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This First Individual column is written by Zeahaa Rehman who labored for Elections Canada as an info officer. For extra details about CBCโs First Individual tales, please see the FAQ.ย
Iโve at all times liked the concept of democracy in motion, and have voted in each single election since I turned 18. This September, I labored with Elections Canada as an info officer. On election day, I greeted incoming voters, decided in the event that they had been on the appropriate polling tackle and helped depend votes after the polls closed.
Throughout the first hour of my shift, an aged white lady got here in with a walker. After skimming over her voter identification card, I knowledgeable her that, sadly, she was on the flawed polling tackle. The right tackle was subsequent door however their parking zone was full, she informed me. I apologized to her for the inconvenience; she thanked me profusely for guiding her to the correct place.
I used to be buoyed each at her dedication to her civic obligation in addition to her form phrases. Nevertheless, after she left, I could not assist however ponder whether โ regardless of our nice interplay โshe was one of many individuals who hate individuals like me.
Clearly, Iโm properly conscious that itโs unhealthy to mistrust individuals when Iโve no outward motive to take action. However Iโm a visibly Muslim, South Asian lady, and likewise properly conscious of the rising number of police-reported hate crimes all through Canada โ just like the mass homicide of a Muslim household in London, Ont., this summer season โ and the rhetoric that allows it.
Whereas it may be tempting to dismiss that as excessive behaviour from a choose few, elections, just like the latest outcomes of the 2021 Canadian federal election, give us numerical proof of the rise of right-wing politics and hateful rhetoric all through Canada. This proof, in flip, serves as a reminder that many individuals in my neighborhood hate individuals like me a lot that they need to elect officers whoโve demonstrated comparable hatred.
After I helped depend polls throughout election night time, after having interacted with quite a few voters all through the day, it was jarring to comprehend that lots of the individuals who had seemingly been good to me all through the day had chosen to vote for the Conservative Celebration, whose chiefโs slogan was the xenophobic phrase: โTake Canada Againโ and whose former chief Stephen Harper sought to ban niqabs and implement a barbaric practices hotline when he was prime minister. In reality, nearly six million Canadians voted for the Conservative Celebration this past election and greater than six million within the 2019 federal election. Although the Liberal get together gained extra ridings in each elections, the Conservatives obtained extra general votes each instances.
A few of the individuals I had interacted with had voted for the far proper Individualsโs Celebration of Canada, whose chief, Maxime Bernier, has proposed to end multiculturalism, scale back the variety of immigrants and refugees Canada receives, and fosters hate-speech under the guise of free speech as a part of his get togetherโs platform. The PPC obtained more than 840,000 votes in the 2021 federal election. That is greater than double the variety of votes they obtained within the 2019 federal election, and it is as a result of these insurance policies resonate with not less than some Canadians.
I do know that many individuals all over the world hate me due to my faith, my ethnicity, my immigrant standing, or a mixture of all three. After I come throughout this hate on-line, I can block and report theย sender, scroll previous it or swap to a different tab if I do not need to have interaction.
However the outcomes of those latest elections is tangible proof that this hatred shouldnโt be some faceless on-line entity. Theyโre actual individuals, a few of whom are my neighbours. A few of these individuals would possibly even belong to my neighborhood. In spite of everything, immigrants and racialized individuals make up a sizeable chunk of right-wing voters in addition to candidates. That is usually because of a mixture of their financial pursuits (e.g. much less taxes), conservative cultural values (e.g. anti-abortion or anti-LGBTย insurance policies), help for a selected politician, or their internalized self-hatred or views on colourism, which outweighs any oppression they might face by the hands of different voters or candidates of their get together.
I draw power from small victories โ just like the latest election of not one, however two South Asian mayors in Alberta, one among whom replaces Canadaโs first Muslim mayor.
However that power is usually sapped by large blows. The following provincial and municipal elections are a 12 months away and Iโm already petrified of what their outcomes would possibly reveal.
I hope I am flawed to be fearful. And I hope that my neighbours will get to know me and my neighborhood earlier than casting their ballots.ย
Do youโve a compelling private story that may convey understanding or assist others? We need to hear from you.ย Hereโs more info on how to pitch to us.
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