The Current State of Canadian Morality

Reflections on moral issues in foreign and domestic spheres

As innocent people in Rafah burn alive in tents and survivors hold up the charred remains of their children for the world to see, I get out of bed and I walk to work. It’s raining again in Vancouver, cars splashing through puddles and birds shaking raindrops from their feathers. Cold water fills the branches of the evergreens and drowns the flowerbeds, and I think about fire.

Lately I’ve been feeling a bit depressed about Canada. I currently work at the top floor of my workplace, which has a glass atrium that affords a beautiful view of Vancouver. Purple mountains rise and fall above a city of blue-green glass, and the city blooms with evergreens against an ocean dotted with freighters. When it is raining, soft mist cloaks the view in a thin haze of grey. On less busy days, I look down on the city and watch as rain flecks the windows. I have affection for this city, and want to be proud of being Canadian. But lately I struggle to speak of my country as positively as I once did.

Photo by Lise Savard on Unsplash

Vancouver is less peaceful than it seems from above. The hospital is currently in Surge 3, meaning the need for medical services is greater than the hospital’s available beds. I received an email the other day announcing that yet another nonprofit organization supporting vulnerable people on the Downtown Eastside has stopped taking on new referrals, as they are no longer able to keep up with the huge demand.

Outside, Free Palestine protests grow. In the early days after October 7, many of activist posters plastered on lampposts were torn down and discarded. But now, support for the people of Gaza has noticeably grown. The posters are now wrapped in strong, clear tape, and they begin to appear in the windows of people’s homes, where they can’t be torn down. From these visual cues, one can witness the growing awareness of the genocide in Gaza, and the understanding that there is something wrong with the way the West has been depicting this war.

Much has been said about America’s complicit role in the destruction of Gaza. But Canada, though we too have failed to act as moral leaders during this time, often escapes a similar critical eye. We too have been involved in the suspension of funds to UNRWA, arms exports to Israel even as the death toll increased, maintenance of the Canada-Israel Strategic Partnership despite recorded human rights violations dating back to the 40s, and presence of Canadian Special forces in Israel. We have cowardly abstained from voting in favour of Palestine with international tribunals when it was needed most; we have failed to recognize them as a country and have participated in actions that contributed to the loss of many lives.

Photo by Hermes Rivera on Unsplash

Canada has always represented itself as a kind and peaceful place. For much of my life, I thought it was. There are many things that I continue to be grateful about, even as my pessimism grows, but even outside of this horrifying situation in Gaza, I lately have been questioning Canada’s ability to cling to this representation as a kind and moral country. Even outside of foreign policy, our federal government has had a long history of being embroiled in major ethical issues within our domestic sphere. 

On the surface, Canada is obsessed with kind, respectful language. Our politicians constantly recite their commitment to equity and diversity. It is normal for officials to display rainbow flags or display their pronouns on pins. But like with any political entity, the government’s use of language is often used to manipulatively cloak our problems. They mandate land acknowledgments but leave indigenous reservations with dirty drinking water. They boast of free health care but can’t support our overwhelmed, understaffed health care system. They assert their love of immigrants but provide inadequate resources for them. 

From my perspective, much of this has become a moral concern. On paper it is just policy. In reality, people suffer. This is particularly the case when it comes to housing, which is currently in an abysmal state.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, not a particularly controversial social theory, posits that in order for human beings to thrive and live dignified, comfortable lives, they must first have their basic needs met before psychological or self-actualization needs can even start to be addressed. This means physiological and safety needs–such as warmth, rest, and security–must be accessible before a person can even begin caring for their mental or spiritual health. What are homes, if not places that provide those needs? And what does it mean that Canada—which defines itself as a free, democratic country that is kind and respectful—is actually a country that cannot even provide for the most basic needs of Maslow’s hierarchy?

I do not claim to be a housing expert. But we have had experts working in our government for years. They certainly were able to predict that, by allowing property to become such an expensive asset, that our country would someday end up in the quandary we are now in. Younger generations are literally unable to buy and remain in rentals, pricing out lower income people who may eventually be pushed into homelessness. Our administrations made a choice here. They chose, and continue to choose, to prioritize the votes and funds of wealthier Canadian people rather than ensuring the country can provide a comfortable life for future generations. This is now a fact, no longer up for debate.

How can Canada really be considered a moral country if they have deliberately enacted policies that allow only the rich and those with intergenerational wealth to afford the basic comfort and dignity of a home? A home should not be considered a luxury. But in Canada, somehow, it has become so.

For my whole life, since I was old enough to understand what a “bubble” was, I have heard this common refrain about the Canadian housing market: the bubble will not burst. For as long as I remember, first-time home buyers have been cautioned not to wait before buying, because we cannot depend on that burst. The belief seems to be that prices can only go up, forever, for all eternity.

How can we continue to think that way? Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently shared that his Liberal government is planning to make housing more affordable without bringing down home prices for existing homeowners. Again, I do not claim to be a housing expert. But I cannot imagine how this will change anything. If younger generations are poorer on a whole than their predecessors, and cannot afford to buy from existing homeowners, and wages remain stagnant as prices continue to go up, and interest rates do not decrease, who does Trudeau think will actually be able to buy those properties at those existing prices? Will the properties be sold to the only entities that can afford it–large companies or the government? This sounds like a recipe for a dystopia. 

Photo by Harm van de Ven on Unsplash

While I understand current homeowners’ resistance to lowering the value of their properties, they will have no one to sell to if they do not. I must also put this question forward, to all Canadians as well as to our government: if prices never go down, what kind of country are we trying to build for the future? If the bubble never bursts, what are we telling younger folks and future generations of Canadians? Are we telling them that they do not deserve homes, or that their only options are to buy with major debt? Must they wait until they are retired themselves to have a home? If that is the case, what is actually the incentive for anyone to move to Canada, or stay here and build a life? Because motivation certainly doesn’t come from the wages or the weather.

At this point, the bubble must burst. It is required to burst. If it does not, Canada condemns younger generations–and those with mid- and low-incomes–to live without essential physiological and safety needs. If our governments cannot work to raise wages or lower housing prices, they are plainly asserting that it does not intend for Canada to have a future.

 The average citizen who has “followed the rules” of capitalism– work hard in order to pay their way–must be provided with prices they can realistically pay. If Canada is saying that this is too much to ask, then that is not a fair or moral position. Or, it is an indication that in Canada, capitalism has failed.

For centuries, America, and by association, Canada and the West, have been framed as moral leaders. Now, the are panicking about their loss of control, and arguing that the West deserves to lead the world purely on the basis that other countries may also behave immorally. But the West, too, suffers from major moral failures. The only way for Western countries to regain any reputation as moral countries is simply to start acting morally. I know this sounds silly and simplistic. But truths can often be simple. If Western governments are going to scream and cry about losing this authority, they must work to prove they deserve to hold onto it.

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Some writers, articles, and podcasts I’ve been reading/listening to on Substack:

• The Strauss-Howe Generational Theory & How 2024 Could Be The Biggest Year Of Our Lives by JB

• Why Lipstick on a Pig Outshines US Case Against Assange by George Hazim

• Conspiracies Do Happen by Norman Finkelstein

• Trudeau and his ministers take a road trip to oblivion by The Line Podcast

• Biden Lets Ukraine Strike Russia With US Weapons While Ukraine Attacks Russian Nuclear Defenses by Caitlin Johnstone

• The Global Censorship Movement: A Terrifying Trend by Michael Feldman