Il y a quelque temps, j’ai eu le plaisir de visiter la très belle ville de Lethbridge, en Alberta. Vivre à Calgary pendant une couple d’années m’a fait aimer encore plus l’Alberta, et maintenant, je ne rate pas une seule occasion d’y retourner. Cette fois, j’y suis allée en partie pour participer à l’Assemblée générale annuelle du Parti libéral du Canada en Alberta. J’y ai bien sûr entendu les blagues habituelles du genre « Des libéraux? En Alberta?! ». Mais oui, il y a beaucoup de libéraux en Alberta, et parmi les plus énergiques et travaillants, avec ça. Et à en juger par ce que j’ai vu et entendu lors de mon séjour à Lethbridge, j’ajouterais que l’Alberta présente pour nous, libéraux, des possibilités qui ont tout pour nous enthousiasmer. Le moins qu’on puisse dire, c’est qu’on y trouve beaucoup de purs et durs libéraux. Des libéraux avec un « L » majuscule. Ce que je trouve si intéressant…et stimulant, c’est que beaucoup plus d’Albertains sont en fait des libéraux avec un « l » minuscule, c'est-à-dire des gens pragmatiques au plan économique, prudents au plan fiscal, épris de la justice sociale, soucieux de l’environnement et fiers de la place du Canada dans le monde. Ils sont des gens qui n’aiment pas les gouvernements qui gaspillent l’argent des contribuables ou qui refusent de leur rendre compte de ce qu’ils en font ou qui ont peur de la transparence, ou encore qui gouvernent selon une idéologie bornée, intransigeante et intolérante. Nous savons que beaucoup, mais vraiment beaucoup de Canadiens partagent ces mêmes valeurs et principes, et le défi qui nous attend (et l’occasion qui s’offre à nous) en Alberta consiste à amener toutes ces personnes à voter libéral. Nous avons beaucoup à faire pour persuader plus d’Albertains de transformer leurs opinions libérales en votes pour les libéraux (nous NE SOMMES PLUS le parti du Programme d’énergie national, bon sang!), mais nous savons aussi que nous pouvons accomplir beaucoup de choses quand nous nous serrons les coudes pour une cause en laquelle nous croyons.
Une des séances a accueilli les leaders de divers groupes confessionnels et était présidée par mon collègue John McKay. Ce qui m’a plu le plus, c’est d'abord de voir la foule que nous avons attirée et ensuite de constater qu’elle comptait bon nombre de jeunes libéraux. Permettez-moi de m’expliquer. Je ne pratique aucun culte et je suis pro-choix et favorable au mariage homosexuel. Néanmoins, je comprends très bien que d’autres SOIENT pratiquants et qu’ils puissent avoir des opinions fort différentes des miennes sur certains sujets. Pour moi, cela va de soi. J’accepte sans difficulté que les gens croient en ce qu’ils veulent et fassent ce qui leur plaît, tant qu'ils laissent leurs semblables choisir leurs croyances et leur style de vie et ne font de mal à personne. Mais trop souvent, nous rejetons les gens avec leurs idées, totalement et sans discernement, rien que parce que nous ne sommes pas d'accord avec eux sur certains points. Je trouve beaucoup de points en communs entre les principes libéraux et ceux de nombreux groupes religieux, comme aider les pauvres, construire des logements à prix abordable, responsabilité économique, protéger l’environnement, aider les pays étrangers qui en ont besoin. Nous devrions insister sur ce que nous avons en commun et qui nous rapproche plutôt que sur ce qui nous sépare. Je suis heureuse que les médias locaux aient fait ressortir ce point.
À Lethbridge, en plus de plusieurs autres séances, j’ai notamment eu la chance de souper avec le maire Robert Tarleck, une rencontre qui s’est avérée excellente, et j’ai aussi eu droit à une visite extraordinaire guidée par un homme formidable, M. Van Christou. Ainsi, j’ai eu le privilège et le plaisir de visiter un de nos joyau canadien, le jardin japonais « Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden ». L’endroit est saisissant. Ce qui m’a frappée et émerveillée, c’est de voir que la communauté nippo-canadienne, dont nous avons si mal traité les membres lors de la Deuxième Guerre mondiale, n’aient pas été aigris par cette injustice, mais qu’ils se soient serrés les coudes pour créer ce trésor, dont ils ont fait cadeau à la Ville de Lethbridge, à l'occasion de son centenaire, et au Canada. M. Christou, photographe accompli, a coproduit sur le jardin un magnifique livre de prestige qui trône fièrement sur un présentoir dans mon bureau.
Showing posts with label John McKay. Show all posts
Showing posts with label John McKay. Show all posts
10.6.10
This Great Country of Ours... Lethbridge
Alberta, April-May, 2010
I had the pleasure of visiting the great city of Lethbridge, Alberta a little while ago. Having lived in Calgary for a couple of years, I learned to love Alberta even more than I had before I’d moved there, and I welcome every chance to return. This time, my visit included participation in the AGM of the Liberal Party of Canada (Alberta). There are, of course, the regular jibes about "Liberals? In Alberta??" But yes there are, indeed, many Liberals in Alberta—a keen and hard-working bunch. And based on my time in Lethbridge, I can also say that there is real enthusiasm for Liberal opportunities in Alberta. There are many “capital L” Liberals, for sure. What I find so interesting—and challenging—is that there are so many more Albertans who are in fact small "l" liberal---economically pragmatic, fiscally prudent, promoters of social justice, environmentally conscious, and proud of Canada's place in the world. People who don’t like governments that waste taxpayer money, or which efuse accountability or transparency, or which govern based on strict, intolerant ideology. We know that many, many of us share those values and principles—our challenge (and opportunity) in Alberta is to get those good people to vote Liberal. We have much work to do, to persuade more Albertans to translate those small "l" liberal views into Liberal votes (we are NOT the NEP Party anymore, for goodness sake!) but we also know that we can accomplish a great deal when we pull together for a cause we believe in.
One of the sessions was with various leaders of different faith communities, led by my colleague John McKay. I was particularly pleased to see (1) a good crowd, and (ii) a good number of young Liberals participating. For context, let me explain… I am not religious. I am pro-choice, pro-same-sex marriage. For me, “moral” issues include, instead of religious tenets, things like hypocrisy and deceit. However, I completely respect that others ARE religious, and may have very different views than mine on certain issues. I have no problem with people believing in whatever they want, and indeed doing what they want, as long as they let others do and believe as they see fit—and as long as others don’t get hurt. But we too often dismiss people and their views in their entirety, simply because we disagree on some things. I find a great deal of commonality between Liberal views and many religious groups—concern for the poor, affordable housing, economic pragmatism, the environment, foreign aid. We should focus on those things we have in common, not those that divide us. I was pleased that the local media picked up on this in a nice way.
Other events in Lethbridge included an excellent meeting over dinner with Mayor Robert Tarleck, and an extraordinary tour from an extraordinary man, Van Christou. I had the privilege and the pleasure of having Mr. Christou give me a personal tour of a Canadian gem, the “Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden”. It is stunning. I was also struck by how wonderful it was that the Japanese Canadian community, whose members had been treated so badly during WWII, responded, not negatively, but by uniting to create this treasure as a Centennial gift to the city of Lethbridge, and Canada. Mr. Christou, an accomplished photographer, co-produced a beautiful coffee table book on the garden, a copy of which is now proudly displayed in my office.
I had the pleasure of visiting the great city of Lethbridge, Alberta a little while ago. Having lived in Calgary for a couple of years, I learned to love Alberta even more than I had before I’d moved there, and I welcome every chance to return. This time, my visit included participation in the AGM of the Liberal Party of Canada (Alberta). There are, of course, the regular jibes about "Liberals? In Alberta??" But yes there are, indeed, many Liberals in Alberta—a keen and hard-working bunch. And based on my time in Lethbridge, I can also say that there is real enthusiasm for Liberal opportunities in Alberta. There are many “capital L” Liberals, for sure. What I find so interesting—and challenging—is that there are so many more Albertans who are in fact small "l" liberal---economically pragmatic, fiscally prudent, promoters of social justice, environmentally conscious, and proud of Canada's place in the world. People who don’t like governments that waste taxpayer money, or which efuse accountability or transparency, or which govern based on strict, intolerant ideology. We know that many, many of us share those values and principles—our challenge (and opportunity) in Alberta is to get those good people to vote Liberal. We have much work to do, to persuade more Albertans to translate those small "l" liberal views into Liberal votes (we are NOT the NEP Party anymore, for goodness sake!) but we also know that we can accomplish a great deal when we pull together for a cause we believe in.
One of the sessions was with various leaders of different faith communities, led by my colleague John McKay. I was particularly pleased to see (1) a good crowd, and (ii) a good number of young Liberals participating. For context, let me explain… I am not religious. I am pro-choice, pro-same-sex marriage. For me, “moral” issues include, instead of religious tenets, things like hypocrisy and deceit. However, I completely respect that others ARE religious, and may have very different views than mine on certain issues. I have no problem with people believing in whatever they want, and indeed doing what they want, as long as they let others do and believe as they see fit—and as long as others don’t get hurt. But we too often dismiss people and their views in their entirety, simply because we disagree on some things. I find a great deal of commonality between Liberal views and many religious groups—concern for the poor, affordable housing, economic pragmatism, the environment, foreign aid. We should focus on those things we have in common, not those that divide us. I was pleased that the local media picked up on this in a nice way.
Other events in Lethbridge included an excellent meeting over dinner with Mayor Robert Tarleck, and an extraordinary tour from an extraordinary man, Van Christou. I had the privilege and the pleasure of having Mr. Christou give me a personal tour of a Canadian gem, the “Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden”. It is stunning. I was also struck by how wonderful it was that the Japanese Canadian community, whose members had been treated so badly during WWII, responded, not negatively, but by uniting to create this treasure as a Centennial gift to the city of Lethbridge, and Canada. Mr. Christou, an accomplished photographer, co-produced a beautiful coffee table book on the garden, a copy of which is now proudly displayed in my office.
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