I wake up early this Canada Day morning, go for a swim the park rangers promised would be much colder than it was, then walk around the 100 wooded campsites of Notre Dame Provincial Park. Unlike our sad little site with nothing but the little backpacking tent from our honeymoon 26 years ago, these campers build a village of multiple tents, trailers, picnic-area canopies, stand-up showers, patio lanterns, solar chargers, dune buggies, bikes, and even a few anchored floatie rafts out on the lake.

There’s also a much more ostentatious display of Canadiana kitsch than I remember growing up. Is this simply the Dollorama effect of flags and flag-waving moose (see photo above!) being so much more affordable? Or are we louder and prouder in response to the threat of US annexation?

When I posted an angry blast at Americans Who Wear Canadian Flags, one person asked, “Why do you care about this so much?” I’ve been stuck on how to respond for a few weeks now.

I like to think the post clearly laid out the central arguments - don’t claim what’s not yours, don’t threaten to annex our country, our cultures are more different than you give credit, stealing our international good reputation is just another form of imperialism, etc. The reader's assertion that "I'm pretty anti-nationalist in general, which precludes me from being upset by someone else wearing my flag" is a statement of privilege, much like a white man like me proudly saying he's colour-blind. Only the person (or nation) benefitting from power and inequality can afford to pretend these things don't matter.

Maybe the question is, why now? After decades of witnessing Americans wearing Canadian flags and not saying anything, why get so riled up this time? But that answer is also in the first blog post - minor offences that could be tolerated or laughed at before take on new meaning when the US Government is threatening annexation.

So maybe the real question is, when did I become a staunch nationalist?  Me, who really would love to see an end to borders and divisions and inequality between nations? Me, who fully agrees with the reader that "us and them stuff is the root of a lot of problems" in both our countries. The answer is in part the same as above - the US threatens values and way of life that we Canadians treasure. Universal medical care, gun control, civil rights… so much more than a maple leaf flag and a great hockey team. American imperial agression requires a strong Elbows-Up stand, not an aquiesence to the Why Can't We Be Friends approach I would truly prefer to be able to continue.

Or maybe, when did we all become so loud and proud? I’ve spent the last 7 weeks in 5 provinces, and noticed the clear increase in Canadian pride and solidarity. More flags than ever before (especially today at our campground!) Prominent “Made in Canada” labels in grocery stores, with people checking labels before making decisions. The tourist info centre in Goobies (real name!) said they’re seeing 15% more Canadian tourists this year thanks to the continued determination to not support the US with our tourism dollars. It’s not just me - Canada has woken up, and we’re not laughing at American imperialism in any form any more.

So thank you, gentle reader, for your thoughtful question about why this matters to me. I truly wish I could still believe in the good will and mutually-beneficial cooperation between our countries that I grew up with, but Trump has deliberately (and, I fear, irrecovably, atleast for a long time) broken that trust. I wish I could dismiss the huffing and puffing of politicians through a belief in the enduring power of us good people (on both sides of the border), but I have seen the harm that Trump policies have already done in the US and globally, and it's my responsibility to use my limited voice and privilege to prevent or minimize that damage up here. 

Of course, part of the solution to get over this Us-and-Them energy is to get to know each other as people. Here’s a few photos from Canada Day today to reassure you that Canadiana can be lighthearted too.