Speech (House debate)

{
    "time": "2024-09-17 15:40:00",
    "attribution": {
        "en": "Ms. Elizabeth May (Saanich\u2014Gulf Islands, GP)",
        "fr": "Mme Elizabeth May (Saanich\u2014Gulf Islands, PV)"
    },
    "content": {
        "en": "<p data-HoCid=\"8551671\" data-originallang=\"en\"> Mr. Speaker, I am thankful for all the tributes that have already been made. Your own words were profoundly moving. It is in this place, in moments like these, that we are united with exactly the same sense of shared humanity in paying tribute to someone we universally loved and admired.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551672\" data-originallang=\"en\">I know Chuck Strahl to have been, throughout his life, an honest man, doing an honest day's work every single day. His life is a profile in faith and courage. I will never forget how young he was. I think of it now and just checked the dates; he was only 48 years old when he told the world he had mesothelioma, as the hon. member for <a data-HoCid=\"278412\" href=\"/politicians/brian-masse/\" title=\"Brian Masse\">Windsor West</a> just mentioned, because of an exposure to asbestos. People did not think about its being in the brake lines of the vehicles when he was doing honest work in the forest industry.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551673\" data-originallang=\"en\">All those years later, he would be given a sentence from his doctor that would have stopped many people. It did not stop him. He was told at only 48 years old that he had a lung cancer that would kill him. He did not stop. He did not feel sorry for himself. He ran again. He got re-elected in 2006. We have heard from so many members about his achievements in cabinet and his hard work, that I will not repeat them.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551674\" data-originallang=\"en\">However, we know that by 2011, he announced he would not run again. That is when I was elected, after he was not here anymore, but we had become friends before that happened. Whenever I would run into him, as we do, those of us who live in B.C. and travel to Ottawa, I would always tell him that he must be so proud of the member for <a data-HoCid=\"278493\" href=\"/politicians/mark-strahl/\" title=\"Mark Strahl\">Chilliwack\u2014Hope</a>, and he would always burst with pride. He was so proud. I know how much he loved all of his kids. He always spoke also of Karina, Loni, Kyla and his grandchildren. I thank God he defied the odds to live to the age of 67 to see so many of them.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551675\" data-originallang=\"en\">The thing is that I am still angry. I am still angry that this country produced a product that was the single biggest occupational killer, killing hundreds of thousands of people around the world, and this year taking Chuck Strahl from us.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551676\" data-originallang=\"en\"> I want to salute his profile and courage, because it took courage. He resigned from Parliament. He did not have to put himself out there. He went on national television to say that it was time to say that chrysotile asbestos kills, time to say it out loud and time for Canada to do the right thing. With that, even as Chuck Strahl left politics, he saved lives around the world by speaking truth to power.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551677\" data-originallang=\"en\"> God bless him. We know he is with a heavenly host. We know that the Lord he loved has welcomed him home.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551678\" data-originallang=\"en\">As one of his many colleagues who admired him, I just want to offer my deep thanks. It is people like Chuck who make this place decent. I thank him, and I thank all his family with much love and deepest sympathy.</p>",
        "fr": "<p data-HoCid=\"8551671\" data-originallang=\"en\">Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident, je suis reconnaissante envers tous ceux qui ont rendu hommage \u00e0 Chuck jusqu'\u00e0 maintenant. Vous-m\u00eame avez parl\u00e9 de lui de mani\u00e8re tr\u00e8s touchante. C'est dans ces moments \u00e0 la Chambre, quand nous rendons hommage \u00e0 quelqu'un que nous avons tous aim\u00e9 et admir\u00e9, que nous sommes unis par un sentiment commun d'humanit\u00e9. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551672\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je sais que, toute sa vie, Chuck Strahl a \u00e9t\u00e9 un homme honn\u00eate qui accomplissait chaque jour son travail de fa\u00e7on honn\u00eate. Il a men\u00e9 une vie exemplaire de foi et de courage. Je n'oublierai jamais qu'il nous a quitt\u00e9s si jeune. J'y repensais \u00e0 l'instant et j'ai v\u00e9rifi\u00e9 les dates: il n'avait que 48 ans quand il a annonc\u00e9 \u00eatre atteint du m\u00e9soth\u00e9liome \u00e0 cause d'une exposition \u00e0 l'amiante, comme vient de le mentionner le d\u00e9put\u00e9 de <a data-HoCid=\"278412\" href=\"/politicians/brian-masse/\" title=\"Brian Masse\">Windsor\u2011Ouest</a>. Personne ne savait qu'on retrouvait de l'amiante dans les conduites de frein des v\u00e9hicules \u00e0 l'\u00e9poque o\u00f9 Chuck \u00e9tait un honn\u00eate travailleur de l'industrie foresti\u00e8re. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551673\" data-originallang=\"en\">De nombreuses ann\u00e9es plus tard, son m\u00e9decin lui a appris le verdict, un verdict qui aurait amen\u00e9 beaucoup de gens \u00e0 s'arr\u00eater. Chuck ne s'est pas arr\u00eat\u00e9. \u00c0 48 ans, on lui a appris qu'il avait un cancer du poumon mortel. Il ne s'est pas arr\u00eat\u00e9. Il ne s'est pas apitoy\u00e9 sur son sort. Il s'est pr\u00e9sent\u00e9 de nouveau aux \u00e9lections. Il s'est fait r\u00e9\u00e9lire en 2006. De nombreux d\u00e9put\u00e9s ont parl\u00e9 des r\u00e9alisations de Chuck en tant que ministre et de son travail acharn\u00e9; je ne r\u00e9p\u00e9terai pas tout ce qui a d\u00e9j\u00e0 \u00e9t\u00e9 dit. </p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551674\" data-originallang=\"en\">Cependant, nous savons qu'en 2011, il a annonc\u00e9 qu'il ne se repr\u00e9senterait pas. C'est \u00e0 ce moment-l\u00e0 que j'ai \u00e9t\u00e9 \u00e9lue, alors qu'il n'\u00e9tait plus l\u00e0, mais nous \u00e9tions devenus amis avant cela. Chaque fois que je le croisais, comme cela arrive \u00e0 ceux d'entre nous qui vivent en Colombie\u2011Britannique et qui se rendent \u00e0 Ottawa, je lui disais toujours qu'il devait \u00eatre tr\u00e8s fier du d\u00e9put\u00e9 de <a data-HoCid=\"278493\" href=\"/politicians/mark-strahl/\" title=\"Mark Strahl\">Chilliwack\u2014Hope</a>, et il rayonnait toujours de fiert\u00e9. Il \u00e9tait si fier. Je sais \u00e0 quel point il aimait tous ses enfants. Il parlait toujours de Karina, Loni, Kyla et de ses petits-enfants. Je remercie le Ciel qu'il ait d\u00e9fi\u00e9 les pronostics pour vivre jusqu'\u00e0 l'\u00e2ge de 67 ans et conna\u00eetre tant d'entre eux.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551675\" data-originallang=\"en\">Par contre, je dois dire que je suis toujours en col\u00e8re. Je suis toujours f\u00e2ch\u00e9e que notre pays ait fabriqu\u00e9 un produit qui est devenu la plus grande cause de mortalit\u00e9 en milieu de travail, tuant des centaines de milliers de personnes dans le monde, et que, cette ann\u00e9e, Chuck Strahl nous ait \u00e9t\u00e9 enlev\u00e9 pour cette raison.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551676\" data-originallang=\"en\">Je tiens \u00e0 saluer son attitude et son courage, car il lui en a fallu. Il a d\u00e9missionn\u00e9 de son poste de d\u00e9put\u00e9. M\u00eame si rien ne l'obligeait \u00e0 aller sous les projecteurs, il est pourtant all\u00e9 \u00e0 la t\u00e9l\u00e9vision nationale pour porter son message: il fallait reconna\u00eetre que l'amiante chrysotile est mortel, l'affirmer haut et fort, et demander au Canada de faire ce qui s'impose. Ainsi, m\u00eame si Chuck Strahl a quitt\u00e9 la politique, il a sauv\u00e9 des vies dans le monde entier en osant dire la v\u00e9rit\u00e9 aux puissants.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551677\" data-originallang=\"en\">Que Dieu le b\u00e9nisse. Nous savons qu'il est au sein des troupes c\u00e9lestes. Nous savons que le Seigneur qu'il aimait l'a accueilli chez lui.</p>\n<p data-HoCid=\"8551678\" data-originallang=\"en\">Comptant parmi les nombreux coll\u00e8gues qui l'admiraient, je tiens \u00e0 lui adresser mes plus sinc\u00e8res remerciements. Ce sont des gens comme Chuck qui font de la Chambre un endroit bien. Je le remercie, et je remercie toute sa famille avec beaucoup d'amour et une profonde sympathie.</p>"
    },
    "url": "/debates/2024/9/17/elizabeth-may-4/",
    "politician_url": "/politicians/elizabeth-may/",
    "politician_membership_url": "/politicians/memberships/4108/",
    "procedural": false,
    "source_id": "12858548",
    "h1": {
        "en": "Oral Questions",
        "fr": "Questions orales"
    },
    "h2": {
        "en": "Hon. Chuck Strahl",
        "fr": "L'honorable Chuck Strahl"
    },
    "document_url": "/debates/2024/9/17/",
    "related": {
        "document_speeches_url": "/speeches/?document=%2Fdebates%2F2024%2F9%2F17%2F"
    }
}