CCWC mag Sept-Oct 2020_web

Soweto, by B. Christmas, 2011
By Bob Chrismas
The
Freedom of
Convenience
Have you ever stopped to think
about how much freedom we
Canadians have, in relation to other
countries, but also in the context of
our own history? At any moment,
in any developed area of Canada,
we can choose to pop down to the
corner store with no thought of
being arrested by corrupt soldiers
and police, stepping on a landmine,
being attacked by marauding
criminals, or poisoned by poorly
regulated products. This is not the
case in many other places in the
world. Reflecting back on my own
life, having been born and raised
in Canada, I’ve had an interest in
justice and protecting peoples
rights; I’ve worked my entire adult
life in peace-keeping and law
enforcement, first for several years
as a soldier, then five years as a
sheriff, and now in my 31st year of
policing. I’ve seen a lot of change,
and completing my PhD in peace
and conflict studies as well as some
of my travels have given me some
perspective on how fortunate we
are in Canada. At the same time, it is
difficult to acknowledge that there
are still people living in many places
without clean running water or the
living standards that are enjoyed
by most Canadians. In the case of
many of Canada’s isolated reserves
it is still not worked out how to
get healthy reasonably priced
foods in to them. Many people are
forced to pay exorbitant prices for
food and the overall desperation
of poverty and hopelessness
plays a significant part in high
suicide rates and violence. I saw
similar effects of colonization and
settlement in 2011, when I had
the transformative experience of
travelling across South Africa.
CONVENIENCE & CARWASH CANADA / 19