We often take things for granted — until they are threatened. Our neighborhood independent bookstore, the nearby Tim Hortons, our friends and family members… our country. On several occasions over the past month, both before and after US President Donald Trump assumed office, he has suggested annexing Canada and making it the 51st state of the USA.

My parents immigrated to Canada in the 1960s with my sister and me as young children. Although they retained many aspects of their Indian culture, they joyfully immersed themselves in their new lives and appreciated what the country had to offer. They worked hard, looked after us as children and, over the weekends, gathered with friends to explore the beautiful outdoors. And after the requisite five years of living there, when they were eligible to get Canadian citizenship, they took it unhesitatingly; they had committed to their new country.

Our story is not unique. After all, apart from the First Nations, Canada is a land of immigrants.

Nationalism, eh?

Growing up in Canada as an assured Canadian, I never gave it much thought. As an adult, I lived all over the world. My mentality was that of a global nomad. I’ve never been nationalistic. In fact, I’ve always found the sentiment that “my country is the best” somewhat distasteful. 

However, there are other definitions of nationalism I can accept. The Oxford English Dictionary says it’s “a feeling of love or pride for one’s own country.” Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary defines it as “a nation’s wish to be politically independent.”

Indeed, it has irked me to be lumped in with Americans. In my travels, I’ve encountered people abroad who made the throw-away comment, “There’s no difference between Canadians and Americans.” I should have replied, “Yeah, just like there’s no difference between Indians and Pakistanis, Japanese and Koreans, Iraqis and Iranians, Costa Ricans and Panamanians, the Saudis and the Qataris, Russians and Ukrainians.”

From across the border, we were used to hearing about “Great American” everything from the Great American Dream and the Great American Novel to the Great American Bagel; we found it more humorous than anything else. Being more humble folk, we don’t seem to say ‘great Canadian anything’ — and yet, we do have much to be proud of. We don’t have “the Great Canadian Dream,” but we have ample space for many dreams. We don’t have “the Great Canadian Novel,” but we have the inclusivity and imagination for many diverse stories. We don’t have “the Great Canadian Military”, but we have principles and heart.

Now that we’re hearing about “the Great American Empire” … and it’s not sounding so funny.

Man-bites-dog Moment

In fact, Canadians are gobsmacked. For many decades, Canada has followed the US as a faithful little brother. Canada fought next to America in both World Wars as well as several recent wars of America’s choosing. Both are members of NATO. The two share intelligence through the Five Eyes network. Canada is the only country, apart from Israel, that has voted consistently with the US on UN resolutions — sometimes even putting its moral compass aside to do so — such as supporting Israel despite their inarguably violation of international laws and human rights. The US is Canada’s biggest trading partner. During the 1979 hostage incident, Canadian diplomats in Tehran helped six Americans escape. During 9/11, more than 250 flights heading to the US were diverted to Canada, many to Newfoundland, whose locals showered the passengers with hospitality. Canada stood with America against Huawei’s — and therefore China’s — 5G dominance. In 2018, at the request of the US, Canada detained a Huawei executive; Canada bore the brunt of China’s wrath as they in turn detained the ‘Two Michaels’. Last year, following the US, Canada put a 100% tariff on Chinese-made EVs. And just in January this year, Canada sent personnel and equipment to help fight the wildfires near Los Angeles.

After being such close allies for so long, Canadians are stunned by Trump’s threats. While some have called the recent emergence of the Chinese-developed AI DeepSeek as America’s ‘Sputnik moment’, I would call this Canada’s ‘man-bites-dog moment’.

I’ve been in India these last couple of months, listening to these repeated threats. Sometimes, seeing something from afar can give you a different perspective. I’m reminded of the famous ‘Blue Marble’ photo of the earth taken from space decades ago which made us realize how precious and fragile and alone it is. I feel that way now about Canada.

And Canada may not be the only one under threat. As Spain and Portugal divided up the New World in 1494, as Britain and France divided up the Middle East in 1916, could the US, Russia and China carve up the world amongst themselves? Russia can have Ukraine and indeed Europe. China can have Asia. And the US can have North America.

Some believe Trump’s threats against Canadian sovereignty are simply his negotiating tactic; he’s trying to scare Canada in order to get the most favorable trade deal for America. Perhaps. Others say he’s just testing the waters. If so, for what? An invasion like Russia has tried with Ukraine? An annexation, similar to the 1938 Anschluss?

No matter his intentions, we can never go back to blithely trusting the US. 

Speak Softly and Carry a… Biggish Stick

In the face of this existential challenge, we need more than moral outrage, more than tit-for-tat tariffs, more than our politicians flying to the US to try to convince Trump of the error of his ways. Canada must wean itself off the US and become independent — economically, militarily, diplomatically — as well as build a strong network of new friends.

As Canadians, we need to get informed about Canada, the US and the world while understanding the ramifications of Trump 2.0. Realizing the gravity of the situation facing us is something we as Canadians must do. We need to put aside all differences and come together as a country — east and west, liberal and conservative, government and business, First Nations and immigrants, French and English. We need to tighten our belts. Wherever possible, each of us should ‘buy’ Canada and avoid holidays in the US. We must make our case on social media; we need to be frequent, constant, loud, funny, engaging and convincing. Each of us can use our own skills and networks and influence to help and promote Canada. 

As a country, we need to emphasize and facilitate trade across provinces (with more infrastructure and less restrictions). We need to develop our own military. We must become self-sufficient in critical products such as essential foods, pharmaceuticals and electronics. We need to be able to produce the entire car, and eventually military vehicles, EVs and other products of the future. We need to develop hard economic power by doing several things: increasing and expanding manufacturing facilities, leading to high-value finished products being made in Canada; investing in research and development; adopting new technologies (including AI); inviting in highly skilled immigrants like engineers and scientists from all over the world, including the US; and focusing on export markets beyond the US. We should look to and learn from other low-population but highly successful economies — such as Australia and the Scandinavian countries — to make ourselves more productive. We should learn from China, which has been assiduously preparing for Trump 2.0. And we could even look to the US to see how it is weaning itself off China.

 And while we are working to improve our harder forms of power, we also need to increase our soft power. We need to advertise our values. We need to remind ourselves and others that we are a reliable team player and a member of many international organizations — including some that the US is not, like The International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court and the World Health Organization. We need to form strong bilateral relationships with numerous and diverse countries, including rising alternative superpowers. We can look to join existing alliances such as BRICS. We could even form a new ‘axis of resistance’ called TBT — Tariffed by Trump or Threatened by Trump; there may be a growing number of candidates. We need skilled and driven and — dare I say it — nationalistic diplomats, negotiators, lawyers, economists, politicians, business leaders, celebrities, and public relations and social media experts all fighting for Canada. We need our influencers to get on social media to post about and uphold Canada’s sovereignty. We need our most articulate and impressive public personalities to go on popular podcasts and talk shows. We need to promote our country as a counter to the US — as a land of immense beauty and space (both literally and figuratively); a reliable country that has a stable political environment and adheres to rule of law; and a compassionate and diverse people with liberal and democratic values.

From far and wide, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy.