- by Niigaan Sinclair
Newly minted Conservative leader Erin O’Toole’s platform is called "Take Back Canada."
It’s an aggressive, populist plea to patriotism, right out of the playbook of Donald Trump. During the federal leadership campaign, O’Toole even added the phrase "Join Our Fight" (the slogans might have appeared on red hats if not for the fact that it’s a Liberal colour).
The appeal seemed odd considering O’Toole’s political past.
When he ran for the federal Conservative leadership in 2017, he was known as a moderate, consensus-building option — and certainly more centrist than Andrew Scheer and Maxime Bernier.
Back then, O’Toole shied away from hard-line, social conservative positions on abortion, LGBTTQ+ rights, and women’s rights which, in the end, cost him support.
So, in this year’s federal contest, O’Toole tried a different approach, mustering up all the right-wing bluster he could — vowing to battle "cancel culture," "a radical left agenda," and "stand up for free speech" — while appealing to tried and true Conservative positions like defunding the CBC, scrapping the carbon tax, and taking "a hard line on China."
He even played the anti-terrorist, xenophobic card, blaming protests against pipelines in Alberta on "foreign interests," promising to "end charitable funding for all groups accepting foreign funds and engaging in blockades and lawlessness."
O’Toole’s most savvy move though was to allow for social conservative beliefs to exist under his leadership without taking a solid stance on them.
Instead of taking hard stances, O’Toole called himself a "liberty-minded Conservative" who defends "rights" determined by the courts. In an interview with Maclean’s, he said he will "defend religious freedom and conscience rights and I can show that I’ll defend that just as strongly as I try to defend women’s rights and LGBT rights."
So, for likely the first time in history, the Conservative party is led by someone who is pro-choice (for the first trimester), marches in Pride parades, and has voted for transgender rights.
O’Toole even said during the campaign debate that the federal government should ensure that there is "no inherent areas of bias" — and specifically anti-Black racism — in the RCMP (but at the same time he could not define "systemic racism").
In fact, traditional social conservative positions are hard to find in O’Toole’s "Take Back Canada" plan.
But they’re there.
There’s pro-gun ownership, stronger immigration controls encouraging "privately sponsored as opposed to government-assisted" individuals, and a promise to use the notwithstanding clause to circumvent courts and impose mandatory minimum sentences.
So, while O’Toole’s progressive or social conservative self will eventually show through, one thing he has been remarkably consistent on is his beliefs on Indigenous peoples.
This is found in his use of the term "two founding peoples" in Canada throughout his platform (which he also said in French during his victory speech).
First Nations, Inuit, and Métis are footnotes to the great Canadian story O’Toole writes.
While O’Toole does say he "supports reconciliation" in his platform, his interest in Indigenous communities are solely economic. He even calls his plan "Igniting the Indigenous Economy."
Wait until he finds out there are over 650 different economies.
While he says he will solve land claims, provide drinking water and "value and respect the nation-to-nation" relationship (these aren’t promises by the way: that’s called law), O’Toole’s platform echoes his past support of failed Harper initiatives that control Indigenous communities like the First Nations Financial Transparency Act (which O’Toole promised in 2017 to re-install) and promises to transition First Nations governments into tax-delivering, resource management, and pro-Canadian entities.
O’Toole’s plan is standard Conservative fare: turning Indigenous communities into cogs for Canada’s resource-consuming, export-based, anti-Indigenous-rights economy.
Anyone who challenges this by blocking or marching on a highway or train line will face the wrath of O’Toole’s vowed "Freedom of Movement" law that he promises will "prevent radicals from shutting down the economy and preventing people from living in fear."
This is an odd use of the courts, who tend to favour treaty and Indigenous rights due to Canada’s brutal history of violence and genocide — but O’Toole doesn’t seem too concerned about court decisions here (so much for being a "liberty-minded Conservative").
O’Toole promises some other things, like land-based programming for those suffering from addictions, but one wonders where the land will be since it will be used for oil, gas, and mining.
Someone should tell him land-based programming needs to centre on the land — something land protectors tell us during marches and occupations.
Oh yeah, we won’t have to worry about them: O’Toole will put them in prison.
Suddenly, O’Toole’s promise to "Take Back Canada" makes sense.
He’s taking it from Indigenous peoples.
Nothing new about that.
It’s the same-old, consistent Canadian message, regardless of who is in charge.
Niigaan Sinclair is Anishinaabe and is a columnist at the Winnipeg Free Press. This article was first published August 25, 2020 in the Winnipeg Free Press, and is published here with the generous permission of the author.
