A Conversation with Yves Engler

Canada through jaundiced eyes

For those who don’t know a whole lot about such things, Canada is widely regarded as a kinder, gentler, more enlightened country than its neighbor to the south —  a ‘good guy’ in a world of unprincipled bullies — with a young, photogenic leader always talking about human rights, justice and international law.

Yves Engler sees things very differently. Engler is a Montreal-based writer and political activist. He has published widely in both mainstream and alternative print media, and is the author of a dozen books on Canadian foreign policy. His 2009 book, The Black Book of Canadian Foreign Policy, was short-listed for the Quebec Writers’ Federation Mavis Gallant Prize for Nonfiction.

Engler’s most recent work — Stand on Guard For Whom? — A People’s History of the Canadian Military — was co-published last year by Black Rose Books and Red Publishing.

Engler is also the co-founder of the Canadian Foreign Policy Institute, a non-partisan group that seeks to challenge public perceptions of Canada as a benevolent power in the world.

The GPM spoke with Yves Engler. Listen up: