EDITORIAL: Canadians don't want to cancel Canada Day

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As we prepare to mark Canada’s 154th birthday on Thursday, we can and should celebrate our successes, but can also acknowledge our faults and strive to make our country the best it can be for everyone going forward.

These are not mutually exclusive ideas.

We ought to be proud of Canada on Canada Day, our commitment to democracy, our history as a beacon of hope for millions of immigrants, who chose Canada for a better life, or who fled here for safety because of the oppression they faced at home.

We can take pride in our economic success based on the hard work of Canadians, that we are among the world’s most culturally diverse nations and that we live in peace together.

At the same time, we can recognize that we are not perfect, that we have made mistakes as a nation and that not everyone has shared equally in the Canadian dream.

We can reflect on the reality that we still have work to do to improve the quality of life for our First Nations, Metis and Inuit citizens, for racial minorities, for those with disabilities, for those suffering economically, physically and mentally from the pandemic.

But should we cancel Canada Day because we are not perfect?

Of course not, as a poll of 1,542 Canadians done by Leger for Postmedia found.

Conducted June 18-20 — in the wake of the first reports of hundreds of children buried in unmarked graves outside residential schools — 77% rejected cancelling Canada Day this year with only 14% in support, 10% undecided.

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Similarly, 68% of those surveyed view Canada’s history as something to celebrate, compared to only 23% who consider it something to be ashamed of, with 10% undecided.

Almost half — 46% — described Canada as one of the best countries in the world and another 13% said while we have issues to resolve from our past, Canada has a bright future.

That said, 41% said we still have much to do to make Canada the best place in the world to live, including 5% who said we have failed in that endeavour.

So no, we are not perfect, just as no country on earth is perfect.

But the greatness of Canada is that we will strive to be better.