House Hansard - 96

44th Parl. 1st Sess.

September 15, 2022 10:00AM

Mr. Jagmeet Singh (Burnaby South, NDP)

Sep/15/22 10:30:57 a.m.
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Mr. Speaker, before I begin, I want to join with my colleagues in marking the tragic loss of life in Saskatchewan, on the James Smith Cree Nation and in the town of Weldon. The sorrow and pain for the families who lost their loved ones to such unspeakable violence is beyond our understanding. We hold these families close in our hearts. Today I want to join in marking the passing of Queen Elizabeth II and extend my condolences to her family. At the age of 21 she made the promise that she would spend her whole life, whether it be long or short, fulfilling her duty. For more than 70 years, she kept this promise. Two days before she died, she met with the incoming British prime minister and invited her to form a government, ensuring that she fulfilled this final constitutional duty. Queen Elizabeth II led a remarkable life, a life marked by history. Amid tremendous change, she was a figure of stability, providing a constant symbol to many. Ninety-six years is a long time for anyone to be alive. She was born before mass communication and media shrank the distances between nations, before television, and long before the Internet brought us limitless access to information. Her life was marked by war. In World War II, as her parents vowed to stay in London while it was bombed, she and her sister were moved to Windsor for safety. As children in war, the Queen and her sister took to the airwaves in a radio broadcast for other children who were also experiencing the worry and fear of bombing attacks and parents gone to fight. Throughout her life, Queen Elizabeth II used her platform to offer encouragement in difficult times. Most recently, during the pandemic, she reminded us that we would get through the challenge and the pain of not being able to see loved ones. She asked us to greet the tough times with optimism and hope, by pulling together and doing what needed to be done. She said, “We should take comfort that while we may have more still to endure, better days will return. We will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again. We will meet again.” For many, her death marks the end of an era. She is the only queen we have ever known. She loved Canada very much, and I have heard many stories from people who were very touched by their encounters with Her Majesty. In the days since her death, I have heard many Canadians talk about meeting her. She came to Canada often, as has been remarked, showing her affection for this country. Many who met the Queen, sometimes for the briefest of moments, feel that she took the time to listen to them and was interested in their lives and sincere in her appreciation for the chance to meet them. This was her gift: to make one feel seen in a crowd of thousands and to invest her whole attention in every encounter, even when it was one of many. I would also like to take a moment to congratulate King Charles III on assuming his mother's legacy. He is grieving this profound loss as the world watches, while also ensuring that he lives up to the task. I hope he will rise to the challenge of reconciliation that has been laid before him by First Nations leaders and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. One of the calls to action is for the issuing of a royal proclamation of reconciliation. I hope that when the Prime Minister has his first meeting with the new King, he will remind him of this outstanding call to action and the power that King Charles has to further the goal of reconciliation. There is also much work to be done to repair the relationship of the Crown with many people around the world who experienced pain as a result of colonialization. Loss of language and culture, violence and war are the legacies of a colonial past. I believe the new King has an opportunity and a responsibility to do what he can to right the wrongs of the past. In closing, I want to again extend my deep condolences to the family of Queen Elizabeth II. More than a monarch, she was a mother, a grandmother and a great-grandmother. It is for her family that we must feel the deepest sympathy. They have lost a pillar of strength, a reminder of their own history and an example of a life well lived.

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House Hansard - 96