Local youth skate with a large Canadian flag on the Rideau Canal on Feb. 14, to launch celebrations marking Flag Day on Feb. 15.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
John Blackwell is a retired university research administrator. Laurie Stanley-Blackwell is a retired history professor and youngest daughter of George F.G. Stanley, designer of the Canadian flag.
Sixty years ago, at the stroke of noon on a crisp, snowy, brilliantly sunny day, the Maple Leaf flag was raised for the first time on Canada’s Parliament Hill. The flag’s birth had been long and traumatic.
Liberal prime minister Lester B. Pearson was determined that Canada, a country coming of age, should have a new national flag that truly represented all Canadians, including Quebec nationalists. Pearson felt so strongly about having a new Canadian flag that he was willing to risk his minority government in the process.
The Great Flag Debate, as it became known, dragged on in the House of Commons for six acrimonious months in 1964, and severely divided Canadians. Conservative opposition leader John Diefenbaker and the Royal Canadian Legion were adamant that Canada should retain the Red Ensign flag, because Canadians had fought under this flag in two world wars. The Ensign, a legacy of British colonialism, featured the Union Jack and the Canadian coat of arms on a field of red.
At a critical juncture in the stalemate, George F.G. Stanley, dean of arts and professor of history at the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, submitted a detailed memorandum to Liberal MP John Matheson, a key member of the all-party parliamentary flag committee. Dr. Stanley provided a detailed historical rationale for his simple, elegant design of a stylized red maple leaf on a field of white, with two red side bars.
Dr. Stanley asserted that a new Canadian flag “must avoid the use of national or racial symbols that are of a divisive nature.” He further noted that the “single leaf has the virtue of simplicity; it emphasizes the distinctive Canadian symbol; and suggests the idea of loyalty to a single country.”
The Stanley design, one of three finalists out of 3,541 submissions, was quickly fine-tuned by several civil servants and approved unanimously by the flag committee. Early on the morning of Dec. 15, 1964, the late Mr. Matheson wrote to Dr. Stanley: “Your proposed flag has just now been approved by the Commons, 163 to 78. Congratulations. I believe it is an excellent flag that will serve Canada well.”
The mood at the official flag raising on Feb. 15, 1965, was still very tense. The RCMP had received an anonymous death threat against the flag’s designer, so Dr. Stanley and his wife Ruth decided to leave their three young daughters at home for safety. At the ceremony, Dr. Stanley stood out like a target in his colourful Hudson’s Bay coat among a sea of black formal attire.
Still, it is astonishing how quickly the tide turned in favour of the Maple Leaf, even in Quebec. In June, 1965, Dr. Stanley was awarded an honorary doctorate at Laval University. The student body loudly applauded when the citation referred to the Canadian flag. This was a remarkable early affirmation of the flag’s acceptance and success as a national symbol.
Those of us who were alive during the Centennial celebrations of Canadian Confederation in 1967 vividly recall the sense of euphoria that permeated the country. We were so proud to be Canadian. Communities everywhere had centennial projects and parties. The government minted special coins designed by Alex Colville and conferred centennial medals on 30,000 Canadians who had given valuable service to the country. A centennial train with an exhibit of Canada’s history traversed the country from sea to sea. Bobby Gimby, dubbed “The Pied Piper of Canada,” composed Ca-na-da, an infectious song celebrating the country’s first 100 years.
We even hosted the world at Expo 67 in Montreal. Everything seemed possible. Our future appeared full of promise and possibilities.
Canada has endured numerous jolts since its Centennial year. Not all of that promise has been realized. Nevertheless, during the past 60 years, the Maple Leaf flag has become an iconic and respected symbol of Canada and its values around the world. That is why so many Canadians are deeply disturbed whenever our flag is appropriated by interest groups. A national symbol should represent all Canadians, and not be politicized or exploited by any faction.
Canadians must remember that, as historian Arthur Lower once said, Canada is “an act of faith.” Our country is now facing much more than a potential trade war that would disrupt our economy. U.S. President Donald Trump’s agenda of manifest destiny poses an existential threat to our very sovereignty as a nation. The reality is that Canadians have become too complacent about our privileged place in the world. We have underfunded our armed forces and too often forgotten the sacrifices of thousands of Canadians who have served and died to defend our rights, freedoms, and traditions.
We have not even done a good job of teaching our children about our shared history and values as a nation. The sad result is that an alarming number of Canadians do not seem to comprehend the difference between being a Canadian and an American. Ironically, however, Mr. Trump’s preposterous suggestion that Canada should become the 51st U.S. state has infuriated Canadians and ignited a massive resurgence of Canadian nationalism not seen in decades.
The next four years will test the sinew of our nationhood. Canadians will be challenged to find better ways to work together and ally with other countries to ensure our survival. As individuals, we may feel powerless to contribute much to this critical national endeavour.
However, we can all take basic measures to help strengthen our country’s future. We can stay attuned to local, national and international events. We can vote for politicians who will best champion Canada’s interests. And perhaps most importantly, we can make a deliberate effort to buy Canadian, thereby supporting our own businesses and producers, including where we spend our vacation dollars.
On this National Flag of Canada Day, we should all heed the call made in a statement this week by five former prime ministers (Kim Campbell, Joe Clark, Jean Chrétien, Paul Martin and Stephen Harper) to make a show of national unity on the 60th anniversary of the Maple Leaf flag by flying our own individual flags across Canada. Canadians should make a point of displaying and flying our beloved Maple Leaf as a symbol of unity and pride in our country, and as a sign of our determination to endure as a sovereign nation in a very turbulent world. Nations, like people, need to be loved in order to thrive.