Photo of the Vancouver Art Gallery by Duane Storey
Xenophobic ecologists in Canada?
My introduction to xenophobia in Canada occurred in the summer of 1992. The steps and lawn of the Vancouver Art Gallery were a waypoint for wanderers, street kids, and other counterculturalists in the years before the city became a sterile playground for the monied. I had struck up a conversation on the gallery’s grounds with a young man from northern B.C. who seemed standard fare for an eco-anarchist you might encounter in a public square. But then out of nowhere he began to complain about Japan “raping Canada’s forests”. His disgust compelled him to feel resentment upon seeing any Japanese in “his” British Columbia.
The memory of this encounter came back to me because of headlines about Québec Solidaire MNA Émilise Lessard-Therrien making a statement regarded by some in the Chinese community of Montreal as offensive. She represents the electoral district of Rouyn-Noranda–Témiscamingue and raised a reasonable concern about the future of her region. But her musings also veered off a bit into Trumpism with what sounded like rambling propaganda, which she later admitted was “clumsily worded”.
This is Not Donald Trump
Photo from Wikimedia Commons, by AndréLegault
The almost Trumpian words of Émilise Lessard-Therrien
Based solely on the limited understanding available through clippings from the anglophone press, I’ve gathered that this young politician was feeling understandably protective of arable land and fresh water in her neck of the woods. The controversial aspect? She reportedly perceived or imagined a threat of Chinese nationals scouting out land there. We can see why Émilise has been painted as a Sinophobe, especially when she put it this way:
“Between us, we call them predators, they are predators of agricultural land. And we see them, we feel them. And what I’m saying is that fallow land still has potential to be farmed again, but land that belongs to China may never feed Quebecers, and it’s important that we be concerned now.”
The larger context: the Communist Party of China
China—meaning the the Communist Party of China, or CPC—is buying arable land around the globe at an astonishing rate. Food security for the world’s most populous nation (although India is expected to surpass China by 2028) is assumed to be the primary reason. Presumably, this is what Émilise was getting at: a somewhat hostile foreign power plotting to own land in her region.
Since you and I don’t have anywhere near enough information about exactly what’s going on in Émilise Lessard-Therrien’s district, we probably shouldn’t reach hasty conclusions about racism based on her rookie comment. This is not anything approaching the significance of something like Donald Trump (a documented racist) saying of Mexicans “They’re rapists”. Apparently I’m not the only one who feels this way. Here’s a snippet of what Lise Ravary wrote in the Montreal Gazette:
…I’m pretty sure that criticizing the well-documented heavy-handed methods of the Chinese Communist Party to acquire land and businesses abroad has nothing to do with racism … Fighting racism is a sacred duty for all of mankind. But defining anything and everything as racist is wrong. It only weakens the cause of equality and respect for all.
But wait… is China a red herring?
A subsequent article in the Gazette came at the issue from an entirely different avenue. The immediate threat, according to the Union des producteurs agricoles (UPA), is locally-owned investment companies. According to UPA president Marcel Groleau,
The real estate and high finance sectors are not interested in agriculture… These stakeholders seek profits in the rapid increase in the price of agricultural land, to which they contribute through speculation. For future generations and for our food security, it is urgent to act.”
Couple this with a UPA spokesperson saying there’s no indication of massive land purchases by foreign investors, and we have to wonder how informed Émilise is about the issue she commented on. After all, it’s not like Quebec doesn’t have laws in place to hinder the acquisition of farmland by non-residents.
Demanding apologies
A spokesperson for the Progressive Chinese of Quebec has asked for an apology at minimum. But is an apology genuine if it comes at the behest of the wronged party? Is an apology meaningful if it ends up being issued for the sake of the offender’s public relations? What I’ve seen happen in the “United” States is that a resentment builds against minority groups who demand or request apologies.
While negative publicity for someone like Mr Trump is still a net positive for him (because it is publicity), this is simply not the case for [much less heard] minority groups. Cynical, uneducated, and unthinking right-wing or right-leaning folks in a majority group don’t like to be asked to apologize. This is one reason Trump happened to America. Note to minority / marginalized groups of Canada: Trust me, you do not want a Canadian Trump at your helm.
Montreal’s Chinatown on the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China. Autumn 2019
To defend a plural and diversified model
Within the public are varying degrees of understanding when it comes to the nature of systemic racism and what constitutes racism. As much as I love Quebec, I’m painfully aware of the racism exhibited by some whites here. Groups such as the Progressive Chinese of Quebec are right to ask political parties about how documented racism should be addressed in the province. However, attacking this young politician on the basis of a poorly worded statement may actually be counterproductive in the scheme of things.
Until I have evidence to believe otherwise, I’m going to hold Émilise Lessard-Therrien to her assurance: “One thing is certain, I will continue to fight to defend a plural and diversified model of agriculture to strive for food sovereignty in Quebec.” In the meantime: perhaps it is the responsibility of us Quebecers to educate ourselves about the motives and behaviors of powerful organizations that take interest in Quebec real estate, whether it be the CPC or local capitalists.
— Victor