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Ms. Leah Gazan (Winnipeg Centre, NDP)

Feb/19/22 9:07:55 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, since this has been brewing, I have heard nothing but divisive language used in the House. It is like poking the beast of extremists. Leaders of this movement have ties to white nationalist movements, as we witnessed with some of those who were arrested yesterday, and they have hijacked movements for other purposes. Why did the government let this go on for so long? Why did the government allow it to get so out of control that we are seeing what is happening right now? I also wonder if my hon. colleague, now that we have witnessed police hugging extremists in some cases, feels it is necessary to do a public inquiry into policing in this country.

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Context: House Hansard - 34 - Feb/19/22

Ms. Leah Gazan (Winnipeg Centre, NDP)

Feb/19/22 10:38:51 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my hon. colleague for his intervention. I am certainly concerned that it has got to this point and that the government left it for so long. I want to be clear, though. He refers to land defenders and environmentalists. A somebody who has been very engaged in movements, including Idle No More, I can say that we were peaceful. We never had guns. We never chose insurrection against the government. We never threatened to kill police. That constant measuring post in the House is deeply troubling and concerning. It fuels and feeds notions of white supremacy, which also fuel ideas in this illegal occupation. Would the member not agree that minimizing what is going on out there is further encouragement for the kind of extremist occupation, led by white nationalists, that we are seeing outside?

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Context: House Hansard - 34 - Feb/19/22

Ms. Leah Gazan (Winnipeg Centre, NDP)

Feb/19/22 1:38:19 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, my hon. colleague mentioned turning a blind eye, and I would agree. As a result of the current government's turning a blind eye, as well as the mayor of Ottawa and the police service, now we find ourselves in a crisis. We saw this coming. We had all sorts of signs. I feel quite hesitant to have to support this, and I absolutely support the Canadian Civil Liberties Association for wanting oversight. The fact that we are using this emergency measure absolutely requires oversight. However, there is a reason why we arrived here, and I wonder if the member agrees with me that we need a public inquiry in terms of governance issues that led us down this security hole. Does the hon. member agree that we need a public inquiry into policing and governance issues that led us to where we are right now?

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Context: House Hansard - 34 - Feb/19/22

Ms. Leah Gazan (Winnipeg Centre, NDP)

Feb/19/22 2:37:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I want to thank everybody working in the House who is allowing us to do our jobs as members of Parliament. I appreciate my hon. colleague's intervention. I know it is really difficult to share, especially traumatic histories about family, so I want to honour that. I want to talk about extremism. We know that people were struggling before the pandemic. We also know that since the pandemic, people have been struggling even more, feeling despair and alienation. When people are not looked after, it is fuel for the fire in the rise of extremist and anti-democratic movements. I wonder if the hon. member agrees with me that more support needs to be provided to people in Canada to avoid these extremist movements from rising.

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