(first published in the Niagara Independent)

Last weekend saw both the federal NDP leadership convention take place, and the Juno awards. It was an amazing confluence of wokeness at both of these events, and both attracted a considerable amount of attention within Canada but also internationally because of their wokeness. Despite the fact that woke sensibilities seem to be reaching the end of their lifespan in many places around the world, this past weekend showed we still have a way to go in Canada to shake off our woke yoke. 

The Junos, celebrating Canadian artists’ accomplishments in the music industry, are basically Canada’s Grammy Awards. They are also famously known as the awards show that no one watches. However, as social media regales us all with clips of everything that goes on whether we want to see it or not, a number of elements of the Junos ended up being viewed by many Canadians. 

Some of the Juno highlights included the usual number of Canadian musical artists that most Canadians had never heard of.  But a few true stars showed up too, including Rush with a new drummer after the tragic passing of their long-time celebrated drummer Neil Peart several years ago. International music star Nellie Furtado was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and music icon Joni Mitchell was given a lifetime achievement award. Mitchell, introduced by Prime Minister Mark Carney, expressed how happy she was to be back in Canada after many years away, and how terrible things were in the U.S. The irony was not lost on many commentators who noted that while bemoaning the state of the U.S., Mitchell was nevertheless content to have lived there for the last six decades. All in all, the Junos were a happy woke-fest of Canadian artists, most of whom owed their existence to the Canadian taxpayer. 

If Canadians thought the Junos were woke, the NDP leadership convention broke all the records. Some commentators called them the Oppression Olympics, where attendees competed for and fought over who was the worst off. While people have been accused for some time of “playing the racism or sexism card,” people attending this convention who could lay claim to some type of perceived disadvantage were actually given physical “equity” cards. These colour-coded cards were awarded to people of colour or ethnicity, the disabled, gender identity, indigenous and LGBTQ+. The intention was that people with these cards got to speak at the microphones before those who didn’t have cards to supposedly ensure that marginalized voices would be heard first. 

One of the more ridiculous outcomes of this equity card system was that people continually argued over whose card took priority, if a race card superseded a gender card, etc. Arguments over the relative value of the various equity cards took up a fair bit of time during the convention, taking away from discussing the real issues of concern to Canadians such as affordability, inflation, unemployment and crime, among others. There was also considerable discussion of pronouns, whose pronouns were being respected or not, with the chair of the meeting at one point scolding attendees for misgendering themself who identified as “non-binary.” Some of the online comments of people observing this spectacle commented on how they thought the goings-on had to be satire from a comedy show, not an actual political convention. 

Some of the leadership candidates’ speeches were particularly notable. One example was that of Rob Ashton, a B.C. union leader, who gave an over-the-top, unhinged rant which concluded with the slogan “Eat the Rich!” The eventual winner of the leadership, Avi Lewis, comes from a long line of NDP pedigree with his grandfather, David Lewis, being one of the key architects of the NDP in 1961. His father, Stephen Lewis, was leader of the Ontario NDP in the 1970s and Canadian Ambassador to the UN in the 1980s. 

Lewis’s acceptance speech after winning the leadership was all about how he would promote government ownership over most aspects of our economy, and that was the answer to so many of Canada’s problems today. It was old-timey socialism, which turned out to be very popular with the NDP convention crowd. Perhaps the greatest irony was, after all of the “equity cards”, focus on gender, race and other identity characteristics, the NDP elected a white male as leader. 

With Lewis as NDP leader, the question going forward is whether that socialism bent will resonate with many Canadians outside of the NDP core. One of the key reasons the Liberals won a minority government in the last federal election was because of the collapse of the NDP under the disastrous leadership of Jagmeet Singh. Whether NDP fortunes can be revived with a reversion to socialism remains to be seen. The NDP party in Canada used to be the party of working people, but its recent leanings have been more ideological, which has driven many working Canadians away. Lewis appears to be rolling the dice, believing that can be reversed. 

So that was our weekend woke-fest. The Juno awards were a harmless woke exercise, much as it is every year. The NDP convention, less so, as some of these folks could well end up in future Canadian Parliaments. Lewis does not currently hold a seat in Parliament and has said he is in no particular hurry to obtain one. For the next few months, he plans a nationwide tour to connect with voters prior to seeking a seat in a by-election. As a result, it could be some time before Canadians get an idea of what the new NDP leader represents and how he may influence our future.

Catherine Swift

Catherine Swift is President of the Coalition of Concerned Manufacturers & Businesses of Canada (CCMBC). She was previously President of Working Canadians from 2015-2021 & President & CEO of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) from 1995-2014. She was Chief Economist of the CFIB from 1987-1995, Senior Economist with TD Bank from 1983-1987 & held several positions with the federal government from 1976-1983.

She has published numerous articles in journals, magazines & other media on issues such as free trade, finance, entrepreneurship & women business owners. Ms. Swift is a past President of the Empire Club of Canada, a former Director of the CD Howe Institute, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, SOS Children’s Villages, past President of the International Small Business Congress and current Director of the Fraser Institute. She was cited in 2003 & 2012 as one of the most powerful women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network & is a recipient of the Queen’s Silver & Gold Jubilee medals.

She has an Honours BA and MA in Economics.

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