Sour Grapes
Yes, Don Cherry’s comments were targeted at immigrants; yes, they were uncalled for; and yes, firing him was a good decision.
For those who haven’t heard, Don Cherry was recently fired from his position as host of “Coach’s Corner”. Coach’s Corner is a seven-minute segment during the first intermission of “Hockey Night in Canada” broadcasts of NHL games. Cherry hosted that segment for 38 years, until November 9, when he ranted on air about “you people” that “come here” and don’t wear poppies for Remembrance Day.
I have seen a shocking number of people recently in my newsfeed claiming that Cherry’s rant was a simple message to all Canadians—not just immigrants. However, even though the two words everyone seems to be focusing on are “you people”, the three that come after are equally as important—“that come here”. It is clear that his words were not intended for all viewers—they were specifically targeted at immigrants.
The comments were particularly uncalled for in light of the fact that, according to Statistics Canada’s 2013 General Social Survey, immigrants are actually often found to be more patriotic than natural-born citizens. Other immigrants may not yet be aware of all of Canada’s traditions. Instead of going on an accusatory rant, Cherry could, just as easily, have made a polite note. He has been in the industry for decades; it’s not like he did not know any better.
It is also ironic that the same free expression rights that the high-school hockey bros on Twitter are claiming were violated here (side note: they were not, as most law students would know), and that veterans fought to protect, allow Canadians to choose whether to wear a poppy. Of course, that does not protect them from criticism for not wearing a poppy. However, a prime time hockey broadcast is not the appropriate place to voice that criticism.
Don Cherry is not just an innocent victim of #CancelCulture; this was not a one-off slip-up. He has used his platform for similar rants many times in the past—once even calling people who believe in climate change “cuckaloos”. When people tune into a hockey broadcast—especially the kids he refers to paternalistically in his “all you kids out there” catchphrase—they are not there to hear an 85-year-old man go on about his problems with “you people” and “left-wing pinkos”.
That is not to say that his opinions about hockey were not also questionable and outdated, but at least they were on topic. This is not an issue of people being “too sensitive these days”. It is an issue of the public not wanting to be insulted about their identity or political beliefs when watching a hockey broadcast. If Don Cherry wanted a platform to roast “left-wing kooks”, he really should have just started a podcast.
Editor’s note: The day after this article was written, Don Cherry did start a podcast.
