The Beowulf Award

I was debating on whether or not I should give Christopher White the Beowulf award.  After all, what has he done except exercise his democratic right to protest?  In fact, isn’t it really the responsibility of all Canadians to guard our democracy?

As I looked at the facebook site he had created, it hit me.  Not only Christopher, but all of those people who contributed really do fit the criteria.  They have taken on the monster of apathy, the evil of the assault on democracy, the defeatist attitude that average Canadians cannot effect change and they got this incredible momentum going, never stalling in the face of criticism or ridicule as others tried to trivialize what they were doing.

It is not necessary to succeed completely to win the award, it is only necessary to have made a stand, and Christopher White, along with all who joined in have done that.

But they also succeeded.  Regardless of how the rallies go, they woke up many Canadians, drew attention to our ailing democracy, inspired thousands, established a network of activists and concerned citizens that will no doubt outlive the prorogation issue.

So the winners of the Beowulf Award are:

Christopher White, creator of the facebook account “Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament;”

All the legitimate members of Canadians Against Proroguing Parliament (excludes trolls), special mention to the many who are working so hard organizing events, doing research, up-dating us on events, informing us of articles of interest, setting helpful links, networking, finding speakers, getting material together for rallies...;

All of those who support the rallies in any way, either by showing up, spreading the word, organizing, donating, or taking the time to become informed;

All of those who have written letters to newspapers, posted on blogs, written to Parliamentarians or other people in a bid to fight for our country and rights in this instance.

I have personally seen people go from feeling they could do nothing against Harper’s onslaught on our rights and freedoms to getting very involved in helping prepare for the rallies, distribute information, convince others of the importance of getting involved, and most important, realizing that we citizens have power and are responsible for shaping our democracy.

What Christopher White and those who have worked so hard as a result of his initiating this movement will help us create a healthier democracy if we continue what they have started.