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Our Governor General believes more domestic travel could draw Canadians together. Photograph by: Wayne Cuddington, Ottawa Citizen
Bruce Cheadle, Canadian Press OTTAWA — Michaelle Jean has a novel solution to Canada’s national identity question: domestic travel subsidies. Canada’s 27th Governor General is about to enter her second year in office after 12 months spent criss-crossing her adopted nation. “It was an incredible privilege to be able to discover this country,” Jean said in interview in advance of Wednesday’s one-year anniversary of her installation at Rideau Hall. Quebecers, said the Haitian-born Montrealer, “are sometimes very disconnected from the rest of Canada.” And residents of Winnipeg or Yellowknife or Halifax little realize how much their common concerns and desires mesh with those of Canadians in Chicoutimi or St. John’s or Victoria. “My dream would be to see that people here in Canada can actually in an affordable way travel as much as I did across this country. This is something we have to think about.” She’s married to filmmaker Daniel Lafond who was once immersed in Quebec separatist thought, yet she’s a pointed and passionate proponent of a united Canada. The former French citizen, who gave up her second passport only on the eve of her installation as governor general last Sept. 27, chides Quebecers for their fixation with Europe. A visible-minority immigrant who endured racist taunts as a child in rough-and-tumble Thetford Mines, Que., Jean speaks of social integration as a shared responsibility. She suggests sovereigntists spend too much time focusing on Europe and examining what makes them different from other Canadians, rather than recognizing the “common objectives that we have and that we must share in the actual country we live in. “One can dream of another situation,” said Jean, speaking in French. “But I believe that reality requires us to look at what is actually in our interest, which is to pool our efforts, pool our strengths, to build a common front on certain issues that are as important in Quebec as in British Columbia or elsewhere.” Her take on Canada’s racial, linguistic and religious mosaic follows the same argument. Diversity, says Jean, has become a “fundamental value” in Canada. “But I find that the time has probably come for us to realize what we have in common. Because living together and being part of a country, being part of a nation, means being able to project ourselves and relate to common values, to certain principles, to our institutions also. “You wouldn’t want to destroy something that you feel you’re connected to,” Jean adds. Jean fervently believes that dialogue, travel experience and hands-on understanding can knit disparate Canadians together. She’ll tell you so at great length, finishing sentences in French that she began in English. She believes she is the living embodiment of that dialogue, although the Governor General is coy when asked if she’ll follow Clarkson’s lead and write a memoir of her time at Rideau Hall following her five-year appointment. “The idea of keeping a journal is not because I foresee writing a book about this experience,” Jean responds when asked if she’s chronicling her life. “But I think I am in a position where I am also part of history . . . . That is very important. “The reaction around my appointment said a lot,” adds Jean, dead serious. “People saw something about this country, about the opportunities in this country, the possibilities, the openness.” © Canadian Press 2006 Email From the Governor GeneralNovember 20, 2006 Dear Ms. St. John, On behalf of Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaëlle Jean, I am responding to your e-mail. Thank you for informing Her Excellency of your tourism initiative, designed to encourage Canadians to travel more extensively at home and explore all that this vast country and its citizens have to offer. As you know, the Governor General has an abiding interest in breaking down the solitudes that exist in our society and in finding ways to forge better relationships between individuals, communities, and regions across Canada. The commitment you have made to help create greater harmony, cultural understanding and cooperation through the Canadian Unity Travel Club is commendable and truly inspiring. While the Governor General appreciates being informed of your project, neither she nor her office can provide an endorsement for a commercial venture or activity. Her Excellency sends her best regards and wishes you well in your efforts to help more Canadians share their culture, geography and hospitality from coast to coast to coast. Yours sincerely, INFO Register Now |
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