The COVID-19 pandemic is a type of threat governments seldom face — one that can’t be fought solely with the usual tools of public policy. For Canada’s coronavirus response plan to work, Canadians themselves have to take part.
Appearing in front of Rideau Cottage on Tuesday, Justin Trudeau offered another update on the latest actions the federal government is taking to assist Canadians. He also spent a significant portion of his remarks stressing what Canadians themselves can do — emphasizing an appeal that has been central to the government’s message since the beginning of this crisis.
“Right now we must all work together,” the prime minister said. “The bottom line is this. Each one of us can make choices that help the people around us. In fact we can make choices that will save lives. If we act now — even if it seems like a big ask — things will be better tomorrow.”
On any normal day, government does not demand much of citizens. But the coronavirus is bringing calls for a new era of active citizenship, social solidarity and personal and shared responsibility.
Canadian citizenship is not entirely without responsibilities. Citizens are expected to pay their taxes, follow the law and respect the rights of their fellow Canadians.
But beyond the expectation that we’ll adhere to those basic parameters, governments don’t ask or demand much of us. Actual calls for sacrifice are rare.
Representative democracy delegates most of the responsibility for studying and deciding on public policy to MPs and government ministers. Public sentiment does affect those decisions, but it’s widely accepted that most people are too busy with their own direct responsibilities (family, work, personal health) to pay close attention to what’s happening in and around Parliament.
We hope that people will vote every few years, but there is no penalty for failing to do so, and elections will have results regardless of how many or how few people cast ballots.
Canadians are not otherwise docile. We donate to charities and contribute to community organizations, churches and schools. But even our wars are now fought without calls for broad contributions or personal sacrifice.
Mobilizing the homefront
Think of the fierce debate around carbon taxes — where even the promise of full rebates is not enough to si