Last week, while America was in hysteria over whether Donald Trump would have killed Harambe the Gorilla, Canada’s lawmakers were enmeshed in a debate over a similarly weighty issue: a proposed change to the English-language version of their national anthem.
On Wednesday, an overwhelming majority of Canadian MPs (279-79) voted in favor of neutralizing gender in the lyrics of “O Canada” by replacing the line “all thy sons command” with “all of us command,” before bursting into an impromptu rendition of the anthem (fortunately, no one was elbowed in the process).
A similar proposal was put forward in 2010, but rejected by Conservatives who then held the majority in Parliament.
Liberal MP Mauril Bélanger — a longtime advocate of the change who was diagnosed with Lou Gehrig’s disease last year — tabled the bill once again in December 2015.
In his defense of the proposed changes, he told Parliament on May 6: “On the eve of the 150th anniversary of our federation, it is important that one of our most recognized and appreciated national symbols reflect the progress made by our country in terms of gender equality.”
I was proud to vote for @Mauril_Belanger's bill to make O Canada gender neutral. It passed second reading tonight and now goes to committee.
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) June 2, 2016
According to Ottawa Citizen, there’s been a push by Liberals to move the bill forward quickly given Belanger’s deteriorating health — he can no longer speak and communicates with a voice generator programmed on his iPad — while Conservatives wanted more time to debate what they deemed an emotional issue, prompting accusations they were stifling a dying man’s bid.
Speaking to the House of Commons late on Tuesday, New Democrat MP Christine Moore said “We are in 2016. The Canadian population will understand why we want to make the change. It is not a big change, and there will not be a big difference in the national anthem, but the difference is significant for women all across Canada.”
Conservatives, on the other hand, worried that altering national symbols would belittle Canada’s rich tradition and history — with little concrete effects on equality.
“Some may be upset that the almighty beaver will not stop chopping down trees, so the National Symbol of Canada Act must be amended to swap out the beaver for an animal that is far less destructive,” said Tory MP Larry Maguire during a debate last month.
Erin O’Toole, a former minister, added: “We have a situation where, if we start parsing lines of songs, we are not showing respect for the tradition and the heritage we have inherited. This in no way suggests that sticking to a historic root of a song means that one is not in favor of equality.”
And the public? Well, it seems that in the case of cultural touchstones like the national anthem, history trumps gender neutrality. A recent poll found that two-thirds of Canadians don’t support the change.
omg let's change O Canada's lyrics to make it gender neutral and then lets take the maple leaf off the flag because it excludes other trees
— Brittney Fortier (@brittneyfortier) May 31, 2016
This anthem issue really infuriates me. Canada has been reduced to a living joke in only a few short months. All sense & reason are lost.
— Andrew Coates (@Brock_Tune) June 7, 2016
Canada's on the verge of a debt crisis but nah let's shift our focus on making the anthem more "gender neutral" #smh #priorities
— Brady Shepherd (@BradyShepherd87) May 31, 2016
O Canada has a long and complicated history. But it’s worth noting that its lyrics have already been amended several times over the years. In 1913, for example, the original line “True patriot love thou dost in us command” was changed to “True patriot love in all thy sons command,” likely to honor men fighting overseas during WWI, although there is no official explanation.
The battle is not over quite over yet, as the bill still faces legislative hurdles. It is headed for the House of Commons heritage committee for further study and will be voted on again in a third reading before passing to the Senate.
