On Canada's 150th anniversary, there is much to celebrate and there is much to protest.
In 1967, as Canada marked its centennial, there was little protest because there was, at least on the surface, only one Canada.
It was white and mostly English.
Critics of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms blame its adoption for the fracturing of Canada but those forces were already at work long before 1982.
During the 1970s, Rene Levesque and the Quebec separatist movement introduced the rest of Canada to French nationalism.
At the same time, the Cree were winning court cases against the Quebec government for the James Bay hydroelectric development, the first time Canada's aboriginal community had successfully made a legal case for settlement rights.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the idea of "two founding nations" took hold with Canada's two official languages enshrined.
As Canada has moved deeper into the 21st century and its 150th birthday approached, that vision of Canada has also evolved, in recognition of the multiple nations of indigenous people that lived in this country long before Samuel de Champlain and the wave of European settlers arrived.
While First Nations stories and voices have been increasingly heard during the last 50 years, there is much work to be done before Canada's bicentennial.
The last residential school only closed 20 years ago and there are numerous other issues, from missing and murdered women to reserves to the scourge of substance abuse to the lack of treaties, to confront.
The last half-century has seen some progress in how indigenous peoples in Canada are treated but it will take at least another 50 to address the damage done to their culture by racism and colonialism in the first 100 years of Canada, as well as the previous 350 years of European settlement.
This process is happening simultaneous to a broader recognition of many groups that have experienced discrimination over Canada's history, starting with women and extending to those of different religion, race and sexual preference.
Immigrants, from first-generation to those of whose families have been in Canada for decades, are rightly demanding that Canada be a cultural mosaic in reality, not just in theory.
The many societal changes across Canada since 1967 have happened mostly peacefully, with only sporadic violence and a minimal loss of life, in stark contrast to similar changes in most other countries in the world, including our southern neighbour.
Even the current confusion and upheaval in Victoria speaks to the uniquely peaceful nature of Canada and Canadians.
Depending on who you voted for in the May 9 provincial election, the passage of Thursday's non-confidence vote is either ushering in a rightful change in government or the next step in a left-wing coup.
Either way, the non-confidence vote happened through parliamentary practice and tradition conducted in a working democracy.
In most other countries in the world, that kind of change would have involved guns, violence and death.
In Canada, the process involves talk, careful consideration and voting by elected officials, with oversight and action by the Queen's representative only when deemed necessary under the established rules.
By and large, even the protesting is done this way, whether it's erecting a teepee on Parliament Hill or going to the courts to seek the recognition of same-sex couples to marry, individuals to choose to die on their own terms with assistance from a health-care professional or to grant recognition of traditional territory.
Put another way, Canada 150 is worth protesting for what still needs to change and the protesting is worth celebrating, both for the change that has already transpired and for the fact that more voices are being increasingly heard.
As a country, we are not who we were in 1867 or 1967 and we are not who we will be in 2067.
Enthusiasm, not fear, for the future brought Canada into peaceful existence 150 years and that process of creation continues to this day.
The privilege to do so in this special place on Earth should be celebrated every day.
-- Editor-in-chief Neil Godbout
