Justin Trudeau appeals to voters with memory of father, comments on Quebec

"My father always used to tell me that when you are paddling across a big lake, and the clouds get darker and the wind comes up, and the waves start to show white caps and break a little more, there really only is one thing to do," Justin Trudeau said Friday evening while campaigning in Vaughan. "Sing louder and paddle harder!"

The heartfelt story wasn’t random, rather it was a celebration of the Prime Minister’s late father Pierre Elliott Trudeau, who would have been 100 on October 18, 2019. In the spirit of his father, Trudeau hoped to sure up votes and supporters of his progressive policies, many of which found their grounding in the 70s as a result of Pierre Trudeau’s Multiculturalism Policy in 1971.

This policy began the formal recognition of Canada as a bilingual state, which was done to placate Quebec who had been fighting for sovereignty and separation — something which remains a looming possibility, today.

While Elliott Trudeau’s move prevented Quebec from leaving the confederation, his son, Justin, is still dealing with separatist sentiments and Quebec’s desire to be governed provincially, rather than federally, with its own distinct set of laws. Recently, the most notable of such laws is Bill 21, the religious secularism bill which prevents those working in public offices from wearing religious symbols.

Justin Trudeau has been criticized for his soft position on the issue of Quebec enacting laws that run counter to the rest of the country’s principles and laws. Overall, Trudeau’s position is that what Quebec is doing is wrong, but he is unlikely to intervene.

"I have made it very clear that I do not think that a government should be telling people what it is they should or shouldn't wear, but Quebecers themselves are taking this law to court and defending the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, as is their right," Trudeau said during a campaign stop in Whitby the same day.

"I have said that my federal government would not intervene at this stage," he added, "but I also have not closed the door to intervening at a later stage," said Trudeau.

"Because we understand that a federal government always needs to be there, potentially, to defend rights, like women's rights, like LGBT rights, like minority rights, like the rights of francophones outside of Quebec."

All other candidates have so far not committed to intervening in Quebec’s politics, and, as Quebec continues to flex its muscles against the weight of the federal government, it is possible that Trudeau’s father’s efforts may have been all for not.