The day he took office for his “sunny” first term, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appeared in front of Ottawa’s Rideau Hall to present the first gender-balanced cabinet in Canadian history. He gave his succinct “because it’s 2015” explanation — a remark that became integral to his then-favourable political brand.
Standing in the front row, just behind his right shoulder, was freshly minted Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland.
After years as one of Trudeau’s most valuable, versatile political allies, Freeland stunned Ottawa on Monday by abruptly resigning from cabinet. Her thorough resignation letter made no indication her decision was rooted in gender dynamics, but gender became part of the conversation about her departure and Trudeau’s future anyway.
A former Liberal minister and political scientists say they weren’t surprised — largely because the issues of gender and feminism have been part of the Trudeau Liberals’ brand from the very beginning.
‘Some feminist’
Freeland said she felt she had to quit because the prime minister had lost faith in her ability as finance minister and wanted to assign her a new role, after she fought decisions that widened the deficit well beyond what she’d previously promised.
Dominic Leblanc was sworn in as her replacement later Monday.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said the entire situation was an example of Trudeau’s “hypocrisy” on feminism.
Liberal MPs are among those calling for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down following Chrystia Freeland’s shocking departure from cabinet on Monday. CBC’s Aaron Wherry breaks down Trudeau’s possible next moves and how the looming inauguration of U.S. president-elect Donald Trump complicates matters.
“Just blame Chrystia Freeland and make her wear it all. Some feminist,” Poilievre said at a news conference in Mississauga, Ont., on Tuesday.
“The same week as Trudeau was insulting Americans for not electing a woman president, he was busy throwing his own woman deputy prime minister under the bus to replace her with a man.”
Prominent Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner asked how any woman in that caucus could “defend that man instead of calling for an election now,” while Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Trudeau needed to start proving himself if he was going to keep declaring himself “to be such a supporter of women.”
MP Melissa Lantsman referred to an “old boys’ club” being in charge.
“It’s time for credible leadership in the seriousness of this moment, not the fake feminism of this phony prime minister,” said Lantsman, who represents the Conservatives in the Thornhill riding.
Women, men alike have also quit
The Trudeau government has enacted a number of policies and changes to women’s benefit: Ten-dollar-a-day child care, increased maternity leave and drawing a hard line at saying Liberal MPs and candidates had to be pro-choice. Trudeau’s gender-balanced cabinet included women who held high-profile roles like finance, defence and foreign affairs.
Some women have also stuck with Trudeau for years. Katie Telford has been his only chief-of-staff, while other prime ministers like Stephen Harper, Jean Chrétien and Brian Mulroney went through four or five.
Women and men alike have resigned from Trudeau’s cabinet for various reasons over the years – some due to with their working relationships with the prime minister and others not at all. Freeland’s own predecessor, Bill Morneau, gave up the finance portfolio in 2020 over an ethics controversy.
But former Liberal MP Celina Caesar-Chavannes said she believes there is a pattern of female cabinet ministers who were “thrown under the bus” after “challenging someone whose name is Trudeau.”
Caesar-Chavannes quit the Liberal party to sit as an Independent in 2019 after she said the prime minister had been hostile with her during a disagreement. Trudeau pushed two high-profile women — Jane Philpott and Jody Wilson-Raybould — out of the Liberal caucus after they stepped down from their respective positions in cabinet that same year.
The National’s At Issue panel breaks down Chrystia Freeland’s sudden resignation from cabinet and how it could impact Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s political future.
“I don’t want to make this gendered, but you have to recognize… The body count is racking up,” Caesar-Chavannes said in an interview with CBC’s Canada Tonight on Monday.
“This is a moment of leadership for Canadians where we need to say enough is enough of a leader who decides that whenever he is challenged on something that someone else has an authority to speak on, like economics, that he’s just going to throw them away.”
Trudeau has not directly commented on Freeland’s resignation but said Monday was not “an easy day” during a speech for an unrelated event.
The pair did see one another at a Liberal caucus meeting late Monday. Freeland walked up to Trudeau and gave him a hug, multiple sources told CBC News.
Trudeau opened the door
Political science professors said Freeland’s letter was clear in describing her reasoning for leaving cabinet, but neither were surprised the part of the political conversation had turned to focus on her gender.
One said Trudeau opened the door for such criticism as soon as made feminism part of his brand more than a decade ago.
“I think it’s only fair to respect her explanation why she has made the decision. But I also think that the question of gender is relevant when the prime minister makes gender relevant,” said Fiona MacDonald, an associate professor of political science at the University of Northern British Columbia.
“For a lot of us who’ve been watching this prime minister who came in identifying as a feminist, there is, I think, a frustration to see these kinds of self-congratulatory statements while watching a number of actions that might suggest otherwise.”
Melanee Thomas, a political science professor at the University of Calgary, said the only gendered element she sensed behind Freeland’s resignation letter was the “frustration” qualified women can experience when men in power dismiss their advice.
Still, she said those who are focusing Freeland’s resignation on the fact that she is a woman are oversimplifying the issue and distracting from the true factors Freeland cited in her decision. The fact the conversation exists, Thomas said, showed Canadian politics still see conflict through an age-old gendered lens.
“I don’t know if I would go so far as to say that it devalues what she’s doing. But I would say again, it’s trite and too cute to think that gender dynamics aren’t structuring the whole way that we see this stuff.”
Exactly one week ago, Trudeau spoke at Equal Voice — an organization that promotes women in politics — about his views on feminism and mentioned Freeland directly.
“I’ve touted the adage, ‘add women, change politics,’ which is to us more than just words. We’ve taken action to make it a reality, appointing the first female finance minister,” he said.
“I want you to know that I am, and always will be, a proud feminist.”
