Jason Kenney calls David Suzuki ‘xenophobic’ over magazine quotes

OTTAWA — In what looks like a philosophical role reversal, a high-profile environmental activist appears to have suggested Canada has had its fill of immigrants, while a Conservative minister calls that point of view “xenophobic.”

Prominent environmentalist David Suzuki, in remarks published earlier this month in the Paris-based publication L’Express, is quoted as saying Canada’s immigration policy is “disgusting” because “We plunder southern countries by depriving them of future leaders, and we want to increase our population to support economic growth.”

“It’s crazy!” he is quoted as saying.  The remarks appeared in the magazine in French.

In the interview, he appears to link population growth with environmental degradation, saying: “I think Canada is full, too! Although it’s the second largest country in the world, our useful area has been reduced.”

Suzuki could not be reached Thursday to elaborate on his comments.

But Immigration and Citizenship Minister Jason Kenney was quick to rip into them. In a series of tweets in recent days, he used terms such as “xenophobic” and “anti-immigration” to describe Suzuki.

In one French-language tweet, he said he is “sorry for xenophobic David Suzuki, who calls immigration ‘crazy’ because ‘Canada is full.’ ”

In an English tweet, Kenney said Suzuki’s comments were “toxic and irresponsible.”

He also tweeted: “What would happen if a prominent conservative said (the) same thing?”

Kenney repeated his view in a statement Thursday, saying “Suzuki’s extreme comments reveal how offside he is with Canadians.

“Canada is a country built by immigrants.  Canadians are welcoming and tolerant, and Canada’s successful approach to pluralism is viewed as a model around the world.”

But Kenney’s criticism, opined Huffington Post columnist J.J. McCullough – also through Twitter – showed “the extraordinarily narrow realm of acceptable discourse on immigration in Canada.”

In the L’Express article, Suzuki also praised former Liberal prime minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau for facilitating the multicultural Canadian society that exists today.

“By recognizing the diversity of the multicultural mosaic instead of pushing a melting pot (like) in the U.S., Trudeau has facilitated integration,” Suzuki said.

The green activist also said Canada continues to have a “responsibility to those who struggle to survive elsewhere” and that “Canada will always open its doors to those who suffer oppression or emergency.”

Adnan Turegun, executive director of Carleton University’s Centre for International Migration and Settlement Studies, said it’s common for people to argue that Canada has reached its limit in term of immigration. But he said it’s “surprising” that Suzuki –instead of someone on the political right – would hold that view.

“Wilfred Laurier, at the beginning of the 20th century, said that the 20th century would belong to Canada and projected a population of 100 million by the end of the 20th century,” Turegun said. “We were never close to that by the end of the 20th century; we were only one-third of that estimate.”

Turegun said he “can sympathize” with the argument that Canada’s policy of admitting the best and brightest immigrants hurts other countries, but added that the effect is not straightforward. He said immigrants to Canada are often able to help people in their former homelands through things such as direct money transfers to loved ones or helping forge economic relationships between Canada and these other countries.

“It’s not entirely brain drain versus brain gain,” Turegun said.

Original Article
Source: canada.com
Author: Derek Abma