCE THEY CAME. Canada is not a haven for anyone who takes our love and respect for freedom as a safe place to conduct their war against the country from whence they came. Running away from their country to Canada, a peace-loving Christian nation, must appear to these people as a safe haven without consequences as they rally and make demands that WE Canadians react in their stead to make changes in their own war torn non-Christian countries where they didn’t have the courage or resolve to fight for their own freedom. It is a sad and alarming feeling when the Courts who are supposed to be protecting us from such evil fails to prevent these foreigners from bringing their warring ways into our country by a large show of force in our streets. I believe it is way past the time to cull the herd.
Hugh, you are repeating what Canadians have been saying for years.
Canada is not getting the respect from new comers that it deserves.
Immigration into Canada needs a serious overhaul.
Muskoka has not suffered like the cities in Canada have.
We want the real Canada back.
For those that ask. I believe Canadian values areas follows. Respect for the law. Respect for all people. The freedom to free speech in a respectful and peaceful manner. The right to pursue a higher education. The right to have the basic needs such as food and shelter. Canadians should support, within their means, those less fortunate whether it be physical or mental challenges. These are just a few Canadian values that I believe in but others may have a different insight that they would like to share. I live in Alberta where as you all probably know we are going through our own identity issues. I personally am a world person first, then a Canadian followed by an Albertan and finally, my home city. Peace out. No, I am not a throwback hippy!
Many Canadians would agree with the concern raised here. A country as diverse as Canada only works when there is both a shared civic framework and a realistic ability to absorb newcomers successfully. Immigration has always been part of Canada’s story, but public confidence depends on whether governments manage that change responsibly. The stability Canadians often take for granted took a long time to build. It reflects decades of effort to balance economic needs, housing capacity, and social cohesion. Recent adjustments to immigration levels tied to housing pressures reflect that reality.
Where the discussion becomes more complicated is in linking the tensions we are seeing in Toronto directly to immigration policy itself. The incidents mentioned in the article reflect several different pressures at once. International conflicts sometimes spill into Canadian streets through protests and activism. Antisemitic hate crimes must be confronted firmly under Canadian law. Large cities also go through periods where public safety becomes a bigger concern and requires coordinated responses from police, courts, and security agencies. Those problems are serious, but they do not necessarily come from the same place or call for the same response.
Canada has gone through periods of tension before, and strong institutions are usually what help the country work through them. Canada has evolved many times as new communities arrived and contributed to national life. The real test is whether those institutions remain strong enough to integrate differences within a shared commitment to the rule of law and democratic norms that apply to everyone.
Hugh has pointed out a problem that is indeed real. It is relatively small but still is an issue and can only grow with the current system.
Ask yourself, why is someone wanting to immigrate to Canada and it is usually because of conditions in their country of origin that are intolerable, or at least so bad that they are willing to “start again” in a place like Canada that hey perceive as being a better location than their current one.
All I would say is that we ask them, when they come to Canada, to leave behind the social, political and ethnic prejudices that drove them from their homeland to Canada in the first place. They need to embrace where they have moved to, learn at least one of the official languages, take part in our democracy by voting, and gradually depart from the very traits of their homeland that drove them to leave in the first place. The people are fine, some of the social traits are not so and should be left behind when people immigrate.
I don’t think this is too much to ask.
Well said Hugh.
Yes we need and want immigrants, but they have left a country where they were not happy, safe, able to make a good life for themselves and their family and for many other reasons. But when they come to Canada, they need to respect and live our values, while maintaining the family traditions that make them who they are. Otherwise they are going to create the very situation that they fled from.
We do not want or need them to inflict the horrors they have left on us.
I don’t read any evidence in your blurb that immigrants’ (which ones, or you mean generally?): “fundamental goal is to change who we as Canadians are”. Heavy statement.
Tell us, what exactly are these: “traditional Canadian values”? A phrase often tossed, rarely defined.
CONTROLLED immigration is the key. Trudeau had none, and we were flooded. Now we see the consequences of that. There’s nothing wrong with closing the gate and only allowing highly skilled immigrants that would contribute to our society in places we need it.
But now, you can’t undue the damage over allowing too many immigrants in. Overcrowding with lack of housing is just one issue that is affecting our small town. This is happening all over.
I agree with the spirit of your column, Hugh: immigration has long been essential to Canada, and newcomers should feel some connection to the country they’ve chosen to live in. But the phrase ‘adopt Canadian values’ is harder to pin down than it sounds.
What exactly are those values? Ask ten Canadians and you’ll get ten slightly different answers. Our Minister for Immigration couldn’t fully answer that question, when asked a few months back, though after sputtering a bit, she came up with, “Canadian values are human values.”
We often point to things like equality before the law, respect for diversity, democratic institutions, and a strong belief in individual rights as outlined in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Others would add public health care, bilingualism, environmental stewardship, or reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. Yet Canadians themselves debate many of these issues vigorously – sometimes nastily – which suggests they are still evolving and not something that you can check off on a list.
Perhaps the real expectation is simpler and more honest. Canada asks newcomers to respect the law, the rights of others, and the democratic framework that holds a very diverse society together. Beyond that, Canadian identity has never been carved in stone. It’s been shaped, generation after generation, by the very immigrants we sometimes lecture about fitting in.
Thanks for being the elephant in the room! It is time we as Canadians stopped with the yes, ok, sure and sorry and put some conditions to our “welcoming”.
Damn it Hugh! You hit the nail right on the head.
The truth is always discouraged unless someone like you is not afraid to express their opinion!
Do you really think the federal government is listening? Votes are more important.
Very rarely do I agree with what Hugh Mackenzie says, but this time I do. I have nothing against controlled immigration. In my opinion: I think When a person comes to Canada he/she should have to wait 18 years to vote. Anyone that is not born in Canada should not be allowed to hold any public office. Foreign interference is real and must be stopped. Canadian values have been eroded under Liberal leadership.
This is such an important issue. Poor immigration policies during the Trudeau era have broken the trust of Canadians in the government’s ability to manage immigration to ensure Immigrants share similar values.
Thank you Hugh for your courage to speak up with a balanced perspective. There are very few voices willing to so the same.