Last week the world witnessed the best and worst of humanity.
There was the moving big step of reconciliation between Cuba and the United States to push past more than a half century of outright hostility and isolation. The presidents of both nations even sat together to watch a baseball game. They even joined in a wave.
And then there was the horrific slaughter in Brussels of 31 innocent people, along with more than 230 others wounded, from an attack by the Islamic State.
For Canadians, we are once again forced to look at our own humanity, to put it in greater perspective, to seek meaningful ways to adapt and redouble our commitment to be on the better side of global humanity. The greater goal is always to defend what is right and just, not only ourselves but for every decent soul in every corner of the world.
It's easy to debate in such circumstances military and foreign policy decisions made by our leaders in Ottawa. Those have already been made, and rightly or wrongly, it does not alter who we really are. That must never change.
There are calls across the country and throughout the western world to increase domestic security to unprecedented levels, including those from hardliners south of the border, whose fears have been at high alert since 9/11. There is also increased suspicion cast on all citizens from the Middle East, against those who still reside there as well as the tens of thousands who have come over the past century to the safety of North America, including Canada.
They came and still come because millions before them heard Canada is a special multicultural nation created and propelled by sacred values that define freedom, respect for cultural differences and a commitment to social justice. Canada is also known around the world as a land of peace, a non-violent society where anyone from anywhere can walk with pride of who they are and who they want to become through its cherished principles of diversity and tolerance.
This too can never change. Canadians can take a bunker mentality in response to the horror in Brussels but to do that would surrender to who we are to the Islamic State. No, instead we must continue to embrace the practice of welcoming those in the world who want to live in our country to find and share our set of values. It's a proven principle that we can only keep what we have by freely giving it away.
Earlier this month Innisfailians held a fundraiser at the legion for Syrian refugees. More than 100 citizens enthusiastically showed up. Soon the town will have three Syrian families who escaped the horrors of civil war in their own country to find peace and comfort in a land where peace, tolerance and compassion is paramount. They will live in harmony here, holding on to their Middle East customs and traditions while savouring the freedoms of a land envied by every other country on earth.
This is a time in our history where Canadians also have to be part of the international community that is committed to defeat the enemy of peace. Canada has always stepped up to the plate for that, and should continue to do so.
More importantly, it's a time to seek inspiration from Winston Churchill when he delivered his We Shall Fight on the Beaches speech in 1940 in response to the evil ambitions of Nazi Germany. The speech was underscored with the line, ‘We shall never surrender.”
Canada never will. The land will never give up on the principle of who each citizen is and what he or she can become.
Moreover, we will always defend our God given right to be even more.
