"The first Canadian I've ever hated."

On May 25, 2022, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was forced to cancel his public appearance in Surrey, British Columbia. The reason was not weather conditions or scheduling irregularities, but a crowd of local residents protesting his presence.

Waving national flags, people chanted, "Trudeau must go!" which was the softest thing the prime minister could hear. It was then decided to organize a meeting through Zoom, and some media outlets called it a show of cowardice.

What made this moment special was that it was the second time in 24 hours that Trudeau had received such a reception: the day before he had visited the city of Kamloops, and his armed guards had to literally force their way through a crowd of violent protesters.

These are not the first acts of discontent in his direction. Sometimes it seems that dislike for him literally takes over a calm Canada, turning into hatred. We have tried to break down briefly what Canadians accuse Justin Trudeau of.

1. Incompetence

Every slip of the politician is accompanied by dozens of comments about how he is by profession a teacher of French, mathematics and drama (the last of which he recalls most often sarcastically) and achieved everything thanks to his father, who served as Prime Minister of Canada from 1968 to 1984.

In this regard, we cannot help but remember the controversial personnel policy: in 2020, Twitter literally exploded after appointing journalist Chrystie Freeland as Canada's finance minister. Canadians were outraged at the lack of education of someone who intended to manage the country's finances in the midst of a pandemic and a looming economic crisis. Critics of Trudeau's decision tried to appeal to the politician's intelligence, clearly believing Freeland was not qualified for the job, even though she had held senior positions in the Canadian government for years.

2. Scandals

It all started with minor quandaries: after opposition complaints in 2017, an ethics commission launched an investigation into Trudeau's trip to Bell Island, which belonged to Prince Karim Agha Khan. Aga Khan is an imam of the Ismaili Nizarite Muslim community, a millionaire, and a friend of Trudeau's family. Canadians immediately questioned whether the prince was lobbying for his interests in this way. Amid the scandal, Trudeau canceled his visit to the World Economic Forum and went on a tour of Canada.

In 2018, the prime minister was accused of inappropriate behavior toward a female reporter: the story was already 18 years old at the time, and Trudeau reportedly apologized to the victim in a timely manner.

A surprise blow awaited the minister during the 2019 election campaign: old photos surfaced of Trudeau using blackface makeup, a racist caricature of black people. The prime minister had to apologize:

"It was something that I didn't think was racist at the time, but now I recognize it was something racist to do and I am deeply sorry."

3. Corruption

Trudeau's reputation has been considerably shaken by the corruption scandals associated with his name.

The SNC-Lavalin construction company case was reported in most of the world media: the Liberal-affiliated company was accused of bribery in Libya and actively lobbied the government to delay prosecution, which would have helped the founders avoid criminal punishment. The investigation revealed that Justin Trudeau had overstepped his authority and pressured Justice Minister and Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould to intervene in the criminal proceedings.

In 2020, corruption was again talked about when the federal government contracted WE Charity to administer the $912 million CAD Canadian student grant program. Trudeau claimed that it was the only organization capable of managing the project and that the choice was made by the Public Service of Canada, not him personally.

The investigation began when it was discovered that WE Charity had been paying close family members of the prime minister to attend events and using their photos in its app. For example, Trudeau's mother was paid $250,000 CAD to appear at 28 events.

The Ethics Commissioner confirmed in his final report that it was the Public Service that chose WE Charity and the Prime Minister only gave his consent. Trudeau was rehabilitated this time, but public discontent has not subsided.

4. Covid-19

It is impossible not to mention the reaction of Canadians to Trudeau's pandemic policy. The public is divided into two camps: a poll in March 2022 showed that half of the residents thought Trudeau had done a good job, half thought he had done a bad job.

In the midst of the raging covid, residents blamed him for his untimely response, late border closures, and unprepared health care system.

Then some Canadians had complaints about the pace of vaccination, while others had complaints about the degree of strictness: mandatory vaccinations and service inspections caused people to lose their jobs en masse.

Tired of harsh vaccination and airport testing regulations that had led to hour-long queues and chaos, Canadians cheered the relaxation, but not for long: In July, the government announced that selective testing was returning. Canadian social media users accused Trudeau of being unwise about the decision, calling it unnecessary.

5. Convoy of Freedom

The Prime Minister's policy during the pandemic led to the loudest conflict of recent years.

On January 15, 2022, the Trudeau government's order to have a vaccination passport for truckers went into effect. From then on, you had to show a vaccination certificate, spend 2 weeks in quarantine, or quit.

85% of the drivers had been vaccinated, while the rest formed the basis of the protest movement. Later, other citizens joined them: some were dissatisfied with the state of the health care system, some categorically did not want to be vaccinated, and for some it was an occasion to express their attitude toward the government and the prime minister in particular.

One of the Freedom Convoy's demands was the resignation of Justin Trudeau, who called the protesters marginalists who were trying to sabotage the economy and democracy. Such remarks have resulted in further large-scale protests.

But even more grievous was the degree of authoritarianism with which the government addressed these protests. The Canadian Internet was bursting with reports that Trudeau was turning the country into a police state, and residents were outraged by a barbaric Emergency Management Act that literally gave the government free rein to act against those it did not like. The media wrote about the freezing of the accounts of those associated with the protests, calling it "shocking and unprecedented in Canadian history.

6. Ignoring First Nations history and rights

Indigenous people have repeatedly expressed their dissatisfaction with the prime minister. They call him a traitor and a liar, accusing him of deliberately avoiding issues related to their rights. The problem erupted again during the discussion of the Trans Mountain pipeline, a project that the First Nations were extremely unhappy about.

During Trudeau's aforementioned visit to Kamloops, British Columbia, he gave the floor to a woman.

"When are you going to give us our rights back?" — she asked, and the hall burst into applause.

7. Bill C-11: a new cause of annoyance

At the end of June 2022, Act C-11, the Online Media Regulation Act, went to the Senate, and it caused real alarm among content creators and consumers alike. The Internet Streaming Act has the seemingly noble goal of identifying and promoting quality Canadian content and places online venues under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Radio, Television and Telecommunications Commission.

Users were outraged by the innovation: in the humblest comments they wondered what parameters would be used to determine the quality of content, while others openly wrote that Trudeau infringed on freedom of speech.

These were individual cases where residents actively expressed their dissatisfaction with the Prime Minister's performance. If you look at the Canadian Internet, you will find hundreds of posts on global themes: Canadians do not like the government's foreign policy, some oppose huge flows of immigrants, they are dissatisfied with domestic policies in many areas, ranging from bureaucracy, business conditions, inability to curb inflation and respond adequately to new conditions, to the excessive support for Ukraine while failing to help its citizens.

To conclude, here are excerpts from user comments regarding the personality of Justin Trudeau:

• "Respect is earned, not inherited. His pathetic reputation is known world wide";
• "Trudeau is a prime example of why there was a French revolution. This man is beyond disgusting. Plain sickening. May Canada regain freedom";
• "I cannot see his smirking face or hear his flattering voice full of lies and "progressive" jargon that he does not even believe in. You will never see this man take any responsibility for the damage he has done to Canadian democracy and the rights of our fellow citizens";
• "Trudeau taught me new levels of hatred. Most Canadians today hate Trudeau. Let him go!";
• "With Trudeau in power , I have never been more ashamed to call this my Canada";
• "I never hated anyone like him";
• "He's the first Canadian I've ever hated."