Prime Minister Mark Carney announces funding for houses during a visit to Edmonton, on March 20.JASON FRANSON/The Canadian Press
It may have been just a coincidence that Prime Minister Mark Carney named a new Minister of Canadian Culture and Identity the same week that Hudson’s Bay Co. went belly-up. But such synchronicity does move one to ponder the very meaning of Canada, does it not?
And none too soon. With the country’s sovereignty under threat amid a rapidly changing world order unleashed by political forces (and farces) beyond its control, it does seem urgent that our government reassert and promote what makes us Canadian in the first place.
Our previous prime minister began his first term in office, in 2015, by declaring Canada the world’s “first postnational state” with “no core identity.” He seemed to conceive of our country’s history as not much more than a collection of past injustices that, thanks to his enlightened leadership, we could atone for by embracing our postnational nirvana.
In truth, the postnational concept was always a load of tripe. In January, after Donald Trump began trolling him and calling him the “governor” of a future 51st U.S. state, Justin Trudeau went on CNN to defend our independence. “That’s not going to happen. Canadians are incredibly proud of being Canadian,” he insisted. “One of the ways we define ourselves most easily is, ‘Well, we’re not American.’ ”
No wonder The Bay is going under. If being Canadian only means not being American, then what is the point? If our prime minister cannot articulate a stronger case for our continued existence as a sovereign country, then what hope do we have of surviving as one?
As for The Bay, after almost two decades under U.S. ownership, it had lost most of its Canadian cachet. Despite being disparaged as a symbol of colonialism, many Canadians rushed this week to buy an iconic Hudson’s Bay blanket (if they could find one). But few shed tears at the demise of the world’s “oldest continuous capitalist corporation still in existence,” as author Peter C. Newman described it in his 1985 history of the Hudson’s Bay Co., Company of Adventurers.
“The history of the Bay may at the same time be seen as a history of Canada,” Mr. Newman said in 1983 in embarking on his project. “It is my hope to do this book not only as a chronicle of the world’s longest lasting commercial empire, but as a social history of the country.”
Until this century, The Bay was an integral part of the Canadian identity. Much like rivals Eaton’s and Simpson’s, its stores anchored our downtowns and suburban malls as proud champions of Canuck retailing and Made-in-Canada quality.
In 1999, much of the country went into mourning after Eaton’s declared bankruptcy. As the CBC declared then: “It’s not just a store. It’s part of our national psyche.”
In contrast, the reaction to The Bay’s filing for court protection from its creditors and likely liquidation has been pretty much “meh” – even though the loss of Hudson Bay Co., which was founded a full two centuries before Eaton’s, is, symbolically speaking, a much bigger deal.
What could be more Canadian than a British Crown-chartered fur trading company founded by two French coureurs de bois that opened up much of the country’s northwestern frontier, forging deep commercial (though often exploitative) relations with Indigenous peoples and keeping Canadian territory out of American hands?
To be sure, Canada’s identity is strong, resilient and regenerative enough to survive without The Bay. But at a time when Canada’s existence is being threatened by our superpower neighbour and erstwhile best friend, we need leaders who are unafraid of celebrating the history of a country that remains one of the world’s most envied.
Mr. Carney seems to get it. “The ceremony we just witnessed reflects the wonder of a country built on the bedrock of three peoples: Indigenous, French, British,” he said after being sworn in on Mar. 14. “The office of Governor-General links us through the Crown and across time to Canada’s proud British heritage …Our bilingual identity makes us unique. And the French language enriches our culture.”
Of course, it will take more than replacing the words “Canadian Heritage” with “Canadian Culture and Identity” in a ministerial title for Mr. Carney to prove he is an uninhibited Canadian nationalist willing to challenge those who disparage our history and our (yes, flawed) heroes, all while encouraging a respectful dialogue about our past and future.
Still, Mr. Carney does appear to have turned the page on postnational Canada – an entity which, it must be said, only ever existed in our ex-PM’s imagination. In this respect Mr. Carney has more in common with Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, a stalwart defender of Canadian symbols and all things John A. Macdonald. They are both post-postnationalists.
Vive le Canada.