I was recently asked to explain why I joined the group “Canadians Against Anti-Americanism” on Facebook.
Here’s my response:
While traveling in my youth I noticed that fellow travelers from America were treated differently than myself and others. They were often harassed or at least not made to feel welcome. These individuals did not deserve any different treatment than the rest of us and I felt bad for them. Many Canadians wore the maple leaf on their backpacks not as a symbol of pride, but rather as a way to say “I’m not American”. That also felt very wrong to me.
As I’ve grown up here in Canada I’ve observed that anti-Americanism seems to have become increasingly acceptable. It has crept into our lives at so many levels that for many people it’s become “normal”. Kid’s are subtly fed it in their schools, our national broadcaster treats it as comedy, and our politicians use it to garner popular support. Rather than contributing to my national pride, for me it is a source of shame.
Simply put, anti-Americanism is wrong.
