Michael Den Tandt: Conservatives would be wise to call a truce in the culture wars

2015/03/14 Leave a comment

Minister Kenney’s attempt to explain more coherently the reasons for the ban on niqabs at citizenship ceremony and tone down some of the government rhetoric, led by the PM with an assist by Minister Alexander, among others:

Mr. Kenney then ventured a Q&A with Macleans‘ John Geddes, in which he provided the first thoughtful defence, that I am aware of, of his banning the niqab from citizenship ceremonies.

“Something politically correct Liberals don’t understand, which I do rather profoundly,” Mr. Kenney told Macleans, “is that the vast majority of new Canadians, including new Canadians of the Muslim faith, believe that there are certain important hallmarks of integration. They don’t believe that multiculturalism should be misconstrued as cultural relativism. They believe that multiculturalism should mean a positive regard for what’s best about people’s cultural and religious antecedents. But it should not mean a completely unquestioning acceptance of every cultural practice, especially those of an abhorrent nature.”

Mr. Kenney continued: “I can tell you that the vast majority of Muslims that I’ve spoken with strongly supported my decision in 2010 to state what I thought was axiomatic that a public citizenship ceremony had to be performed publicly.”

So there you have it; the crux, about which reasonable people may disagree. Absent from Mr. Kenney’s construction was the overreach — whether it be Prime Minister Stephen Harper thundering that Islamic culture is “anti-women,” to Immigration Minister Chris Alexander’s earlier conflation of the niqab and the hijab or headscarf — that have opened the Conservatives up anew to the hoary old charge that they are anti-immigrant.

Michael Den Tandt: Conservatives would be wise to call a truce in the culture wars

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Kenney tweets misleading photos of Muslim women in chains

2015/03/11 Leave a comment

He should and does know better. Undermines his messaging at the Manning Conference (Canada stands with peaceful Muslims, Kenney says) on the role Canadian Muslims play in opposing radicalization, and reinforces wedge and identity politics:

Defence Minister Jason Kenney used the occasion of International Women’s Day to rally support for the war against ISIS by tweeting photographs of Muslim girls and women covered in black and being led off in chains.

“On #IWD2015, thank-you to the @CanadianForces for joining the fight against #ISIL’s campaign to enslave women & girls,” he tweeted along with the pictures on Sunday.

One image shows a group of girls, dressed in burqas and chained at the wrists, being with taken away in pairs. Another shows four women with faces covered, also chained together.

To the casual viewer, these appear to be compelling photographic evidence of the mistreatment of women in some parts of the Muslim world.

And, read with Kenney’s reference to ISIS, they suggest to the reader that these scenes occurred under the terror group’s watch in Iraq or Syria.

But Kenney did not explain that the first image is actually from a ceremonial Shia Ashura procession that celebrates the heroism of the prophet Mohammad’s grandson, Hussein, and his family. The girls and women in the photo Kenney tweeted symbolize Hussein’s sister, who was taken in chains to Damascus after he was beheaded.

That is to say, the girls in the photos are actors in a play that depicts events said to have occurred 1,300 years ago. They are not a depiction of the current enslavement of Muslim women. There are thousands of images of these ceremonies online.

A Christian equivalent does not readily come to mind, but Kenney’s use of the images against ISIS might be compared to presenting photographs of annual re-enactment of the Crucifixion in a tweet denouncing Romans or Jews.

Kenney, as minister of multiculturalism, would likely be familiar with the Ashura processions, as they occur in many countries with Shia populations, such as Turkey.  The ceremonies are perhaps better known for a self-flagellation ritual performed by some men.

Kenney is not the first to misrepresent the Ashura photographs. The same image circulated widely online last year with the false caption, “Muslim girls being lead off in chains to meet their new husbands.” (For a full debunking, see here and here.)

I asked Kenney’s office if he would retract or even clarify the tweet. No response yet.

The Gargoyle – Kenney tweets misleading photos of Muslim women in chains | Ottawa Citizen.

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Canada stands with peaceful Muslims, Kenney says

2015/03/09 1 Comment

In contrast to the PM’s messaging and wedge politics on security, radicalization and Canadian Muslims, and the Conservative Party’s fundraising machine, Minister Kenney borrow from President Obama’s language:

Kenney, who is also Harper’s longtime multiculturalism minister, noted the cost borne by Muslims facing extremist elements around the world.

“The vast majority of the victims of this dystopian vision of the caliphate from Nigeria to the Philippines are innocent, peaceful Muslim people who simply want to raise their families in peace and security,” Kenney told the Manning Networking Conference, a conservative policy gathering.

“And we stand with them, we stand with them around the world, we stand with them in Iraq today, we stand in defence of the vast majority of Muslims who reject this cult of violence. Canadians are in solidarity with them.”

Since the attacks this winter in France and in Denmark by Islamic extremists, the Tories have spoken out about their fight against “barbaric cultural practices” and against women who would cover their faces with the niqab during citizenship ceremonies. “Not the way we do things here,” read one Conservative party online message.

Harper referred specifically to mosques as places of radicalization, and unlike U.S. President Barack Obama has offered no messages of outreach to the Muslim community in the past several months.

“The prime minister of this country has a responsibility to bring people together in this country, not to divide us by pandering to some people’s fears,” Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said recently.

Harper’s office pointed to a speech the Prime Minister made in December in which he expressed gratitude to those Muslim Canadians who spoke out against attacks that killed soldiers in Ottawa and Montreal last year.

Kenney also rejected the suggestion the party has alienated Canadian Muslims, pointing out he is a frequent visitor to mosques and islamic community organizations, and that his government has offered support against islamophobic vandalism and threats.

He also noted the help the community has offered in combating homegrown terrorism.

“We commend leaders and grassroots members of Canadian Muslim communities for having co-operated with police and intelligence services in reporting incidents or individuals who might be of concern,” said Kenney.

“Indeed our security and police agencies will confirm that potentially violent instances have been prevented, radicalization has been diminished thanks to the proactive co-operation of many in the Canadian Muslim communities so I think that message is clear.”

But it matters that this more inclusive language is made by a Minister, no matter how senior, rather than the PM himself, suggesting the triumph of wedge politics over the very real need, in any counter-radicalization strategy, to have the support of the Muslim communities.

Canada stands with peaceful Muslims, Kenney says – The Globeand Mail.

Interestingly, the Ottawa Citizen account of the speech neglected to mention any of these messages, focussing on Kenney’s hard-line messaging on the risks of further terrorist incidents (valid) and justification of C-51 (not).

Kenney says homegrown terrorism a ‘reality’ in Canada

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Must-see QP: Jason Kenney takes on a death cult

2015/02/18 Leave a comment

While there may be an element of calculation in his use of a Christian prayer in his comments on the killing of Copts in Libya, it also likely reflects his strong faith.

Kenney has been consistent throughout his Ministerial career in his concern over the fate of Christians in the Mid-East:

Jason Kenney, the new defence minister with a knack for candid speech, cribbed largely from the prime minister’s rhetoric as he responded to the Coptic slaughter during question period. Kenney also referred to Islamic State as a “death cult,” a moniker he first applied last October as he made the case for airstrikes in Iraq—and which others in the House have since repeated. This afternoon, in question period, he applied his go-to measured tone, eschewed any opposition shaming, reinforced his government’s belief in ongoing airstrikes, and sat down to light applause. Fiery jingoism, it was not.

But yesterday was different. Kenney’s tweeted reaction to the beheadings was far less conventional. He recalled that the victims were killed because of their standing as “followers of the Cross,” and then, out of respect for the faith of the dead, typed out a prayer retweeted 128 times: “Eternal rest grant unto them, let light perpetual shine upon them.”

#ISIL death cult has beheaded 21 Copts for being “followers of the Cross.” Eternal rest grant unto them, let light perpetual shine upon them

— Jason Kenney ن (@jkenney) February 15, 2015

A typical observer might not think much of Kenney’s tweet. But imagine the reaction of an extremist who’s hell-bent on killing anyone who disagrees with his view of the world. The Canadian minister responsible for war responded to the intentional slaying of Christians with a Christian prayer. Kenney is no fool; he knows how inflammatory that sounds to the people who are, it’s worth remembering, also on the receiving end of Canadian airstrikes.

Must-see QP: Jason Kenney takes on a death cult.

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Kenney says changes to temporary foreign worker program in Alberta not exemptions

2015/02/05 Leave a comment

Seems a reasonable transitional adjustment (others may disagree), responding to employer pressure:

In a letter to Conservative MPs last week, Kenney says the federal government is giving a one-time exemption to temporary foreign workers in Alberta from being counted under the cap on low-wage workers, provided they meet strict criteria.

Kenney says this will allow employers to apply for renewed Labour Market Impact Assessments while their existing temporary foreign workers pursue permanent immigration.

As well, Kenney says in the letter that Citizenship and Immigration Canada will provide a one-year bridging work permit to TFWs who are subject to the four-year limit.

The letter says this should provide some relief to employers who have TFWs that have already applied for immigration and are in the queue waiting for their applications to be assessed.

The Alberta Federation of Labour says the Conservative government has caved in to pressure from low-wage employers who want to hold on to “exploitable” temporary foreign workers for a longer period of time.

“Last June, the Harper government promised to limit the number of TFWs that low-wage employers could use. But now, they’ve quietly broken their promise and changed the rules,” AFL president Gil McGowan said in a news release Tuesday.

Kenney says changes to temporary foreign worker program in Alberta not exemptions

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Kenney: Conservative anti terror bill needs to walk a fine line

2015/01/29 Leave a comment

Will be interesting to see how the Government walks that fine line when the Bill is tabled Friday.

Kenney, given his strong belief in freedom of religion, will likely have weighed in during Cabinet and other discussions (his initial reaction to one of the periodic Quebec controversies over the niqab was more accommodating than his present positions):

There’s a fine line between legitimate religious expression and inciting terrorism, says Conservative cabinet minister Jason Kenney.

It’s that line the government will be walking – carefully – in its new anti-terrorism bill, expected to be unveiled Friday.

The bill is the government’s long-awaited legislative response to two attacks carried out on Canadian soldiers last fall by men believed to have been influenced by radical Islam – attacks the government considers acts of terrorism.

Though police already have the power to go after those suspecting of being on the verge of committing terrorist attacks, the new bill is partially aimed at stopping the seeds of those attacks from germinating altogether.

“Our objective is not to diminish legitimate expression of political or religious views, but rather incitement to terrorism – and there is a fine line there that the legislation will try to draw,” Kenney said in an interview Tuesday.

“Obviously there are some malevolent religious influences that can add to the process of radicalization towards violent extremism, and we have to be extremely mindful of that.”

Kenney: Conservative anti terror bill needs to walk a fine line.

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Jason Kenney rejects crackdown on religious satire

2015/01/15 Leave a comment

Good strong defence of freedom of speech (see earlier post Satirical religious cartoons should be illegal, says Ottawa imam and reactions):

In the past week, however, some Islamic communities have asked that depictions and satirizations of Mohammed, considered a prophet by Muslims, and whose image is sacred and not to be shown, be pursued by legal means.

Kenney showed no interest in those pleas.

“Freedom of expression means anything,” he said. “It means the right to publish controversial or even sometimes offensive speech.

“It doesn’t mean we have to like it, and it doesn’t mean we have to endorse it, but we have to tolerate it,” Kenney went on. “That’s the price of freedom.”

Jason Kenney rejects crackdown on religious satire | Canada | News | Toronto Sun.

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A star like Jason Kenney should avoid the gutter – Martin

2014/12/03 1 Comment

Every now and then, it happens.

But a sharp contrast when he was the only Cabinet Minister to state that Rob Ford should resign (Rob Ford should ‘step aside,’ Conservative Jason Kenney says):

What was particularly noteworthy this time was the involvement of Employment Minister Jason Kenney. He’s the party’s star. He’s touted as the inside favourite to succeed Mr. Harper. He gets a lot of votes, including mine, for most effective cabinet minister. He has more mental equipment one envious Tory calls him “Smarty Pants” than anyone on the Tory front benches.

On the question of ethics, you might think he would want to nurture an upright and honourable image in contrast to many in his party. Unlike other Tories, he’s got enough clout to tell the toadies in the Prime Minister’s Office what they can do with their talking points.

So what did he do last week? He jumped into the gutter with both feet. He showed himself to be all-in with the bottom-feeders.

My earlier tweet brought a flurry of tweets of those suffering from the “Harper/Kenney derangement syndrome” rather than more measured criticism.

A star like Jason Kenney should avoid the gutter – The Globe and Mail.

And the earlier Globe editorial:

 Conservatives’ dirty tricks have no place in Canadian politics 

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Changes to live-in caregiver program won’t solve backlog, groups fear – Politics – CBC News

2014/10/10 Leave a comment

More shadow boxing on upcoming changes to the live-in caregivers program:

[Minister] Alexander acknowledged the growing need for more caregivers and nannies across the country.

“Canada needs caregivers … but we need them, and I think caregivers are the first to recognize this, in a broader range of occupations than ever before.

“Some in the traditional role of helping with young children at home. Others, helping with medical need situations in homes. And then in institutions as well where there are a wide variety of needs, professional needs, highly-skilled needs that aren’t necessarily being met anywhere close to the scale needed in many parts of the country,” Alexander said.

Employment Minister Jason Kenney was more critical of the caregiver program in June saying it had morphed into a family reunification program.

NDP immigration critic Lysanne Blanchette-Lamothe criticized the government for its “lack of transparency.”

“They’ve hinted at changes, while vilifying certain communities they claim are abusing the program, without providing any evidence. “They’ve refused to hold public and open consultations and have excluded important advocates and experts from their closed-door consultations,” Blanchette-Lamothe said in a written statement to CBC News.

Changes to live-in caregiver program wont solve backlog, groups fear – Politics – CBC News.

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Confusion reigned at CIC after Kenney kept on multiculturalism

2014/10/09 Leave a comment

Embassy article on how CIC had to scramble to figure out the implications of Minister Kenney retaining responsibility for the multiculturalism file, including my quotes:

The Conservative government owes its current majority in part to strong support from ethnic communities in suburban Canada, and Mr. Kenney has led the party’s efforts to appeal to immigrant diasporas.

Prime Minister Harper credited Mr. Kenney for turning “small-c conservative” immigrants into “big-C conservatives” and urged United States conservatives to learn from his party’s example during a recent sit-down interview with the Wall Street Journal in New York.

“This is a huge transformation. It’s why we’ve come to office, and have stayed in office,” Mr. Harper commented, according to a report by the Canadian Press.

Andrew Griffith, a director general for citizenship and multiculturalism at Citizenship and Immigration Canada from 2007 until 2011 and now retired, said that the decision to keep Mr. Kenney on the multiculturalism file was “a political point.”

“He engaged the communities, he developed the contacts there, he recruited candidates for the party and he played a major role in the electoral strategy of the party,” said Mr. Griffith, author of the book Policy Arrogance or Innocent Bias: Resetting Citizenship and Multiculturalism.

“It didn’t make any sense for them to switch to another minister who would have to build up the relationships. I suspect that Kenney probably didn’t want to give it up either, because it’s part of his political base.”

Even in situations where Mr. Alexander is responsible for signing off on multiculturalism decisions, Mr. Griffith said that the documents make clear that the minister for multiculturalism is responsible for the substance of those decisions.

“From a bureaucratic point of view, I don’t like it because it’s messier and I think it impacts the ability to do good policy work. But from a political point of view, I understand why the prime minister made that decision,” said Mr. Griffith.

“If I were him, I probably would have made the same decision.”

Message to current public servants: be careful what you say in emails. “Confusion reigns!” may be accurate but may also be too vivid for the public!

Confusion reigned at CIC after Kenney kept on multiculturalism | Embassy – Canadas Foreign Policy Newspaper.

Earlier blog posts and reporting:

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