O no Canada

56

I sit in Principals meetings
Wondering
As we all ceremoniously discuss
The importance of leadership
In a school setting
Wondering about what is not being said
Canada bombed Kosovo yesterday
Not a peep about it in the administrators’ discussion
Our PM is outraged about ethnic cleansing
That never happened

Wondering why when Israel publicly  plans to assassinate
Its opponents
Killing innocent children in the process
Not a peep from the PM

Wondering why we are asked to vote
And to listen to endless debate
About whether or not to cross a “t” or dot an “i”
In the Constitution
A big Referendum is necessary
But when it is time to drop bombs on small faraway nations
Whose names are not even in the spell-check dictionary
No discussion, no vote, just kill in my name
Oh no Canada

Wondering whether as nazism rose
German principals in German principals’ meetings
Uttered not a peep about what was happening around them
What did they say to their colleagues
What did teachers say to their students
In Nazi Germany
As country after country was invaded and conquered by their country
And bombs were dropped on civilians in Spain
And in Britain?

When Hitler invaded Poland
To prevent ethnic cleansing
An altruistic, humanitarian mission!

Being leaders
The principals must have known it was all lies
Why did they not speak out?
Were they afraid?
Did they care?
Why did they go along?

Why are we going along?

—–
by Roger Lagassé
(Mr. Roger Lagassé is a public school principal in British Columbia, Canada.)