After a hard-fought and close race, Canadians now have an elected Liberal government led by Mark Carney. While the Donald Trump tariffs have been the elephant in the room during the campaign, and will likely continue to dominate headlines, there are many other pressing issues facing our country that must be addressed head-on and covered by our media.
The trade war foisted on Canada has spurred an unprecedented level of patriotism among Canadians, eager to stand up for this country in the face of external bullying.
But not all the threats to Canada come from outside our borders.
Inside the country, we have seen huge challenges, particularly over the last 19 months, as countless instances of pro-Palestinian protesters have spread vile hate speech in our streets. Terrorist flags have been waved, residential neighbourhoods have been invaded, and more.
Worse yet, this atmosphere of hate has led to an unprecedented spike in antisemitic hate crimes, with Jewish schools being shot, Jews assaulted in broad daylight and synagogues firebombed. These issues are not Jewish issues, but Canadian issues.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators, though officially targeting Israel, have made their hostility to Canada plain for all to see: burning Canadian flags, booing the national anthem and calling our country a genocidal enterprise. These are not the views of the vast majority of Canadians.
Prime Minister Carney, in the English-language debate, spoke out against these hate mobs and vowed to take strong action to ensure the safety and security of all Canadians. He has promised to introduce legislation so there can be unimpeded access to places of worship and schools, frequent targets of these protesters, a step which provincial governments have refused to take.
The prime minister has also vowed to work with our intelligence services to ensure that terrorist entities operating inside Canada no longer pose a threat to our nation’s national security and to all people in Canada.
Last year, former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau formally banned Samidoun as a terrorist entity. Samidoun, with ties to the terror group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), has organized hateful demonstrations and its leader, Charlotte Kates, recently traveled to Lebanon to attend a memorial for Hassan Nasrallah, the former leader of Hezbollah (another banned terrorist group in Canada). Meanwhile, Kates husband, Khaled Barakat, was designated by the US Department of Treasury and the Government of Canada as leading fundraising and recruitment efforts to support the PFLP’s terrorist activity.
In spite of the existing bans on both PFLP and Hezbollah in Canada, the consequences for publicly glorifying these groups appear to be minimal. Protest flyers continue to feature terrorist imagery, showing that banning a terrorist group in Canada must come with real, concrete consequences for its glorifiers. Accordingly, to protect Canadians, our government must pass a reasonable law to ban the glorification of terrorism now.
During the campaign, the Liberal Party made clear that this government will not kowtow to the extremist mobs in our streets, and will continue to maintain close relations with our friend and ally, the State of Israel. These statements are important to show that Canadians can have disagreements over international affairs without resorting to hate, intimidation, or violence. At a time when loud and aggressive voices seek to dominate public discourse, it is vital that our leaders reaffirm a commitment to civility, democratic values, and principled diplomacy. Standing with Israel does not mean silencing dissent—it means refusing to allow our public squares to be hijacked by those who glorify terrorism and threaten social cohesion.
To truly protect Canadian values, Prime Minister Carney must ensure that these new and existing measures are not just symbolic, but actively enforced. The safety of all Canadians – regardless of faith or background – depends on upholding our laws and rejecting extremism. Now is the time for principled, courageous leadership that confronts hatred head-on and reaffirms the values that make this country strong.
