Once again, the scourge of gun violence has come to the fore in our
city. The bedlam has generated impulsive and careless comments, some
bordering on racism.
Most notable were Mayor Rob Ford and Citizenship and Immigration
Minister Jason Kenney’s call to deport firearms offenders. This begs the
question: Will Kenney’s majority Conservative government change
Canada’s citizenship laws so that Canadian citizens who commit gun
crimes are also exiled? Of course not, because this would be
unconstitutional. So let’s tone down the rhetoric and animus.
Unfortunately, the mayor and minister have not been alone in
simplifying a complex social issue — our society at large, including the
news media, have been culpable as well.
Whether it takes place at an obscure location between rival factions
or in a “public” space such as Danzig St. or the Eaton Centre, we must
denounce all incidents of gun violence equally and unequivocally.
Failing to do so only reaffirms the dangerous fallacy that the lives of
some are less valued than those of others in our city, thus contributing
to the sense of hopelessness faced by many youth.
Read on...
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