Jean Chrétien at the 30th Anniversary Ceremony of the Canadian Flag

It is a great honour for me to join in this celebration of the 30th anniversary of the Canadian flag.

Many people - especially young Canadians - are surprised to learn that our flag has only been with us for 30 years. It seems like the flag has always been part of our country. Part of our identity. Part of our life.

It is hard to believe that the very idea of the flag was once terribly controversial. That it was the subject of bitter debate. That it set Canadian against Canadian. That Members of Parliament actually broke out into fist fights.

It is hard to believe. But it is all true.

I saw it all with my own eyes as a young Member of Parliament.

I will never forget the emotions. Or the arguments.

People said we were ignoring tradition. That we were insulting the memory of the brave men who fought and died in two world wars under the Red Ensign. Others said the issue was too divisive for the government to raise. Or that MPs should be debating serious problems not the design of a flag.

But through it all, was the conviction of a committed group of Canadians, led by Lester Pearson.

Canadians like my former colleague in the House, John Matheson, who took up the challenge in such a personal way. He and George Stanley actually designed our flag. They made a great contribution to Canada. And they are with us today, thirty years later. On behalf of all Canadians, I salute them.

They knew that a country must have symbols that make us all proud. Symbols that bind us together.

People said the House of Commons would never recover from the divisions of the flag debate. That the country would never be the same. That the flag would never be accepted by all Canadians.

They were wrong.

I think something magical happened that cold day thirty years ago when Lester Pearson raised our flag for the first time.

Because in no time at all, the flag became a symbol that everyone embraced.

It became the symbol not of a government or a party or an elite. But of the people. Quietly, confidently, naturally, the Canadian people took ownership.

And in thirty years, that attachment has just grown stronger and stronger.

Across Canada, it flies in every city, town and village. It flies from private homes. In parks and schools. Wherever people gather. It is an instant symbol that says "this is my country, and I am proud to belong here."

Around the world it flies too. It flies in far off places like Rwanda and Bosnia as a symbol of hope and humanity amid all the suffering and horror. To these people it means safety. It means peace. It means relief from their ordeal.

We also see it stitched onto the backpacks of young Canadians out to discover the world.

For them it is a passport to a warm and open welcome.

From a bitter, divisive debate thirty years ago to a proud universal symbol today.

That is something we should all remember. Because there are people today who say that our country may not recover from its current debates. That there is too much division.

Well, they are wrong. Just as the nay-sayers thirty years ago were wrong. Because they both have underestimated the determination of the people of Canada to build a country.

To triumph over history and geography. To set an example for the world.

We will continue setting that example. Together. For a long, long time to come.

Vive le Canada!


Return to regular web page:
http://www.pco-bcp.gc.ca/default.asp?Language=E&Page=archivechretien&Sub=Speeches&Doc=speeches1995021548_e.htm