Why Canada has cooled on Justin Trudeau
After his party’s stunning victory in the last election, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stood in front of his newly formed cabinet – half men and half women – and was asked why gender parity was so important to him.
His response: “Because it’s 2015.”
The comment generated ripples around the world and became an iconic moment in the rise of “cool Canada” – a powerful voice for gender equality, environmentalism, indigenous rights, and ethical politics. Mr. Trudeau became an international role model for progressives, especially as the path of liberalism seemed increasingly obstructed everywhere else, with the election of President Donald Trump, Britain’s decision to leave the European Union, the rise of the far-right across Europe, and the increasingly authoritarian grip of Chinese leadership.
Today Canada is still lauded on the international stage, despite growing disillusionment with the state of politics here and embarrassing scandals that have grabbed global headlines. Yet as the troubles of the world seem to
“Trudeau has got to work a lot harder”Deep fault lines
