Close Reading

I have to confess I don´t know much about the actual canadian politics. But this reaction of Mr. Trudreau was very impressive. As a german European I know we are together in this completely insane situation initalised by the pathetic performance of the Trump administration. But with Canada on our side, with a strong leader as Trudeau I´m optimistic that the european leaders will also unite and focus not on their differences but on the common interest to stop this destructive US Goverment from destroying the free western society.

I‘m German and European, and stand with Ukraine, Canada, Mexico. This Trump administration is mentally sick. Psychopaths.

Canadian multiculturalism has changed. It used to be you came here and became a Canadian... While still bringing in bits from where you came from. Now it's they come here and complain about Canada while bringing their whole package of where they came from for us to accept. I'm tierd of people assuming white Canadians are racist for feeling uncomfortable when their cities are being over populated with non English speaking people (and by the way... It's not just white Canadians feeling uncomfortable... So our media and politicians needs to stop making this a race war). When we allow this many of one group to come in and live together.. They have no insentive to integrate. Immigration 60 years ago was Europeans coming in... I remember my grandmother talking about how the Italians and Portuguese and Germans were coming over in large numbers and it was a shock to the system... But they at least learned the language and integrated. Why are we condeming Canadians for not wanting cultures today from coming here and putting their foreign culture above Canadian culture. I'm so sick of it. If you want to live in the way you did before you came here... The don't come here

It should be the Aboriginal and European-descended Canadians making the majority of the Canadian population. Not like it is now where white is almost a minority in places like Ontario. \nBut that’s just me, I’m an aboriginal (Crew) youth raised in a German family.

During the 1930's media in various countries made immigrants and asylum seekers out to be this horrible thing and demonised them. This came after a huge recession in 1923, the Wall Street crash, and the subsequent dramatic rise of far right parties in various countries, specifically Italy, then Germany and Spain. \nFast-forward to modern times. 2008 saw another global recession. Once again politics swung massively to the right with countries like Italy (once again), Hungary, Austria, Poland and Sweden, voting in right wing governments, France ending in a run off that narrowly defeated the far right, Belgium and Spain looking likely to be heading into heavily right wing governments at the next elections, whilst the US and UK governments both saw their politics swinging far further in that direction, especially the UK right now whilst led by an unelected leader who is demonising people in ways that would make Trump look soft. One of themajor rallying calls: immigration. The way media report on this becomes increasingly demeaning and hateful. During the 1930's much of the European media and even as far as the UK was ramping up the scorn against the ever increasing influx of Jewish immigrants coming from Germany. Even into 1944 there was a vast amount of demonisation of them seeking asylum, despite the knowledge by this point that there were horrific conditions in camps where extermination was becoming ever more apparent. The Nazi German government in 1936 passed laws that enabled them to revoke citizenship and stripped away laws on human rights. It would be great to say that these poor souls who were being demonised in their own country were accepted into nations who could see what was going on and who wanted to help, but that just wasn't the way it went. Media played out as it is now, leading to rejection and a greater number of deaths as a result of this. The way the UK government is currently working, it actually sounds like the maxi government of the mid 30's during the time of the Nürnberg laws. \n \nThe world feels far smaller now with double the amount of people and with things like social media playing a huge role in the lives of many. The ease of access to people around the world has made issues seem to stretch to far more countries now, whereas back then it was a time of empires. I get that there will be many here who support Trump, many who support Biden, there will be Brit's who support Sunak and the rather vicious words of Suella Braverman, whilst others will be more on the side of Starmer (I'm well aware of all the other parties but they don't stand to gain as much). There will be French people backing Macron, whilst others back Le Pen. We could go through each country all the way to the battle between Fujimori and Castillo in Perú, and the stories are much the same, but how will history judge us when people look back to this time? Will it be another occasion where we demonised those trying to escape the horror of the place they had the bad luck to be born in whilst we were luckier? \n\nI know there is hardship everywhere. I'm struggling more than most and I know I can't keep living this way. However, I don't want to be a part of history people look back at and say ‘if only they did something to help prevent this.’. I would rather be a part of history people look back upon and say; ‘that was a boring time period where nothing important happened’. It's already too late for that. Instead I try to remember that, though I was born into a family who never really wanted me, I was lucky enough to be born into a country that could support me during the hardest times. When you look at immigrants, remember that every one of us has immigrants in our family tree somewhere.

Interesting. Traveling through Europe, Canadians are considered Americans. The continent of America. So when I'd say I'm not American I'm canadian, they would look at me like ...ooookkkk?. \nIt would be like me saying, I'm not European I'm German or something.

I'm a German who travelled to many European cities and when I arrived in overhyped Vancouver I was surprised what an ugly desert of concrete it mostly was. The skyline contains around 90% same looking glass towers. Yes Gastown is nice, but it's only a small part of it.