Victor Krapnell remembers the unpleasant feeling he felt watching the protests of the freedom convoy take place in his hometown of Ottawa in February. The feeling came when he saw the red-and-white maple leaf on the flag of Canada protruding from the snow.
A resident of Victoria says seeing the image of the flag displayed in such a prominent place, in some cases together with Confederate flags and Nazi flags, evokes emotions, he says he usually never associates with the country’s most recognizable symbol.
“Somehow I was impressed that our beautiful flag was hijacked as their symbol of protest,” Krapnell said. “And I thought, ‘That’s not right.'”
Victor Krapnell wants the Canadian flag to continue to represent friendship and tolerance around the world. “Somehow I was impressed that our beautiful flag was hijacked as their symbol of protest,” he said. And I thought, “That’s not right.” (Michael McArthur / CBC)
With that in mind, the graphic designer created a sticker this spring with an image of a Canadian flag crushed by a tractor trailer, and the words “Canada take back your flag” surrounding the image. At the behest of his wife, in order not to slander all truck drivers, he added a misspelled Freedom Convoy logo to the truck.
Krapnell’s project to regain what he believes is the right meaning of the flag has sparked interest across the country. He says he has sent more than 1,600 stickers across the country.
“Our flag has always had a reputation in the world of friendliness, tolerance and acceptance, and it really hurt to see it damaged,” Krapnell said.
Crapnell designed these “take your flag” stickers because he wanted to do something to oppose the use of the Canadian flag by convoy protesters. He has sent more than 1,600 so far. (Submitted by Victor Krapnell)
As Canada Day approached, some protest groups in February promised to return to Ottawa, prompting some to speak of the convoy protesters, using the flag as a preferred symbol of protest.
Crapnell and others say it’s a symbol of unity, not one meant to represent divisions over COVID-19 vaccines and pandemic policies.
“Now all of a sudden it’s been taken over by people who have a very extreme political agenda. They are desecrating, in my view, the flag by using it in some way as a false flag,” said Lloyd Axworthy, a former Liberal foreign secretary.
“As a result, it diminishes its meaning and significance for many Canadians.”
But members of the protest convoy, who see their actions as a patriotic defense of the freedoms Canada protects, say they have just as much right to wave the flag as any Canadian.
The debate comes as Ottawa police try to prevent another occupation as lawmakers receive panic buttons to deal with a growing number of threats, and a Quebec judge says he and his colleagues face threats after hearing cases involving convoy protests.
Different views on the symbolism of the flag
Jason Kovalishin of Take Action Canada, a group that opposes vaccine mandates and restrictions on COVID, is traveling from Hamilton, Ont., To Ottawa this weekend. He says the flag will be as prominent as it was during previous protests.
“We must all be united under the flag,” he said. “From my point of view, the flag is more important now because it represents patriotism and freedom.
Kovalishin said that when he drove and saw a car with a Canadian flag, he greeted her.
“Usually I wave at them and they smile and know why I’m waving at them because they get it too [the flag] it represents our collective rights and freedoms, which we stand for, “he said.
For Mohammad Faqih, on the other hand, seeing the flag flutter on people’s cars brings a moment of doubt and hesitation.
A protester waved a Canadian flag in front of parked vehicles on Rideau Street on the 15th day of the COVID-19 protest, which escalated into a wider anti-government protest in Ottawa on February 11. Protesters adopted the Canadian flag as one of their symbols, angering some Canadians who believe it should not be co-opted for such political purposes. (Justin Tang / Canadian Press)
“You always wonder now when you see the flag, ‘Who’s the guy in that truck?’ Who is that person in that car?” said Fakih, a Lebanese immigrant to Canada and CEO of Paramount Fine Foods.
“Is a true Canadian patriot either someone who actually has a different mindset or ideas or someone who is willing to occupy our capital?”
In Fakih’s office, a large maple leaf hangs on a pole next to his desk. He says it represents an important symbol of inclusion, especially for people who came to Canada from other countries seeking a better life. He says he senses the flag and his connection to the protesters sends the wrong message.
“We need to send a message that the flag will always remain a symbol of freedom, a symbol of diversity and the inclusion of an open, great country that welcomes people like me, not just welcomes them, but celebrates them,” Fakih said.
He encourages Canadians to buy and display flags to recapture what he sees as the true spirit of the symbol. He placed a flag on his own car and posted an image of it as a call to action on social media.
Get your maple leaf flag before July 1st. Show it in a prominent place outside your home. Put it in a window. Install it on your car. Pick it up on the lake or on the shore. Let’s see more and more flags every day – a day of Canada to remember! pic.twitter.com/ABdme5LBSm< /a>
– @ mohamadfakih8
“The flag has always been political”
The Canadian flag was a source of controversy long before the Freedom Convoy began using it. It is also a painful symbol for many local people.
“The flag cannot be separated from the colonization, the violence, the genocide that indigenous peoples have experienced,” said Niigaan Sinclair, who is Anishinaabe and a professor of indigenous studies at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg.
“Not only does the flag represent maple syrup sweetness to many Canadians, but to indigenous peoples, the flag represents a genocide that is still ongoing.”
He says Canadians began to understand this last year, when flags were lowered to honor children who died while attending dormitories.
The Forrest Pass flag expert from Library and Archives Canada says various groups have often used the flag and maple leaf as a symbol to give legitimacy to their movements. The controversy over different interpretations of the flag’s significance is not new, he said. (Mathieu Therio / CBC)
Forrest Pass, an expert in the study of flags known as a vexillologist and curator at Library and Archives Canada, said the debate was fierce before the adoption of the maple leaf in 1965.
He pitted the Conservatives, who wanted to keep the red flag, against the Liberals and the New Democrats, who wanted to accept the maple leaf.
From the 1995 referendum to the flying of the flag in 1998 — when Bloc Quebecois MPs criticized the number of Canadian flags at the Olympics — the meaning of the maple leaf has always changed, he says.
“The flag has always been political, and that’s something Canadians need to remember as we talk about the more controversial uses of the flag today,” Pass said.
While protests in Ottawa involved a number of different groups, many with different goals, Pass says that key political symbols such as the flag can often be used to legitimize extreme beliefs.
WATCH | Here’s how Ottawa is preparing for potential Canada Day protests:
Ottawa is preparing for protests to coincide with Canada Day
The mayor and Ottawa police say they are prepared for any planned protests around Canada Day, but business owners and residents say they are preparing after the break in February.
He says there may have been a practical purpose behind adopting the flag: as a protective shield.
“I think they bargained with the idea that being arrested while flying a Canadian flag would look bad before they launched TV cameras,” Pass said.
He says the kind of flag-waving seen at protests in Canada today is heavily influenced by the US, which has a long history of using the flag as a patriotic symbol.
“It’s a lot like an American patriotic demonstration, and it’s a relatively recent development in Canada,” Pass said.
Mohammad Fakih says he recognizes there are many different groups within the protests, but says he hopes they don’t crowd out Canada Day celebrations.
“Diversity and inclusion are part of our Canadian dream and democracy,” he said. “If you’re not happy with the prime minister, if you’re not happy with the policy, then vote. Go through the democratic process.”
In Victoria, Victor Krapnell hopes the Canadian flag will be displayed across the country this weekend.
“I look forward to seeing the positive flags outweigh the negative ones,” he said.
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