Here’s how Canadians can resist Trump’s bullying and intimidation

This op-ed, written by the Council’s chairperson John Cartwright, was first published in the Toronto Star on February 10, 2025.

The day before Donald Trump was to impose tariffs and reprisals against Canada, leading Canadians from across the country made a call for solidarity in the face of his words of disrespect and threats that would cripple our economy.

At a media conference on Parliament Hill, we launched the non-partisan Pledge for Canada / Engagement pour le Canada, endorsed by a wide array of people — former elected leaders, labour and Indigenous leaders, lawyers and scholars, national climate and social justice organization leaders, senior public servants, athletes and artists. The Pledge garnered tens of thousands of signatures within hours of going public, and we are inviting every Canadian to sign on.

It became evident within hours of the launch that Canadians wanted the opportunity to express their resolve to defend Canada’s sovereignty and to urge our leaders to work together to that end. The thousands of signatures reflect a common resolve to resist bullying and intimidation.

Across the country, people are anxious and concerned about what will happen next. Despite the temporary reprieve, the threat is already impacting workers, families and businesses. We must be prepared for years of turmoil.

We have already seen people taking matters into their own hands, from what we consume and where we travel.

But others are calling for accommodation and alignment with the politics of Donald Trump, and that is simply not acceptable. As in any war, this country needs to have a clear plan to defeat what can only be described as economic gunboat diplomacy. Instead of diverse and competing interests muddying the waters and sometimes arguing against strong action, we wanted to create a framework for action based on our best common values — and then invite Canadians to organize in their own communities to pressure decision-makers to be bold and decisive.

The reality is that we can only defend ourselves by joining together across partisan, regional, and cultural differences, to look out for one another, to protect our shared interests and assets, and to safeguard our democracy.

That requires solidarity among Canadians and among our political leaders at all levels of government. We are calling on our leaders to work together across partisan divides to forcefully affirm and defend Canada’s sovereignty. The list of founding signatories for the pledge shows the diversity of Canadians who support these values — including a former prime minister and three former premiers, representing three different political parties from across the political spectrum, and many who identify with no political party or ideology.

We must also forge an all-of-Canada approach that is built collaboratively and balances our shared and diverse interests. We must also respect and protect the rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. No region or sector should seek to secure favour at the expense of the rest of the country. Doing so would drive a wedge between us at a time when we need unity.

Additionally, we have seen the impact of disinformation combined with deeply disturbing actions south of the border, and thus we also know that our democracy needs to be protected from foreign interference.

Canadians have quickly learned that we must reduce our dependence on the United States by diversifying our trade and strengthening the institutions necessary to defend and build the Canada we want. That includes full commitments to democracy and human rights, equity and labour rights, environmental responsibility, reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, and good global citizenship.

In this time of turmoil, we know we can’t succeed alone. As in any uneven fight, we must seek and build alliances with other countries that want to protect the rule of law and dignity of humankind.

John Cartwright joined with Charlie Angus, Esi Edugyan, Alex Himelfarb, Anne Lagace Dowson, Craig Scott, Jean Teillet, and Mark Tewksbury to launch the Canada Pledge initiative. www.canadapledge.ca.