Hey everybody, it’s going to be OK. I’m not sure when we started to lose our collective minds, but it’s time to relax.
Do you recall that former Hockey Night in Canada commentator Don Cherry didn’t much like Sidney Crosby at one point and Crosby is a national treasure? I’d say Cherry isn’t overly fond of Russians, Swedes and Finns either. Especially when they’re playing Canada.
Cherry was born in 1934. He lived through the Second World War and was 11 when the war ended. We have to take the time to think before we become a mob. We should have taken more time thinking about who Cherry is and where his opinions come from before we started asking for his blood. He’s an 85-year-old man who may hold some outdated beliefs but he still deserves respect and understanding.
Canada is a beautiful country and we enjoy true fundamental freedoms. One of those can be found in section 2 (b) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms: freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication.
If you think someone said something you deem intentionally offensive, hateful or harmful and this situation has compelled you to act, approach that person with understanding, kindness and love. It’s the one way to positively affect the hate someone else feels.
Steven James MacNeil
Glace Bay
