Letters | Even Canada isn’t safe from Trump’s tariff threats, let alone China
Readers discuss America’s treatment of friends and rivals, Malaysia’s amendments to its citizenship laws, and improving Hong Kong’s harbourfront
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If you think it’s hard being America’s rival, try being its friend.
As a fifth generation Chinese Canadian living in Hong Kong, I have found that many people are surprised to hear that Canadians have very little appreciation for American politics. Some people assume that because we are close allies, Canadians would be aligned with the United States. This couldn’t be further from the truth.
While some Chinese might assume that Canadians look favourably upon Americans, a poll cited in the Toronto Star this summer indicates that 40 per cent of Canadians hold negative views of the US. Canadians often perceive our southern neighbour as a hegemonic bully. The American notion that Canada is its “little brother” is simply patronising. On a 2002 episode of The Simpsons that depicted Toronto, Homer called Canada “America Junior”.
While the same poll indicates that 75 per cent of Americans have positive views of Canadians, in practice it seems such positivity rarely shines through.
