Recordings reveal Ontario schools frequently play ‘O Canada’ in non-official languages
True North has obtained exclusive recordings from a school in the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board that reveal that ‘O Canada’ is routinely played in multiple languages other than English.
True North has obtained exclusive recordings of morning announcements from a school in the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board that reveal that ‘O Canada’ is routinely played in multiple languages other than English or French.
These recordings, collected over the past year, come despite the Education Minister’s recent warning that the anthem must only be broadcast in its official forms as outlined by the law.
The recordings, shared with True North, capture morning announcements where ‘O Canada’ was played in various languages. A source within the Hamilton board confirmed that this is not an isolated case, and that schools across several Ontario boards have been doing the same for years, contrary to the National Anthem Act
The audio quality is poor as the recording was made on a phone during live morning announcements broadcast over the PA system.
Education Minister Paul Calandra issued a statement on Oct. 7 after Earl Haig Secondary School in Toronto played ‘O Canada’ in Arabic on the second anniversary of the Hamas attacks on Israel.
“It is hard to believe that no one recognized the significance of this day,” Calandra said. “School boards should be focused on creating safe learning environments for all students, never at the expense of one community over another.”
He went on to warn boards that “the National Anthem Act sets out that the official lyrics are in English or French, and if school boards choose not to respect our national symbols and federal legislation, then I will take action.”
True North contacted the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board to confirm the authenticity of the recordings and to ask whether the board intends to continue the practice following Calandra’s directive. No response was received by publication time.
As reported by True North on Oct. 7, sources at Earl Haig Secondary School said the Arabic version was selected by students and played without the principal’s prior knowledge. He later met with Jewish students and staff to apologize, calling it an “oversight.”
True North has been contacted by many teachers from several Ontario school boards who shared the same information: ‘O Canada’ is commonly played in languages other than French or English.
“It’s meant to reflect diversity,” a teacher at another board told True North. “Each month they choose a different language version to play. It’s considered inclusive, but nobody really thought about whether it was allowed.”
"Nobody really thought about whether it was allowed". Poor excuse. This is Canada. These are public schools and therefore the anthem should be in English or French. The anthem should be a way of showing national pride to those children of different backgrounds/cultures who now live in Canada. Would this happen in any other country?
By the way, there are lots of different ways to reflect diversity for children in school that won't displace the national pride these children should feel in being Canadian.