Justin Trudeau’s political setback: A surprise to the world, but not to Canada
SalonCanada’s federal election campaign highlighted a struggle that caught the world by surprise. In this way, the election of Justin Trudeau seemed for many to be a repudiation of the Harper agenda and a return to the normalcy of Canada’s past. Trudeau even went to Toronto’s airport to welcome some of the first refugees, saying: “You are home.” Trudeau’s Liberals emphasized a multicultural Canada that would be open to refugees. In contrast to some Conservative leadership candidates’ embrace of Islamophobia and a “barbaric cultural practices tip line,” Trudeau’s government included a record number of Muslim MPs. Though Trudeau’s Liberals did reinvest funds that Harper’s Conservatives cut from Palestinian refugees, progressives quickly noticed how Trudeau and his government would go out of their way to attack Canadians who advocated for Palestinian rights.