A republic has a President, a kingdom a King or Queen
And emirs and ayatollahs are something in-between
In the north half of a continent a people live and wait
Looking to a new world in a different kind of state.
Canada’s a Dominion, the firstborn of a kind
Without revolution or civil war: a gift to humankind
People come here as a haven, from every place of birth:
Dominion from sea to sea to sea, from the river to the ends of Earth.”
Our land was born unlined before we measured time in hours
Her peoples joined by others from European powers
From colonies to provinces—as they gained a greater say
Then a Dominion joined in a different way.
“Peace, Order and Good Governance”—the things we joined up for
At times we’ve taken arms to stand with others going to war
Other times declined the call, chosen to sit out
Knowing force was not a way freedom could come about…
Dominion’s an experiment: a different kind of state
A trust we hold in silence no one can dominate
That’s the way of elders, their councils and their chiefs
A way we’re trying to live in the Land of the Maple Leaf.
A band of redcoat Mounties rode out to police a claim
And met a Grand Assembly of people on the plain
“The Great White Mother sends you peace: that’s where we’re coming from—
“We’re the Great Mother’s children, too: we know there’s only One.” …
Our governments proclaim their laws in the name of a far-off Queen
Who reminds us of a wider world: the international scene
We’ve a Grand Chief here at home, who lives in Rideau Hall
We’re not torn between them—we have the best of all:
First ministers that run the show, oppositions show what’s wrong
While courts and judges pave a way for those to come along
The media has its part, reporting day to day
And the Charter lists the Freedoms that musn’t slip away…