Canada has an empathy problem. It is hurting not only those we lack compassion for but all of us, collectively, albeit in different ways. The nature of this problem lies in a colonial tradition of denial and a cultural manifestation of the Other. The “Indian” problem is actually the Settler problem.
The ramifications of this predicament reveal themselves clearly in the interdependent banners of human rights, civil society, and the environment. Without compassion and a true understanding of equal human rights for all we cannot engage in the intergroup relations needed to build a healthy civil society capable of absorbing social shocks. These shocks will become increasingly frequent and intense on a planet moving rapidly towards a future of acute resource shortages and irreversible damage to the biological systems that keep us alive.
Confronting this empathy problem will require acknowledging a deep identity crisis within Canadian nation-project that will leave us, in every sense of the word, unsettled. To begin, we must cultivate liminal spaces where Canadians can engage in a lifelong practice of critical self-reflection. This process of spiritual reconciliation necessarily begins and ends with compassion.
