As Canadians we’re having all sorts of feelings about the school shooting in Texas and we need to unpack that.
God...what can be said right now that hasn't already been said?
Because yes, we're gutted about what happened in America, but, if we're being completely honest, we also feel another emotion:
Anger.
For a country that once declared war and invaded a sovereign nation because of "weapons of mass destruction," you would think that they would be equally concerned about the weapons of mass destruction legally sold and distributed within their own country.
Anger that despite evidence and common sense, America keeps doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results – it's inhumane.
Let’s be honest, how many of us have watched America experience mass shootings — fuck even just school shootings — one after the other and thought, “get your shit together, America! No one deserves this! Change things! Demand better! You could prevent this!!
These types of mass shootings are the results of leaders continuously choosing not to create better policies and failing to create a comprehensive social safety net.
It's ridiculous that a democratic country with that much wealth and access to resources has continued to fail its people time and time again.
Government should work for the people - one of our favourite examples is New Zealand.
In 2019, New Zealand (which shares a colonial parent with Australia, USA and Canada) had a mass shooting occur in mosques where 50 people were killed.
Within 72 hours, lawmakers banned assault rifles and high-capacity magazines.
72 hours.
So it is possible for wealthy democratic nations to protect and support their people – and yet America continues to fail to do so.
And in a lot of ways, Canada fails too.
Our country continues to fail to meet the basic needs and uphold the human rights of all those living in Canada.
And yet, in moments of devastation like this, we notice a resurgence of the sentiment: 'Thank god we have it so much better in Canada.'
And this, dear reader, is The Great Canadian Fallacy.
Instead of comforting ourselves with this idea that we're better than America, we should look at The States as a cautionary tale, a Canadian spoiler alert, because if it can happen in America, it can (and likely has) happen here.
Here's the thing - it’s not worth it to wish someone wasn’t in power or that our leaders made different decisions after a tragedy occurs — to be honest — it's too fucking late at that point.
America didn't randomly wake up like this. It was a coordinated, insidious long game fueled by white supremacy and greed.
And, as a reminder, Canada, we have all of those ingredients in abundance up on our side of the border too.
While we support our American neighbours during this time and share their outrage, we must pair that with asking ourselves how to ensure that we don't end up like them— and taking action on it.
Right now, we have an opportunity to use the attention to demand better in this country.
Anything less than mobilizing to protect and support everyone living within Canada (especially our most marginalized and vulnerable communities) is us, once again, succumbing to this great Canadian fallacy of believing that everything is fine because things aren’t as bad as they are in America.
So, how do we act? By participating in our democracy. One of the ways to do this is by picking leaders that will champion progressive values.
We have to remember that even the most well-intending politician is working within a flawed system because our country was built on violence, dispossession of land, enslavement, and genocide. The very architecture of our systems is designed to exclude and harm marginalized peoples.
So these progressive leaders we elect will not be perfect. Still, we will have a better chance at getting them to act and address the needs of working-class folk and marginalized communities that are systemically fucked by design.
We must use our (mostly hard-earned) right to vote and engage in this flawed system.
Because the truth is, unless you are the ultra-rich, politics impacts every single component of your life, even if you aren't paying attention to it.
This also means, if we did engage with it, we could—if we dreamed it, if we demanded it, and if we choose to collectively mobilize around it —bring about a nation where everyone can thrive.
A country where everyone's basic needs are met instead of a country with so much systemic inequity leaving many of us struggling just to survive.
The system is imperfect, but change is possible. We'll be honest; it's a long game, and it is one we are committed to as the On Canada Project.
We invite you to join us, to show up as you are, as everyday people concerned about our nation's state and want better.
Let this moment of great tragedy down south result in action up north.
Canada, let's do more than offer our thoughts and prayers — let's come together to fight for the country we deserve.
We need to hold our leaders accountable and demand better for our country. Let's actively engage in our democracy and vote.
