Beware. No Shit Allowed.

I made a mistake today. I went on Facebook.

At its best, Facebook is just a deep hole of time wasting. But at its worst, it’s a platform for spreading hate.

That’s what I encountered today … and from a relative. It was naked racism. Islamophobia in all its ugliness.

Here in Canada we are in the middle of a federal election campaign. I’ve lived long enough to have watched election campaigns devolve into personal attacks about how a candidate looks – never mind their policies. No longer is it a time of healthy and meaningful debate about what works and what doesn’t.

The shit-slingers are out in full force spreading their upgraded brands of intolerance and hate.

Normally I would just do a slow, angry burn and move along. But today was different. I’ve been carrying a fire in my belly for the past few days and I just couldn’t let this go. That whole ‘turning the other cheek’ bullshit? Yeah, no.

I’m breathing fire and brimstone.

But I did something I don’t often do. I asked my husband, Gilles, his opinion. You know what I mean – “be careful what you ask for, because you might get it”.

Well, his response surprised me. It shouldn’t have, but it did. Normally he is the fire-and-brimstone guy and I’m talking him off a ledge. But today the roles were reversed.

He advised me that IF I felt the need to respond, then I shouldn’t do it from a place of anger, but from a place of positivity. (WTF?)

Well, I was positively angry … could he be more specific?

He was, and as a result, the following was my response on Facebook to a very ugly racist post.

My name is Joanne Sisco and I’m a proud 1st generation Canadian. {Why did I need to state my name to a relative? Because the ugly meme that was posted started with “My name is John Newton. I am a Canadian born citizen ….}

I’m proud & grateful that this country has a long history of welcoming people who are less fortunate than we are, and desperate for a chance at a better life – regardless of colour, religion, or nationality.

That included my grandparents, even at a time when Italians, and some other European nationalities, were looked down upon as inferior and undesirable.

I’m grateful to live in such a diverse country where I’ve been exposed to the multiple languages, cultures, & religions of the world.

I’m grateful to have worked beside & played with Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, and Christians alike from all corners of the world. I’m grateful for their friendships, and the stories we have shared over food & drink. I’m grateful they have helped me learn that we are all one people with the same basic needs & wants – a better life for our family.

Some people don’t understand that yet.

But Canada does.

And I’m proud 🇨🇦