When the Harper government decided to follow through on an old Reform policy, to end multiculturalism in Canada, by starving advocacy groups of aid, we were not surprised.After all, why else would he name Jason Kenney the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. His corporate sponsored Canadian Taxpayers Federation, were always bellowing against giving money to immigrant groups.
But no one expected them to personally attack the volunteers, and place them under a gag order.
Immigrant service agencies were horrified when they got a government email last week banning them from discussing recent federal funding cuts that may kill some of them ... “I was in total shock,” Community Action Resource Centre executive director Marion Newrick said of the ministry order. “They thought they had the right to silence us. We are all community volunteers. CIC doesn’t even cover our time to go to these meetings.” ... The group reluctantly complied. Even so, it was asked to forward the minutes of the meeting to the department the next day.The Harperites are suggesting it was a mistake, but we all know that it was just another day in Harperland. Using fear to keep us all in line.
This is a logical follow-through to the G20 horrors, but of course most Canadians don't think the way the Harpies do, so we don't see these things coming until they slap us in the face.
ReplyDeleteWe are the perfect patsies, a basically non-violent open-minded nation of generous, caring people. Gag us, lock us up, beat us until we become mindless brutes like the neocons. Oh yeah, good idea, Harpo, turn us into one of you.
What's next, Emily? Gag orders on bloggers? Could be.