To face 2025

“Not another column on 2025? ”, you may be thinking. I resisted… a few days.

Many excellent texts have been written on the political year that awaits us, on the misfortunes of the planet, on Trump’s arrival in power, on his threats towards Canada. And I have never heard so much about the defense of Canada.

I still feel the need to put into words what I have been feeling for the past few days.

The year 2024 ended well with a favorite television review, that ofLive from New Year’s Day. I add my appreciation to all those that I have read, coming from all walks of life, from the most serious to the most specialized in so-called variety shows. Like everyone who watched it, I was moved to tears and I say it without shame.

Our almost unanimous positive reaction tells us something about our need for kindness, connections, cheerfulness and hope.

Allowing ourselves to be moved by such moments of affection, inclusion and human warmth is perhaps the antidote to the dark forebodings of the clouds of hatred, division and anger that hover over our North American heads. .

These days, turning on the radio, television or reading the newspapers has almost become a test of resilience. Already following the wars, atrocities, deaths and refugee camps for several months is totally overwhelming, let’s say that the political climate of insecurity, imperialism and contempt which has reigned for several weeks does not help in the slightest.

We receive daily a dose of information, declarations, updates on the state of the planet which stuns us, overwhelms us and confronts us with the growing vulnerability of our personal and social balances. Not to mention the apocalyptic fires we are witnessing in California like an augmented reality horror show.

All this affects me, worries me and saddens me. I know I’m not the only one. And if there are many of us who feel this sadness, perhaps we can, together, encourage each other.

In 2017, during the attacks at the Quebec mosque, I was a member of the government. This tragedy deeply disturbed me. I participated in commemoration events, I spoke with bereaved families, I attended the funerals of three of the six victims at the Quebec City Convention Center. I was present to hear the speech of Imam Hassan Guillet which went around the world, a speech of compassion, of empathy for the victims and their loved ones, but also of reflection on the tense and polarizing atmosphere of certain groups compared to others.

It is an event which unfortunately demonstrated to us that violence is not just the prerogative of others, in other countries, other places. What happens in 2025 with the new team in power in the United States does not reassure me. The comments we hear are fuel for anger and intolerance and can fuel conflict.

Former US President Jimmy Carter died in the middle of the holiday season. He will be remembered for his immense humanitarian work, all over the world, including in his own country. The complete opposite of the current president-elect.

Why must the pendulum of the history of peoples so often alternate between altruism and selfishness, between benevolence and omnipotence, between public service and thirst for authority, allowing a leader to impose himself through contempt and revenge? , under pretexts of geopolitical and economic imperialism?

And above all, why must we stir up anger, revolt and the lowest instincts, disregarding what humans can do that is remarkable in the service of our fellow citizens and the well-being of humanity?

I taught psychology, the foundations of human nature, for 20 years. I know very well that good coexists with evil, that aggressive impulses coexist with love, support and devotion. I am neither fooled nor naive about the darker sides that potentially inhabit all of us. But right now, at the start of the year, I have to face the facts that 2025 will not be rosy and that we will have to face difficult torments.

It is solidarity, mutual aid and kindness – which resides in us all somewhere – that we will have to resort to to counter the strong winds to which we will be exposed. The Quebec nation is happy, more than elsewhere, according to polls. Let us draw from this reservoir of happiness and take advantage of it to help our neighbors and our fellow citizens more than ever, those who are struggling, who are hungry, who are cold, who need help. This is how we can remain a generous people and find meaning in our collective future.

Let’s try to internalize the messages of hope and embody them in 2025. At least, we will have the feeling that we are acting positively on our scale. Let us wish our leaders to be inspired in the same way and to fuel benevolence rather than contempt and intolerance through their words and actions.

What do you think? Participate in the dialogue