Posted on July 7, 2023
Trudeau ‘Open’ to Changing O Canada Lyrics, Says It’s up to Canadians
Richard Raycraft, CBC, July 1, 2023
The prime minister says he’s not opposed to the idea of changing the lyrics of Canada’s national anthem, but said rewrites will only come after consultation with Canadians.
Calls are growing to change the words “home and native land” to “home on Native land” after singer Jully Black sang the latter while performing O Canada at the 2023 NBA all-star game. The Assembly of First Nations honoured Black in response to the lyrical tweak.
Bonnie Crombie, the mayor of Mississauga, a former Liberal MP and candidate for the Ontario Liberal leadership has endorsed changing the lyrics. Crombie presented a motion to Mississauga City Council that requested Ottawa make the change, which the council deferred.
When asked by CBC’s Catherine Cullen about Jully Black’s version of O Canada that contains the verse ‘our home on native land,’ Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he looks forward to discussing with Indigenous people on how the anthem ‘could or might change.’
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