Queer Ottawa #1

This is old but I forgot to post it. The first post in a series on Queer Ottawa history can be found here.

Jordan

Remarks on the Occasion of the Unveiling of the Statue of L.B. Pearson on Parliament Hill...

I was recently given a copy of the remarks made Lester B. Pearon's late son Geoffrey (he's GAHP in the top right corner) on the unveiling of his fathers statue on Parliament Hill in 1990. Geoffrey Pearson wrote "Seize the Day : Lester B. Pearson and crisis diplomacy" (Carleton University Press, 1993) which traces his father's role as Secretary of State for External Affairs and was working through a book on LBP as prime minister before he passed away in 2008. I do believe (though I'd have to check to confirm) that he assisted in LBP's memoirs and a biography written on the former Prime Minister. Geoffrey Pearson led a distinguished diplomatic and public service career,with several ambassadorial positions, including to the USSR from 1980-1983.


Anyway, here's a photograph of the remarks. I thought they were worth sharing.

Jordan Kerr

Busy, Busy, Busy...

School is about two weeks in and I'm swamped! The work hit me like a tidal wave and as such I haven't had time to post here. I do post on Monday's on Christoper Moore's History News. I have a few ideas for posts here just not the time to realize them!

I hope everyone's settling into Autumn nicely!

JK

Justin Trudeau Eulogy of P.E. Trudeau...

This still gets to me when I watch it. Perhaps from this it can be gleaned that Justin has more of a political future than what many have assumed.

random uni student

New post...

'Queering Ottawa's History' at Christopher Moore's History News

"Curing Gays Isn't Charity..."

With my various posts on Tommy Douglas and queer history you'd be correct to assume that I sit somewhere on the left side of the political spectrum. However, I don't want to make this blog too directly political, aside from the occasional comment on less sensitive issues. So, I won't comment on these two links from (what I believe is) a leading Canadian LGBT blog, "Slap Upside the Head". and you let take from them what you will.

"Curing" Gays Isn't Charity
Slap Into Action: "Curing" Gays Isn't Charity

The blog was found via this post from Hill Queeries, the political blog from the LGBT newspaper Xtra!

random uni student

National Post on Tommy Douglas and...Jack Bauer?...worst article ever!

In connection to my last post, I happened to glance at the National Post today in a corner store and noticed there was an article on the soon-to-be unveiled Tommy Douglas statue. When I got home I looked up the paper online (because...really, who actually buys the paper anymore?) and found a candidate for the worst newspaper article of the year! On the front page of the Post (yes, you read that right, the front page) with two huge pictures of Tommy Douglas and Keifer Sutherland is a critique of current political issues from the perspective of....wait for it...Jack Bauer, the fictional Fox TV character of "24". Sure, I can see doing an article on what Keifer thinks about the issues, showing the evolution of the family and differences time has made but honestly, what the hell does Jack Bauer have to do with the perspectives of Tommy Douglas or current Canadian political issues for that matter!

Sure, the article is cheeky and I'm not saying it doesn't have a place in the paper or is useless but honestly, does it really deserve to be front page news and be the only article on the Douglas statue? Seems demeaning to me...but maybe it's supposed to be...as the National Post is a rather conservative paper. I still would have expected more respect even from a conservative paper. Hopefully they'll have a more tasteful article on Friday on the unveiling...but I'm going to assume we can read about it on page c-12.

I know it's only a comment article and not a news article...but it's still useless and rather inappropriate. In the Post's weak defense I will note that they do mention Douglas as a "Canadian political icon".

Be annoyed!

random uni student

Tommy Douglas statue...Tommy says nay!

So, CBC tells me (thanks to my partner for passing on the Tweet!) that a statue of Tommy Douglas will be unveiled in Weyburn Sask. (what can be considered his home town and his constituency as Premier) by his grandson Keifer Sutherland, best known for his role in Fox TV's series '24'. It seems that acting runs in the family as he's the son of Shirley Douglas and Donald Sutherland and Tommy himself was an actor in his early years I believe).

I love the idea of a Douglas statue but, while it's placement in Weyburn is fitting and appropriate, as a central Canadian federalist I'd prefer it on Parliament Hill! But, I don't think Tommy would be too wild about the statue and as soon as I find my source I can tell you why! (I...um..may have left the book in a friends car).

Going on without my source, my feeling is that Tommy would have thought of himself as part of a movement, not the head of a party. His work was that of the movement and not, necessarily, for political or personal gain. To him, I believe, the movement, the ideals and the successes should be recognized, not the leaders. But, that's just my feeling.

More to come!

random uni student

Guest blogging...

Hi Everyone,

For the upcoming school year I've been accepted as a guest blogger at Christopher Moore's History News. I'll try to keep posting regularly at his blog and my own.

Enjoy!

Jordan Kerr

Ontario History Textbooks

Came across this historical survey of Ontario history textbooks in the 20th century at ActiveHistory.ca by Larry A. Glassford of the University of Windsor:

Citizenship Literacy and National Self-identity: The Historical Impact of Curriculum and Textbooks in Shaping the Character of Ontario 

A quick search revealed that Glassford has written several items on Ontario education history.

It's a fairly compact article and draws conclusions about the power of schools for political socialization. I enjoyed it but couldn't help but thinking, 'my god, it was boring enough reading these textbooks in public school and high school, how did this man survive reading through them all and writing about them without reverting to some sort of bored and resentful adolescent state?'

For those of you who went to Ontario elementary or high school I'm sure the narratives for the mid and late 20th century texts will sound painfully familiar and dredge up memories of awful boredom as you force-read passages from these texts whilst sitting in blandly painted classrooms...enjoy!

random uni student