Re: Paris attack “a declaration of war” The Leader, Jan. 13.
It was interesting to see the headline on page 3, and then read “This is what happened to our people” on page 10.
In times of fear, we face our greatest test as a society.
The article on the unfair persecution and internment of Ukrainians in the First World War shows our country did not do so well then, nor did we do well in 1942 when the government unfairly took away the rights, property and freedom of over 21,000 of its citizens.
Most were born in Canada and all were of Japanese ancestry. There was no evidence to support the internment, just fear-mongering.
Never again. Yet, we see our current prime minister declaring that new anti-terror laws to undertake detentions, arrests and other actions are necessary.
Rather than using tragic events to take away people’s rights, we should be looking at ways to address the growing inequality, lack of support for mental health issues and racism which seeks to divide people. Isn’t that the role of good government?
Lorene Oikawa, Surrey
