NDP leader Jagmit Singh says he still feels safe knocking on Canada’s doors, despite protesters shouting racist insults and threats at recent Liberal and NDP events. But he is worried about growing divisions in the country.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau cancels plans to attend Liberal Fund dinner in Surrey, British Columbia., this week, citing security concerns after a large group of protesters were heard shouting racist comments against South Asian volunteers.
The incident came just weeks later Singh says he was verbally harassed at a campaign stop in Peterborough, Ont.
Sigh spoke with guest host As It Happens David Gray about what he sees as a worrying trend in Canada – and why there is still hope. Here is part of their conversation.
What does your experience at Peterborough – and now the threats in this liberal Surrey fundraising campaign – tell you about the current state of Canadian politics?
I’m in the community very often, I meet people, I walk the streets, I talk to people and a lot of people come and talk to you about the things they think are happening, the things we do to help them with dental care. and pharmacy. I have people who are concerned and worried about what is happening at the federal level.
So it’s still very healthy in my opinion. But these two incidents that you mentioned – Peterborough with me and what happened in Surrey – are examples of some worrying trends.
I feel that in both circumstances these are people who are from [Ottawa] convoy something like that and doesn’t want to take part in a conversation, [and] i just want to create interference. This is worrying because I feel that it poses threats to my staff and my team that I am worried about.
I don’t worry about myself. I dealt with worse scenarios – more intense, more violent – in my life before politics. But I’m worried about how this will also discourage new people, young people, who will come forward in politics, thinking, ‘This is not life for me. I don’t want to engage in that kind of aggression. “
WATCH Justin Trudeau talks about the rebellious crowd and its impact on freedom of speech:
Trudeau says no one should be intimidated into supporting a political party
The prime minister commented on protesters shouting racist insults at an event he was forced to cancel.
You said that your experience at Peterborough would be one of your worst experiences. What do you mean? What happened?
I would say the worst experience for me politically, but not the worst experience of my life.
What happened at that moment was that these were not people who wanted to chat or have a conversation. [They were] aggressive, cursing, and someone shouted, “I hope you die.” And it is this type of intensity and anger, not a desire to really want to get involved.
I even asked someone, you know, “What are you trying to say? Is that the way you want to go?” And it was just a lot of shouting and shouting.
For me, this is not dialogue, it is not a healthy way to cause anxiety. People should get angry if there is a decision that they think hurts the family or their community … but when it gets to the point where they just shout words about hurting or creating discord or threats of violence or aggression of that nature This is not healthy for everyone.
Who or what feeds this behavior?
In Peterborough, I can say very clearly that there were signs in support of the convoy. So this is the kind of convoy of people who have no real intention of providing constructive feedback or a desire to make a point that will change policy. They simply express broad, unrelated anger.
What I know is happening apart from that in Canada is a real concern about the cost of living and affordability. And as this increases, people will become increasingly frustrated and angry when they see billionaires making huge profits, oil and gas companies making record profits, while Canadians feel as if they have been dug up by pumps. This type of injustice will lead to real frustration and anger.
A video posted on social media showed protesters shouting at Singh and following him to a vehicle after a campaign in Peterborough, Ont. (Freedom through unity – Peterborough / Kavarta / Facebook)
I appreciate the points you make. But I don’t want to lose the topic of what or who is causing some of the violence and anger you see. After Peterborough, you said that there is “a responsibility that lies with politicians who deliberately incite these divisions or deliberately spread misinformation.” Can you clarify?
This is something I think we can approach. A similar problem [is] when we see hatred online and how this online hatred can radicalize people. And the results are very dangerous. There may be violence. There may be death. And we have seen this in cases where online hatred radicalizes people to commit acts of violence against marginalized communities such as Muslims in Canada.
In the same way, the people in the convoy really base their anger and frustration on a lot of conspiracy theories, a lot of misinformation. And there is a clear responsibility on the part of political parties and leaders not to incite this type of misinformation or to incite this type of division.
When you talk about politicians who incite this kind of anger in Canada, who are you talking about?
We have seen conservatives brazenly embrace the convoy in Ottawa. And the convoy in Ottawa was very clear in its intentions … They were determined to undermine and disrupt our very democracy.
So politicians, conservatives and others who have supported this type of group are encouraging groups that are creating an atmosphere of violence and division that is unhealthy and aims to disrupt our democracy. And this is absolutely, unequivocally wrong.
Let me return to the point you said earlier. I know you’re back in the campaign. You are campaigning for the Ontario NDP, calling for action on accessibility. Is it really possible to tackle violence and racism by making it easier for people to pay for food and gas?
I feel, yes.
A climate that allows people to be divided is one in which people are already struggling and feeling frustrated. And then it’s easy to find a scapegoat and say that the reason you can’t find a good enough job to buy groceries, or the reason living costs go up, is because of all these new immigrants like a dog whistle dispute that would spur division.
When there is more dissatisfaction, when there is less prosperity and there are fewer opportunities for ordinary people, when there is more inequality – all these things are good ground for someone to come and use this frustration and use it in a way that creates more divisions and pitting people against each other instead of actually isolating real problems, inequality driven by more wealth concentrated in fewer hands, [and] corporate greed. This is where we need to put our anger … into creating policies that will actually lift people up, [like] more universal social programs.
This is a really important tool for recognizing the climate of inequality, and the frustration that comes from not being able to live a good life are absolute conditions that allow more division to grow.
Written by Sheena Goodyear. Interview produced by Kevin Robertson. Questions and answers were edited for length and clarity.
Add Comment