MAGA meets CRT

I consider it a blessing to have eaten fish 'n chips twice--that's right, not just once, but twice--while sitting on a dock right there along the water in Victoria, British Columbia. Twice. Once would have been memorable, but twice seems almost sacramental.

But then Victoria B.C., has to rank as one of the most warm-hearted places to visit on the entire continent. Because it's the provincial capital, Victoria has all the proper vestiges of the government, including an ornately turreted Parliament building. These days, the city offers quaint shops and a plethora of world-class cuisines. Separated from the States by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, Victoria will be more than happy to show off its prim English architecture, as well as some of the oldest trees in the world.




But this year there's a cloud, an oppressive sky over Victoria and the entire country. Victoria's City Council voted, ten days ago, to alter its plans for "a virtual Canada Day broadcast." In its place, the City promises a wholly different production, guided by its own First Nations people.

"As First Nations mourn and in light of the challenging moment we are in as a Canadian Nation following the discovery of the remains of 215 children at a former Residential School, Council has decided to take the time to explore new possibilities, instead of the previously planned virtual Canada Day broadcast," or so Mayor Lisa Helps announced.

The entire country is reeling from revelations of 215 Indigenous children's remains discovered in unmarked graves on the grounds of Kamloops Indian Residential School, in Kamloops, B. C. Euro-Canada, its white residents, couldn't believe what the horrible news; First Nations Canada was hurt deeply, but not, however, surprised. They needed to read no news headlines; they knew.

Victoria City Council asserted that the City could lead its citizens by creating the opportunity "for thoughtful reflection of what it means to be Canadian in light of recent events and what we already know from our past."

I don't know that the U.S. of A. could be that reflective, or will be--not now, especially, when the political right has created a bugaboo out of what is called "Critical Race Theory (CRT)" and broadly heralded whatever it is they say CRT is as the absolute worst idea to come along since Karl Marx dreamed up communism.

For the life of me, I don't know what CRT is and, quite frankly, I think its definition says more about the politics of who's defining it than anything from a textbook. What is clear is godless socialist liberals are foisting it on our children, and proud flag-waving Americans (you know, 1/6) won't let that happen because lefties are, foresworn to destroy MAGA and, of course, America.

MAGA hates CRT, whatever it is, because they know this for sure that CRT makes sweet and innocent white children feel down-in-the-mouth about our history and reject the whole MAGA ideology. That's why our own state rep, Skyler Wheeler, and his Republican patriots, the ones in rose-colored glasses, passed HF 802 in the heat of their righteous passions. They want to make darned sure Iowa schools at all levels should never “teach, advocate, act upon, or promote divisive concepts” about race. It's very important, so the legislation explained, that no "individual should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress on account of that individual’s race or sex.”

Kamloops, you say, is a continent away. Victoria is far Pacific Northwest. We eat corn-fed beef and pork out here, not fish and chips. What on earth have all those dead Indian children have to do with us?

Okay. How about this?

Just so you know, that's "Canton S. D." as in the Canton just down the road, the place where, once upon a time, the city hosted the nation's only Indian insane asylum, a place called the Hiawatha Indian Insane Asylum, a boon to the city of Canton, an employer of significant size.

You may read some things about Hiawatha, if you feel so included. If you are, have a look here.

But keep a sharp lookout for CRT. It's evil. If you're not Indigenous, reading about the Hiawatha Insane Asylum may well lead to "discomfort, guilt, or anguish." We certainly wouldn't want that to happen, would we? That's why we made HF802.