I've written in the past about tolerance and respect, though I've never had the right way to put this before.
The other day I was reading through Facebook posts and came across one cartoon. The split picture had the top one showing a Caucasian male eating a sandwich outside of a mosque. The line read, "If I visited your mosque without taking my shoes off and eating a bacon sandwich you'd say I was intolerant of other cultures and traditions."
The bottom picture was of three individuals standing near the parliament buildings in London with niqab's on. That photo read, "So what makes you think you can live in our country and have no respect or tolerance for our culture and traditions by not integrating?"
Canada is multi-cultural, I fully believe this, but there are some laws like needing to be able to see someone's face in court which just makes sense. This, however, for a female Muslim may be considered taboo, but it is a law in Canada and therefore has to be abided by.
My grandma is originally from Holland and understands that Canada is a melting pot; she's very proud to be from Holland, but at the same time she is a proud Canadian. She doesn't wear her wooden shoes around and has decided that being a Dutch Canadian comes with abiding by Canadian law, while celebrating her culture through food, displaying her Dutch heritage at home, and has participated in culture days where she has dressed in Dutch attire right down to her wooden shoes.
Canada is a place for cultures to be celebrated but within the laws of the country. Though religious freedom is protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, there are, I believe, certain instances where it is necessary to maintain our laws and not bend them around each different ethnic group in Canada.
After all if we were to go to another country and disrespect their laws they would be offended. For example, if I were to travel to the United Arab Emirates, I would research their laws, which after a quick Google search came up with the avoidance of physical contact in public including something as simple as holding hands. While a law in one Emirate law states that the possession of pork is illegal.
Now I don't trust everything on the internet, I've been taught to think critically of the sites I get my information from. These seemingly odd laws to us, ones that we would have to follow there, actually came from the Government of Canada website on travel.
In reality there are weird laws everywhere, or laws we consider weird at least, though they might not be to the residents there. Alligator thieves in Louisiana can be charged with 10 years in prison and a $3,000 fine; while bear wrestling, charging admission to a bear wrestling match or training a bear to wrestle as a felony in Alabama. Running out of gas on the Autobahn and using the emergency lane is also illegal.
Each country, even just provinces or states, have odd laws, but they're laws that have to be abided by and ultimately it's a double standard to expect us to bend ours while we are expected to follow those of other countries.
Everyone is welcome in Canada. Everyone is free to have their own beliefs and views, but being as this is an established country there are laws which regardless of who is coming into the country have to follow.
Usually our culture is about being sorry, we apologize as Canadians constantly. We walk on eggshells and worry about offending people, which for the most part we go too far out of our ways. I'm one of those people who apologize when someone else runs into me, which is stereotypically Canadian and from the stereotypes I've heard I'm actually proud of them. But to be proud of being Canadians we need to keep our culture and stand up for ourselves because other countries are allowed to yet when we do it's considered wrong.
I'm not saying anyone is better than another. I'm just saying if I were to move to another country I would pay attention to their unique culture and traditions, while attempting to find that balance which would allow me to remain a proud Canadian as well as fit in, in a new country.
