On the heels of lukewarm grief comes doubt over the Crown’s future
With only two days left before Queen Elizabeth II’s interment, the book of condolences, on display at the McDougall Centre until Sunday, Sept. 18, 2022, is seeing visitors not in droves but mere trickles.
According to lifelong Calgarian Josh Kavanaugh, people don’t really care about the Royal Family. “But I’ve come to learn that people really, really like the Queen,” he said.
For Josh Wong, a public servant and recent transplant to Calgary, the Queen’s passing is the end of an era. “It has been quite a historic reign. There’s a sense of sorrow, but it is as expected,” said Wong.
Carmen Brockbank is not as apathetic. Supported by her husband and two daughters, the 62-year-old made the solemn trip downtown on Saturday to pay her respects.
“She’s the only queen that we’ve ever had. I grew up with her being queen, so I looked up to her,” said Brockbank.
The dismal attendance may be a harbinger of Calgarians’ cooling ardour for the monarchy, particularly for the new man on the throne, King Charles III.
“Frankly, I don’t want Charles to be king,” said Brockbank. “Being that he’s been divorced once and he married a divorcée, he should not have the right to be King of England. He shouldn’t have the right to be the head of the English church.”
“My main concern is people want to move away from the monarchy, which I understand,” said Kavanaugh. “But there are so many treaties with the Aboriginal people that would become null and void if we did that.”
Indeed, Treaty-Crown relations are a pressing concern in the succession, with Indigenous leaders expressing worry that reconciliation efforts will come to standstill.
“I think the King should focus more on reconciliation and on the whole Crown-Indigenous relationship and what we can do in promoting the betterment of basic life needs for the Indigenous community here,” said Wong. “After all, the Treaties were signed between them.”
“I might not be completely happy with the person who’s coming on the throne right now, but I think, after all, we are loyal to the system, not to the person,” Wong added. “I wish him well, for sure.”