Honourable senators, this week marks the thirty-sixth anniversary of the most horrific and deadly act of terrorism committed against Canadian citizens and Canada itself. I speak, of course, of the bombing of Air India Flight 182, a murderous attack that killed 329 people, most of them proud Canadians. Three dozen years have passed since that dreadful day, June 23, 1985. In the interim, an entire Canadian generation has come of age. Therefore, not everyone remembers as I still do the shocking horror of learning the plane had blown up as it flew over Ireland; the sickening sense of relief people felt when they realized a second bomb, meant for a second plane, had failed to detonate mid-air as planned — instead, that bomb killed two baggage handlers at Tokyo’s Narita Airport — the sense of betrayal that many in Canada’s South Asian community felt when they saw their own government treating this as not so much an attack on Canada and Canadians but as an Indian tragedy; and the frustration over decades as investigations, inquiries and trials failed to give friends and families of the victims the justice they had been waiting for.

Today, I want to recognize the hard work of my fellow Edmontonian Dr. Meera Nair, who wants to make sure Canadians never forget what happened that day 36 years ago.

Dr. Nair is a writer and the copyright officer at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology. For years now, she has been writing essays and articles about the mass murder and campaigning for Parliament to observe a moment of silence on June 23, the anniversary of the Air India tragedy. Of course, as we well know, June 23 isn’t always a date when parliamentarians are sitting. However, during this difficult year when we have mourned together all too often, I feel Dr. Nair’s campaign is more timely than ever. Several times, just in recent weeks, we in the Senate have felt the power of taking a moment to remember — even when we have been separated COVID. For some, I’m sure, that moment is a moment of prayer. For others, it’s a moment of quiet reflection or meditation. It may be a largely symbolic act; a cynic might even see it as a performative one. However, I think for us as parliamentarians those quiet moments are a chance to ground us — to remind us of why we are truly here.

However we mark June 23, whether as senators or as private citizens, I hope we will never forget the hundreds of Canadians — the dozens of Canadian families — who lost their lives that day. I hope we will forever stand with the Canadian friends and families who still mourn their loved ones. Today I want to salute Meera Nair for never stilling her voice.