Students rush out into the schoolyard on a chilly Toronto afternoon, prepared to play like any other day. Except now, above the schoolyard, where the iconic Canadian maple leaf flag once flew, they look up to see the stars and stripes of an American flag.
President Trump’s recent remarks regarding an annexation of Canada seem sensationalist and follow a historically over-the-top rhetorical style. Taunting Canada’s prime minister over Twitter and suggesting mass usurpings across the globe make the subject difficult to take seriously. However, the idea of a 51st state has captivated many, raising the question: Should Canada become one of America’s many states? My answer is yes.
President Trump is not the first to suggest the annexation of Canada. The idea has existed amongst Americans since even before America itself was independent. During the American Revolutionary War, patriot forces invaded Canada, putting up a strong fight, ultimately being defeated in Quebec. During the War of 1812, America invaded Canada at three points, the Detroit, Montreal, and Niagra rivers, with each campaign ultimately failing. That war resulted in the British forces burning America’s capital building, symbolizing clearly that the far North didn’t want American governance forced upon them, a sentiment that seems largely unchanged. In the modern era, America’s military strength should not threaten Canada’s independence. Instead, a combination of Canadian and American economic struggle, rising opposition from communist adversaries, a constantly increasing need for resources, and the benefit of a symbiotic relationship may be the deciding factors in Canada’s sovereignty.
Canada’s economic landscape has caused concern for the nation’s viability, particularly regarding relationships with the United States, Canada’s strongest ally and trading partner.
President Trump’s “America first” attitude has led to renegotiations in NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), with proposed high tariffs being the biggest concerns facing Canada’s future. Changes like these represent the increasing isolationism in U.S. foreign policy, which, while beneficial in some regards, creates issues for countries like Canada that rely on the U.S.
Although it seems hostile, America simply can’t afford the current trade system, leading politicians to search for solutions. A tariff increase is an idea that benefits the U.S. but certainly threatens Canadians because of their volatile economy and reliance on American trade.
Canada is facing multiple crises. Prices in cities like Toronto and Vancouver dramatically outpace average wages, leaving younger generations frustrated with Canadian leadership and struggling to find affordable housing. An aging population combined with lowering birth rates has led to a shrinking workforce and increased pressure on the Canadian healthcare system.
“The health system in Canada has been facing significant challenges, such as overwhelmed emergency rooms, lack of access to a family doctor, and health care workers under enormous strain,” says Health Canada.
Canadian healthcare has long provided an example of fair healthcare. Americans, who may be frustrated with the current U.S. system, could benefit from a union in that way.
The United States struggles with similar issues. Housing costs in major cities like New York and Los Angeles are rising, the U.S. faces major economic inequality and a strained healthcare system like Canada’s.
An international merger could address issues with the increasingly fractured U.S. political system. Canada has traditionally liberal policies on issues such as healthcare, gun control, climate change, and immigration which could ultimately help even the playing field as many policies have been stagnantly conservative. While some may appreciate a consistently conservative United States, many Americans are disillusioned with current politics, which damages the democratic process foundationally. A union with Canada could provide a more tempered landscape that citizens would like to participate in and Ideological extremes that dominate U.S. politics today may be more tame with Canadian influence.
Economically, a combined North American union would help both nations. Canada’s natural resources, including oil, wood, and rare earth minerals, could be used efficiently, reducing the U.S.’s reliance on countries like Russia for critical commodities. The Union could lead by example with more humane practices in vital industries. Extraction of electronic essentials like lithium and cobalt, which have been central in world trade recently, are extracted largely through inhumane practice. Unfortunately, much of the lithium imported to the U.S. via Chinese manufacturing comes from child forced labor in countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo. Source
American and Canadian labor laws far outmatch those of China and Central African countries, so a unified nation could extract and process electronic components more environmentally conscious without impeding human rights. While industrial progress is necessary and devices like smartphones and home computers are important, manufacturing would be more ethical, which a U.S.-Canada union could provide.
With Canada’s resources, the U.S. could reduce imports and create thousands of middle-class jobs in manufacturing, energy, and mining industries that were originally domestic but have since been outsourced to foreign countries. An integrated economy would rebuild Canada and the U.S.’s middle classes, mitigating the growing wealth gap that defines the current economic system.
In addition to the economic considerations, significant military and geopolitical factors make Canada a key player on the global stage, particularly as the world faces mounting tensions with countries and organizations in the Far East (Iran, Russia, China, North Korea, Hamas, ISIS, Al Queda, etc)
The United States currently contributes about two-thirds of NATO’s defense budget, a significantly larger portion than the other 31 countries involved, demonstrating the burden the U.S. bears to defend allies like Canada. This practice may no longer be sustainable as the U.S. faces economic struggles paired with a large defense cost and begins to integrate more conservative foreign policy.
Canada is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Arctic to the north, making it an advantageous military location for opposing Russia, a country in deep and continuous conflict with the U.S.
While Canada plays an integral role in NATO operations and is strong geographically, Canada’s military is in a “death spiral,” and is generally unprepared for conflict according to the Minister of National Defense Bill Blair.
This could seem like wild speculation designed to justify the U.S. interest in annexing Canada, but Russia has been posturing military forces in the Arctic and surrounding NATO countries. Russia is also involved in a proxy war with Canada and the U.S. So while the threat of a major war seems less pertinent than the economic and political issues involved in a union, it’s hardly a wild speculation.
The main counter to any previous argument is that Canadians want to remain separate so America would have to exercise force to annex Canada. America can bully countries like Canada with tariffs and threats of invasion, especially now as Canada is struggling for viability, however Machiavellian practices contradict American values that have been standard practice.
After WWII America provided billions of dollars to Western European countries, contributing to the rebuilding of British, French, Italian, and German infrastructure, and aiding Japan in its transition to a democracy with modernized industry after the war was over.
America should be known for helping nations as they struggle rather than exploiting weaknesses. Not only is it the ethical course of action, but it avoids creating enemies and alienating allies, ultimately benefitting the states in the long term. Annexing Canada should be done peacefully, not only to preserve American values but because history has shown that collaboration leads to mutual benefit.
A union between Canada and America could benefit both countries immensely if executed properly. For Canada, it could offer vital economic stability, access to larger markets, and a stronger defense against mounting global threats. The U.S. would benefit from greater geopolitical influence and access to Canada’s vast natural resources. Both nations are imperfect, yet, in combination, a union would be better equipped in numerous ways. By taking the subject seriously it can be navigated like the complicated circumstances it is. The potential for benefit in such a partnership outweighs the cost of unity from an economic, humanitarian, and defense perspective. Therefore, it shouldn’t be considered a flippant remark, justification for a nation’s unwilling subjugation, or used as a device for political disjunction. Americans and Canadians should take the opportunity of a peaceful union seriously.
