Thank you.
Good afternoon, my name is Michael Blais. I am a disabled veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces. I'm the president and founder of the Canadian Veterans Advocacy. I would like to thank you for inviting me to committee today to speak to this issue regarding the Holidays Act to ensure Remembrance Day is never considered a lesser national holiday.
I am a modern veteran as defined by Veterans Affairs Canada and having been injured overseas, having lost friends to war, to peace, and to the scourge of suicide inflicted by mental wounds, the solemn ideals of Remembrance Day are extremely important to me.
When I was a child growing up in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Remembrance Day was a day-off holiday. I remember vividly going to the cenotaph by the falls with my parents to watch the parade. The numbers of World War II and Korean veterans were great as was the attendance of thousands of grateful citizens assembled along the streets and around the cenotaph. These veterans, this solemn act of community remembrance, and the honour in it resonated in me, providing inspiration to me as a young boy and, as I grew into a young man, the understanding that I too should answer the call to national service, to volunteer to serve my nation as did those who proudly marched on the streets of Niagara when I was a child.
I have come here today primarily to speak to the sacred obligation that parliamentarians have to those who tread in harm's way, and by doing so, define the very essence of this bill: the need for formal legislative recognition of national sacrifice and the legislative mandate that I hope you will resolve in an apolitical manner.
I would suggest this is a wonderful opportunity for parliamentarians to embrace this sacred obligation to honour national sacrifice in a significant and meaningful manner. There is so much that we as a nation can do to honour the fallen, the wounded, our veterans, and serving members, but there must be inclusion, recognition, the understanding of national sacrifice. Equally important is the opportunity for Canadians, as I did as a child, to participate in our national services as a family unit to embrace the spirit of the nation as a community, despite the fact that the return of that day off will have to be discussed at the provincial level. I understand that. It is important that the words of the Holidays Act do not demean Remembrance Day.
After we have assembled to honour the fallen on the 11th minute, the 11th hour, after we have said our prayers, laid our poppies at cenotaphs across the nation, a national holiday provides the platform to honour the living, those who have survived the horror of war and peace, and the families of the fallen to ensure they understand that their sacrifice will also be remembered and honoured.
When we break down this bill to its most common denominator, it's fundamentally about respect: respect for the fallen, respect for the wounded, respect for our veterans, and those who serve today in Iraq and in the skies over Syria. These are Canada's sons and daughters. They have volunteered selflessly to serve us, to protect us in war, peace, and national calamity. Let us collectively and with sincerity demonstrate our respect by fixing the Holidays Act to ensure Remembrance Day, already a national holiday, continues to honour their service and sacrifice. They have done their duty for us; let us do our duty to honour them.
To that end I would respectfully ask all parliamentarians to place political ideology aside and avail themselves of the opportunity to honour Canada's sons and daughters by submitting this legislation that will bring to Remembrance Day, arguably our most important national holiday, the respect it deserves and give veterans the respect they deserve.
Thank you.