The Senate has passed a bill to make the national anthem more gender neutral, fulfilling the dying wish of Liberal MP Mauril Belanger.
The Senate has given its final approval to the legislation, which would change the second line of the anthem from “in all thy sons command” to “in all of us command.”
Mauril’s bill to make O Canada gender neutral passed third reading in the Senate tonight – another positive step towards gender equality. #inallofuscommand
— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) February 1, 2018
The legislation now only requires formal royal assent before it becomes law.
Belanger pushed the legislation for years, but it took on far greater urgency after he was diagnosed with ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, following the 2015 federal election.
The Commons passed the bill in June 2016, with the ailing Belanger in the House.The longtime Liberal died just over two months later.
“Shameful, anti-democratic behavior by #Trudeau-appointed senators, including #SenCA Speaker, as they shut down legitimate debate in Chamber,” tweeted Conservative Sen. Denise Batters.
Shameful, anti-democratic behaviour by #Trudeau-appointed senators, including #SenCA Speaker, as they shut down legitimate debate in Chamber
— Sen. Denise Batters (@denisebatters) January 31, 2018
Dissappointed to hear the Liberals changed our national anthem. Somethings just shouldn’t change. #cdnpoli
— Bob Saroya, MP (@BobSaroya) February 1, 2018
