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Mr. Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, NDP)

Jan/31/22 2:30:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we saw some really hateful and disturbing images coming out of the convoy in Ottawa this past weekend. We saw the Nazi flag being flown, the Confederate flag being flown, and instead of denouncing and making it clear that this type of hate has no place in Canada, the Leader of the Opposition and his Conservative MPs left the door open to this type of hate in Canada. What is the Prime Minister going to do to tackle the rise of online hate so we can build a better future for our kids?

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, NDP)

Jan/31/22 2:32:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we saw some hateful images from the convoy this weekend. Instead of denouncing them, the leader of the official opposition and his Conservative MPs left the door open for this kind of hate. What would the Prime Minister do to address the rise of hate on social media and build a better future for our children?

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, NDP)

Jan/31/22 3:30:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, on behalf of all New Democrats, we express our condolences to the family and loved ones of Alexa McDonough. This is a loss not just for the New Democrats and her family but for all Canadians. As we have heard from so many people, Alexa, as she was known across Canada, was someone who fought her whole life for social justice. She championed women in politics and never backed down from a challenge. She was not afraid to make people uncomfortable. She was not afraid to make clear that for women to have a place in politics they had to fight, and she fought hard. She became the leader of the Nova Scotia NDP 41 years ago today, and in doing so she became the first woman to lead a major political party in Canada. To really understand the impact of that, we need to know that she not only broke barriers for people in a profound way; she broke barriers so that other people could dream big and do the same. I think about all the people who have been touched by her leadership and pioneering. I think about the fact that I would not be here today if it were not for people like Alexa McDonough and the fact that she broke barriers. I think not only of the impact she has had on me, but also that which she has had on the lives of so many women. I had the honour of meeting Alexa a number of times, particularly when I visited Nova Scotia. The last time was in 2019, when she walked into the room during a campaign event. Although she had already given so much of her life to politics and social justice, she was not done; she still showed up to provide her support, and I saw the people in the room light up when she walked in. The cheer for her was deafening. All of the women who looked up to Alexa saw someone who made them feel like they belonged. That is what Alexa did. She made so many people realize they belonged. She was a trailblazer in so many ways. She was ahead of her time in fighting for the inclusion of all people, regardless of race, religion, gender and sexual orientation. She was someone who believed fundamentally in the principle that everyone belongs. Alexa McDonough dedicated her life to social justice, championed women in politics and never shied away from a challenge. She became the first woman to lead a major political party in Canada. She overcame obstacles so that others could do the same. I want to acknowledge the specific ways and some of the contributions. There are so many and people have laid out some of those contributions already, but I want to talk about some of the specific things that Alexa contributed to Canadians and Nova Scotians. She brought specific awareness to the challenges faced by the Black community in Africville, a community in Nova Scotia, she fought hard to overhaul Halifax's welfare system, she negotiated the first maternity leave in the history of Halifax and she played a pivotal role in advancing women's rightful place in Canadian politics. Alexa had the growing determination to build a better Canada and make it more fair for all Canadians. Her story is truly one of dedication, determination and decency. She was a remarkable trailblazer, an activist, a social worker, an educator, a feminist, a politician and, perhaps most significantly, a leader fighting to make life better for people. Rest in peace, Alexa. You will be sadly missed. Rest in power, Alexa. We will miss you.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, NDP)

Jan/31/22 7:52:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Edmonton Strathcona. On behalf of all New Democrats, our thoughts are with the Ukrainian community in this difficult time. Ukrainian communities here in Canada, in Ukraine and around the world are not only grappling with a global pandemic, which has caused incredible difficulties in people's lives and immense sacrifice and hardship, but also, on top of that, the people in Ukraine are now worried and deeply filled with anxiety and fear about the threat of invasion. In all of this, I want to be very clear that New Democrats collectively stand in full solidarity with the people of Ukraine. My thoughts are with the Ukrainian community at this difficult time. Our Ukrainian friends not only have to deal with the pandemic like the rest of us, but on top of that, many are concerned about the threat of a Russian invasion. The NDP stands in solidarity with the Ukrainian people. We know this fear, worry and anxiety is based on legitimate threats. Russia has already invaded Ukraine and at this very moment, as we all know, illegally occupies both Crimea and Donetsk, occupations New Democrats strongly denounce. The ongoing and active conflict in eastern Ukraine continues to cause a heavy humanitarian toll for millions of civilians. Even before this last escalation of tension, 2.9 million people, including over 400,000 children, required humanitarian assistance. Children in eastern Ukraine have grown up knowing conflict for the past eight years, enduring violence, shelling and being displaced from their homes. Escalating hostilities could lead to further mass displacement, a refugee crisis and an untold number of casualties. This conflict continues to have serious humanitarian consequences. For example, millions of people have been forced to leave their homes, and the regional economy has been devastated. Canada was the first country to recognize Ukraine's independence 30 years ago. We must continue to support an independent and democratic Ukraine. New Democrats believe Canada should continue to work with our allies to find a real diplomatic solution to this looming crisis. Canada should focus its efforts on diplomacy, non-lethal assistance and economic sanctions against Russia, including but not limited to the Magnitsky sanctions as a deterrent. Bloodshed must be avoided through coordinated international pressure and stronger sanctions. It is not by sending guns that we will succeed in stabilizing the situation. In the wake of decisions by Conservatives and Liberals, Canada's diplomatic corps has been severely reduced such that we now have less diplomatic leverage to help in this conflict. Nevertheless, we believe that peace can only be achieved through diplomacy, not war. New Democrats have always believed that peace is achievable only through diplomacy. New Democrats urge the Canadian government to continue to do its part to support the people of Ukraine through robust diplomacy. Millions of eastern Europeans are counting on us to help foster peace. Let us not disappoint them.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Jagmeet Singh

Jan/31/22 7:57:22 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the members in question expressed regret about those comments. I want to be very clear that New Democrats stand in solidarity with Ukraine. We absolutely condemn the actions of Russia. We condemn the illegal occupations that are ongoing. As a further point, my colleague is right to raise concerns about the language. Language that is thrown around that strikes the core of anti-Semitism has no place in our Parliament. New Democrats are strongly in solidarity with not just Ukraine and Ukrainian people, but we are opposed to language that is used inappropriately. When throwing around words like “the Holocaust” or “Nazi”, we have to know that they have real, dire impacts and that they have dire impacts on the Jewish community. For that reason, we are very concerned about that type of language when it is used inappropriately.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Jagmeet Singh

Jan/31/22 7:59:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to make it very clear that New Democrats stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine. I know there are so many Ukrainian Canadians, people who come from Ukraine, who have deep ties and deep connections and care deeply about what is going on. They are seeing their relatives and their friends right now living under fear, anxiety and worry about further invasion. The escalating conflict has borne a lot of pain already and continues to apply a lot of pressure and a lot of fear on Ukrainian Canadians, as well as Ukrainians across the world and, of course, in Ukraine. I want Ukrainian Canadians and the Ukrainian community at large to know that we stand in solidarity with them. We support an independent democratic Ukraine, and we will continue to be allies and to push for de-escalation and a diplomatic solution to protect the people of Ukraine.

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Context: House Hansard - 20 - Jan/31/22

Mr. Jagmeet Singh

Jan/31/22 8:01:15 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we have seen that Canada's role in the world has been diminished. Consecutive Conservative and Liberal governments have been cutting our resources, whether it is the diplomatic corps or our peace-keeping roles. If we had that role, we could play a greater partnership in pushing for peace and we could have a greater impact on the global stage, and that is something the New Democrats have continued to push for, increasing our peace keeping and our federal diplomatic corps, so that we can can play that role in pushing for and promoting peace.

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