What’s next for the monarchy?

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/05/2023 (1231 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The coronation of King Charles III raises an age-old question: Should we keep the monarchy? At the core of this question is: How do we citizens preserve the institutions that help make a flourishing society while getting rid of the ones that hold us back? Or, to word it another way: How do we get rid of the institutions that hold us back without losing our bearings altogether?

According to a recent Angus Reid poll, a majority of Canadians would be happy to do away with the monarchy. But there are good reasons to say not so fast.

First, let’s look at the positives. Canada is arguably one of the best countries in the world and has been the most democratic country for the longest period of time. And the cheery analysis of public intellectual John Ralston Saul resonates with me. He describes Canadian society as a blend of Indigenous and European traditions. The result, Saul maintains, is that Canadians are more welcoming of others, more open to complexity and better able to handle challenges as they arise.

You can see this today in Westman. We are creating the kind of multicultural, post-racial society that most others in the world can only dream of. We are so quiet and unassuming about this that we hardly notice we are in continuous change. (Did you know that in Brandon today, the most common surname is Patel?).

We are living more and more closely to the famous ideal expressed by Martin Luther King Jr. That ideal was that individuals be judged not by the colour of their skin but by the content of their character.

But let’s remember that Canadian democracy is rooted in loyalty to the Crown. So that is a reason to pause before dispensing with it.

It turns out that constitutional monarchies are a pretty good system of government. Look at a recent listing of the countries of the world with the best quality of life. The top 10 are: Sweden, Denmark, Canada, Switzerland, Norway, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand. Of these 10, all are monarchies except three: Switzerland, Finland and Germany.

Now what are the problems with a monarchy? One is that we are dependent on the luck of the draw of one person. We were spoiled by having such a gracious and noble queen as our previous monarch. But we could have struck out and had to put up with someone terrible.

By having our head of state as an appointed governor general or president, we would be better protected. That individual would serve for, say, a five-year term and they could be replaced earlier if needed.

Another problem with the monarchy is that the Royal Family is based on lineage and bloodlines. Isn’t that a form of racism? Isn’t racism where a person is regarded not by who they are today but by who their ancestors were in the past? Shouldn’t we get rid of all racism, even if legally enshrined and seen as a cherished heritage?

But here’s where caution comes in. In the rush to get rid of something faulty, there can be unintended negative consequences. An example is religion. Many of us have rejected our traditional religions because we see religious dogmas and values (like sexism) as inappropriate for today. But then we lose the relationships that often thrive when people get together through a church, temple, mosque or other venue.

So, with the decline in religion have we increased individual fulfilment and morality but lost societal relationships and connections? The phenomenon of societal connection has been called “social capital,” and researchers have worried about its decline in North America for decades. In this context, is the monarchy part of the social capital of Canada? It could be, but I think the value of phasing out the monarchy trumps its potential role as social capital.

Whatever the process to wind down the monarchy, let’s do it well. I would not want to see, for example, a repetition of the tearing down of royal statues like we saw at the Manitoba legislature grounds two years ago. A mob tearing down a statue is not part of a good society. It is also an insult to the goal of social change through nonviolent resistance that was articulated by leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi.

Yes, our previous monarchs like Queen Victoria were not as gracious as we would have liked. But we can be gracious.

Perhaps we could move slowly to go beyond the monarchy. Commit Canada to ending the monarchy by no later than the death of the King. That will (hopefully) give us time to adjust to the idea and prepare for a smooth transition to something better.

Long live King Charles III.