Stephen Downes

The current government plans to deface some pristine Cape Breton wilderness with a 'Mother Canada' monument. Here's the proposal. Here's some coverage of opposition. A photo below:

 

What I find a bit puzzling is why Canada's conservative government - the same government that wants to erect a 'victims of communism' memorial in Ottawa - would want to emulate a series of Soviet-era monuments.

Here's the 1960s era 'Mother Armenia' statue in Yerevan:





Here's Mother Georgia, in Tblisi:



Mother Russia, in Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad):



Mother Motherland, in Kiev.

 

Hero City, Minsk:



Mother Latvia:



Freedom Monument (Mother Pest?) Budapest.



And this one I photographed in Riga, Latvia:



Don't get me wrong; I love every one of these statues. But they speak to a view of the world we more commonly associate with an all-embracing state. It seems an odd choice of design for the Harper Conservatives.

The one thing the 'Mother Canada' proposal does not have in common with the other statues: the other statues are designed to be seen. This statue is designed to be installed in one of the most remote wilderness regions of Canada. It's an odd choice.