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Contributor: grusso
Date: 2003-03-04 10:33:29
I agree that there are varying degrees of anti-Americanism in Canada, but as an American living in Canada (a landed immigrant), I must say that I have not felt put out at all.
Much of the sentiment one finds is related to "cultural imperialism," for example, the proliferation of US based big box stores, the dominance of Hollywood in our entertainment etc. But as I have always said to individuals who have confronted me, if they chose not to frequent these places of business, if they chose to encourage Canadian based enterprises, art, etc. then they would be empowered to "stem the tide," as it were.
Much of the "anti-Americanism" one finds in Canada assumes that Americans in general are either flooding Canada with cultural items, and/or that the average American wants to annex Canada. Neither of these is a true statement. Anti-Americanism, I feel, is misdirected at the population when in fact, the problem is routed either in trade policies and the choices that Canadian consumers make every day or in other governmental agreements with the US.
With respect to foreign policy, anti-Americanism is likely a disagreement with the policy of the current US government and not with the people of the US. Even within the US there is a strong and growing sense of this form of "anti-Americanism" as it were. It is called "dissent." This is one of the great things about living in a free and open society that we are all entitled to our opinions and that we can express them.
In my own life, when confronted with either form of what is called "anti-Americanism," I do not take it personally, but rather, I try to redirect the legitimate concerns of whomever I am talking with and I ask questions about exaclty how or why they have come to feel the way they do. More often than not, I share their concerns and can suggest how they may take matters into their own hands and act on their feelings in their daily lives.
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