In France, the standard of living has been continuously declining under a steady diet of neo-liberal austerity. So, when president Emmanuel Macron announced a fuel tax, the French erupted in protest. Knowing that the enemy is not just a fuel tax — a cheap measure passed by Macron in an attempt to show compliance with the Paris Climate treaty by passing the buck to daily consumers, the protests were able to push the government back on their decision and win major concessions from the government such as an increase in minimum wage, the cancelation of a tax on low level pensions, tax free overtime pay, and encouraging employers to pay a tax free bonus to all employees.

The amazing gains made by the Yellow Vest movement in France has inspired others to take up the symbol. As such, copycat movements popped up in Belgium and the Netherlands.

Canada’s Yellow Vests

In Canada, however, even though the symbol has been appropriated, the demands and rhetoric have little in common with the original movement. Instead of dealing with issues that will directly and materially benefit all Canadians, the Movement takes on an anti-Liberal, anti-immigration, anti-globalism and pro-pipeline/anti-carbon tax climate change denialist approach.

Not only are these issues limited to how they can impact the wellbeing of Canadians, but the movement has also become home to white nationalists and the Facebook group for the movement, which stands at more than 99,000 members, is a hotbed of conspiracy theorists, anti-semitism, and xenophobia.

The closest thing that the Canadian Yellow Vest movement has in the way of a comparison to the French movement is their disdain of a Carbon Tax. Although even here, a very important differentiation needs to be made in that the French Yellow vest movement was ignited by a Fuel Tax, which is a direct consumer tax as opposed to a production tax which — although also regressive, will also impact industrial producers. This is not to mention that the Canadian government has outlined how the carbon tax will be returned to everyday consumers in the form of rebates with a net gain.

But the Yellow Vest Movement in Canada is not concerned with the nuance of policy. This is evident in their anti-UN and globalism stance where they are convinced that the newly signed and voluntary (not legally binding) UN migration pact — which is aimed at setting better guidelines and discussing best practices of how to deal with mass migration, will open the door to the “Islamisation” of Canada and the loss of Canadian sovereignty to global institutions. This fear is coupled with hatred for ‘illegal immigrants’ degenerating to questions around the intent of ‘multiculturalism’. Here is where Canada’s Yellow Vest movement excels.

Paradoxes and Hate

For Canada’s Yellow Vest Movement, Canada’s signing of the UN migration pact, the work they have been doing to relocate Syrian refugees, and the increase in asylum seekers at the Canada — US border is all indicative of the Liberal government's ploy to replace ‘true’ Canadians and gain votes to ensure the Liberals stay in power. For this theology to stand, members make several acrobatic movements. First, they make the argument that Canada is ‘bringing’ immigrants and asylum seekers in — that is that the government is taking unilateral decisions to bring people in and not that refugees and asylum seekers are escaping tenuous circumstances (to say the least) and are subject to prolonged waiting periods and strict background checks not to mention an arduous bureaucratic form filling process. This allows them to present themselves as victims and the government as the aggressor.

Some members take this further and claim that it is the refugees and asylum seekers themselves that are the aggressors, and what we are witnessing is a coordinated invasion! The government (but only the Liberal government) is in cahoots with these hordes of Arab marauders as it is all too eager to sign away Canadian sovereignty to the UN and its ‘globalist’ agenda! As such, Justin Trudeau should be subject to trial for Treason with the verdict of capital punishment.

In all of this, Canada’s Yellow Vests call on an unlikely ally. First Nations who are also the victim of this ‘replacement’! And here the paradoxes begin. Where First Nations are seen as an ally in the fight against immigration, but a nuisance for standing in the way of pipelines and asking for their sovereignty. Where refugees and immigration are seen as the enemy, yet climate change — which is expected to be the largest contributor to global migration, is seen as non-existent. Where Canada should stop importing oil from Saudi Arabia, but continue to sell arms to it. Where Trudeau is to be tried and killed for treason but is at the same time is the Prime minister who has ardently fought and succeeded in pushing through pipeline plans. Where members are OK with legal immigration, but somehow ‘illegal’ immigration, is obviously an invasion of the country by uniform, organized, and fanatical agents of Islam. Where members have nothing against people of colour or those from other religions, but the lack of ‘white’ immigration is seen as some sort of reverse-racism.

Support from the Mainstream

With these inconsistencies and absurd arguments, it would be easy to dismiss all this rhetoric as the work of some disenfranchized fringe of Canadians. But for this rhetoric to be so proliferated, it cannot have freely come into existence. Real frustrations must be found underneath the rhetoric that can then be manipulated and moulded into this, the belief that the cause of Canada's real problems are due to high immigration targets and~20,000 asylum seekers per year.

This has consistently been the role of Canada’s Conservative Party, and now, the newly formed People’s Party of Canada. Both have actively participated in spreading the misinformation and fear related to immigration in all its forms, from so-called ‘Passport babies’ to juxtaposing the UN Compact on Migration to controlling borders and keeping Canada safe. Injecting the rhetoric of prioritizing ‘legal’ immigration while at the same time obfuscating the fact that all forms of immigration including asylum-seeking via border crossing are legal forms of seeking asylum and have no impact whatsoever on refugee claims filed from abroad or other immigration applicants as each is handled by a different body of government. In other words, there is no such thing as queue jumping and all forms of asylum-seeking, refugee claimants, and immigration we are witnessing are legal. All of this means that the rhetoric pushed by Canada’s Conservative Party is pure opportunism.

A Conscientious way Forward

None of this is an endorsement of the Liberal Party or of Justin Trudeau, who has, on more than one occasion found common ground with the Conservatives such as passing legislation that eats away at workers rights to strike by legislating them back to work. This is simply to say that many of those who hold the beliefs espoused by Canada’s Yellow Vests have been led astray and into absurd political positions. Political positions that, again, will not lead to the improvement of any Canadians’ material conditions.

Nevertheless, it remains important to recognize the anxiety of those rallying around such absurd positions. As job security, especially in energy sectors, fluctuates, and warnings of global financial peril circulate, we need to be looking at more comprehensive ways to deal with uncertainty and ask significantly more difficult questions than should we build pipelines or let in fewer immigrants. The Liberal government, as well as the Conservative party, do not seem to be the leaders to ask, let alone help answer, such difficult questions.