Former GG draws line linking ‘ugliness’ in U.S. to Quebec City mosque attack

OTTAWA—Former governor general Adrienne Clarkson says the deadly weekend terrorist attack in Quebec City illustrates how Canada is in danger of being smothered by what she calls the “ugliness” south of the border.

Clarkson says Canadians are bombarded daily with messages of ignorance and hatred, coming from the United States through social media and television.

And even though Canada has its own beliefs, goals and history, she says its people cannot help but be impacted by the messages they’re hearing.

Clarkson made the comments today at a citizenship ceremony after 37 people from 17 different countries took the oath to become new Canadians.

It was the first such ceremony since the attack Sunday in Quebec, where six men praying in a mosque were shot and killed, and at least a dozen others were hurt.

Clarkson adds that the months-long ban on travel to the U.S. by people from seven mainly Muslim countries, imposed by President Donald Trump through an executive order, sends a troubling message of intolerance that she predicts will backfire.