By Owen Griffiths As most everyone knows by now, Don Cherry was fired recently for saying that “you people” should wear a poppy on Remembrance Day. Love him or hate him, and with Cherry there is no middle ground, he has been known throughout his broadcasting career for his unequivocal championing of Canadian players and his denigration of those foreign… Read more »
https://activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/History-Slam-139.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadBy Sean Graham The outstanding Canada’s First World War series here at Activehistory.ca wrapped up on Friday after five years of producing exceptional content. As Jonathan Weier pointed out in one of the series’ post earlier this year, the historical focus on major narratives like Vimy that focus on nationalist mythology limits the discussion… Read more »
Jonathan Scotland As Andrea Eidinger reminded us in her recent post on the changing nature of poppies and Remembrance Day, the poppy has been central to Canadian commemorations of wartime sacrifices since its adoption ninety-seven years ago.[1] Despite this ongoing effort to remember, the iconic red flower’s history is often taken for granted, its early years almost completely overlooked. Even… Read more »
This post by Andrea Eidinger originally appeared on Unwritten Histories. This post was inspired by a suggestion from Tina Adcock, and without her support and encouragement, it probably would have remained unwritten. So I would like to send her a huge extra-special thank-you. I would also like to thank the individuals who read and commented on previous versions of this draft,… Read more »
By Andrew Nurse Last week I was taking an evening walk – the kind recommended by your doctor, as in “get some exercise” – and I strolled by the Sackville NB skate park my son used to frequent. That was a while ago. The park is different now. There is a graffiti wall and the ramps and jumps had been… Read more »
By Mary Chaktsiris and Stephanie Bangarth We leave you our deaths: give them their meaning: give them an end to the war and a true peace: give them a victory that ends the war and a peace afterwards: give them their meaning.” – Archibald MacLeish, ‘The Young Dead Soldiers Do Not Speak’ (1941) On March 18, 1931, A.W. Neil, MP for… Read more »
By Angela Duffett A rather curious promoted tweet from the Bank of Montreal appeared recently on my Twitter feed: “Join Canadians for a #DayofSocialSilence to honour those in service.” Not really grasping the connection between BMO, Remembrance Day, and staying off of social media for the day, I clicked the tweet to see what kind of response it was attracting…. Read more »
This past Remembrance Day, historian Ian McKay gave a lecture titled “What’s Wrong With Flanders Fields.” He argues that Remembrance Day in general and the poem in particular have been conscripted as part of what he calls the “right-wing militarization of Canadian society.” McKay delivered the talk to the Queen’s University Institute for Lifelong Learning on November 11, 2012. You… Read more »
Today, Canadians across the country will observe Remembrance Day. The tradition of remembering the casualties of war on November 11 first began in 1919, following the end of the First World War. Through public commemorations or more private ways, citizens will think about the sacrifices of thousands of men and women who have risked their lives for country, faith, and… Read more »
