ROTHENBURGER: New governor-general the right person to build bridges
Mary Simon, Canada’s 30th governor-general as of today.
An editorial by Mel Rothenburger.
THE SWEARING IN of Canada’s 30th governor general today is cause to feel good about our country and what it stands for.
Not just because Mary Simon is a woman. That glass ceiling was broken 27 years ago when Jeanne Sauvéwas named to the position. Five of the last eight governors-general have been women.
And not just because Mary Simon isn’t white — her mother was Inuk. True, for most of its history, Canada has had white governors-general, many of them earls and dukes and viscounts and lords and such.
But we’ve certainly had our share of governors general with diverse ethnic backgrounds, too.
Mel Rothenburger is a former mayor of Kamloops and a retired newspaper editor. He is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a director on the Thompson-Nicola Regional District board. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.
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