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Slain by symbolism

Written by Ted Barris on February 3rd, 2022February 3rd, 2022. Leave a comment
MP Michael Cooper chose to stand with the “Freedom Convoy” demonstrators, whose symbols (including the swastika on the Canadian flag) represent anything but freedom.

He thought he was standing up for rights and freedoms in Canada. And last Saturday, Michael Cooper, the MP for St. Albert-Edmonton constituency, wanted to be seen while saying so. Thousands of people blocked the streets of Ottawa with trucks and demonstrations as part of a so-called “Freedom Convoy” to protest vaccine mandates and other restrictions in response to the COVID pandemic. And Cooper chose to join the demonstrations and speak to the media, which is what all politicians do when they feel they’re on the right side of history.

“(People are) just here to send a message to the prime minister,” Cooper said as the CBC TV camera rolled.

But what the Alberta MP had not planned as part of his few seconds in the limelight was the backdrop to his statement. Fluttering in the breeze immediately behind him was an upside-down Canadian flag which was also desecrated with a swastika. (more…)

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Appointed Member of the Order of Canada

On Dec. 29, 2022, the Right Honourable Mary Simon, Governor General of Canada, announced 99 new appointments to the Order of Canada, including Ted Barris, C.M., “For advancing our understanding of Canadian military history as an acclaimed historical author, journalist and broadcaster.” Ted’s father, Alex Barris, was also appointed Member of the Order in 1998.

Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Award

Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Pin

In December 2022, Jennifer O’Connell (MP for Pickering-Uxbridge) informed Ted, in celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s 70 years on the throne, that he is receiving the Platinum Jubilee Award. The citation in part reads: “Your peers have spoken, and you represent and inspire members of our community by demonstrating Her Majesty’s qualities of public service, dedication, and an unwavering commitment to improving our community. Thank you for your wonderful work.”

Rush To Danger makes 2020 Taylor Prize long list

Ted Barris
Photo by Sinisa Jolic/CBC

On Dec. 4, 2019, the trustees of the Charles Taylor Foundation announced that jurors Margaret Atwood, Coral Ann Howells and Peter Theroux had determined the 12 non-fiction titles up for the 2020 RBC Taylor Prize. Among the long-list titles is Ted Barris’s 19th published non-fiction, Rush To Danger: Medics in the Line of Fire, published by Patrick Crean at HarperCollins Canada. “Distilling these diverse riches, embracing the social, personal, political and historical into a mere list,” the jury noted, “was a profound but rewarding challenge. Our list could have been much longer, and is longer than we were asked for! Readers globally can be thankful for a year of such exceptional Canadian contributions.”

Dam Busters awarded 2018 NORAD Trophy

Ted Barris and L/Col. Dean Black
(Photo by Matthew Wocks of Wounded Warriors)

During a ceremony in front of Canada’s only airworthy Lancaster bomber, at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, in Hamilton, on Dec. 6, 2018, L/Col. Dean Black awarded the RCAF Association NORAD Trophy to Dam Busters: Canadian Airmen and the Secret Raid against Nazi Germany and its author, Ted Barris. Black explained that the trophy, inaugurated in 2008, was awarded, “in recognition of Ted Barris’s significant and unequalled contributions to the preservation of Air Force values and the maintenance of Air Force traditions, history and heritage.”

Read the full press release…

2014 Libris Award

2014 Libris AwardDuring a gala ceremony in Toronto, on June 2, the annual Libris Awards were presented. Ted Barris’s book, “The Great Escape: A Canadian Story,” received the 2014 Libris Best Non-Fiction Book Award, sharing the honour with Chris Hadfield for his book “An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth.” In presenting the award, host Terry Fallis explained the criteria: “The award for non-fiction book of the year goes to a Canadian work of non-fiction published in 2013 that made a lasting impression on the Canadian book selling industry, through wide media attention, increased traffic to bookstores and strong sales.”

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal

During an awards ceremony at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum on Oct. 14, 2012, Sen. Joseph Day presented Ted Barris with a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. The announcement issued with the award said, in part, “the medal is a visible and tangible way to recognize outstanding Canadians … who have built and continue to build this caring society and country through their service and achievements.”

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About Ted Barris

Ted Barris has worked as a freelance journalist, broadcaster and author since the 1960s. He regularly contributes to CBC Radio programs and CTV News Channel. He taught journalism at Centennial College in Toronto for 18 years, and has written/published 19 non-fiction books (most recently Rush to Danger: Medics in the Line of Fire was a finalist for the RBC Taylor Prize). He has written a weekly newspaper column/weblog – the Barris Beat – for 40 years.

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