… Since environmental regulations gutted Change Islands’ fishing industry in the early ’90s, unemployment has skyrocketed. As a result, its local young population is moving away in search of a better future. If Change Islands were in the United States, it would likely be caught up in the populist wave of Trump-ism. But that hasn’t been the case. …
While populism seems to be sweeping across the West, Canada remains a glaring exception. As far right parties rise in Europe, England voted for Brexit, and the U.S. elected Donald Trump, populist parties remain on the fringe of Canada’s right-wing. Its recently elected progressive prime minister, Justin Trudeau, brags about appointing the most diverse cabinet in Canadian history and reacted to the United States’ ban on refugees by inviting refugees to seek Canadian citizenship. A poll last week showed 84 percent of Canadians disapprove of Trump. In Newfoundland & Labrador, the easternmost province of Canada where Change Islands is situated, Trudeau’s party won every seat. CONT.
Phoebe Sengers, Pacific Standard