Canada anthem to become gender neutral for country's 150th anniversary in 2017

Canada is looking to make its anthem gender-neutral for when it turns 150 in 2017 by replacing the line “true patriot love in all thy sons command” to “in all of us command.” Even though the bill is supported by most MPs, it triggered a heated debate. 

 

The change was proposed by the Liberal MP Mauril Belanger, who was diagnosed with a fatal neurogenerative disease called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) last fall.

The bill was met with applause by many, but the Conservative Party, which voted down a similar bill in 2015 when it had a majority, was able to block an attempt to pass the bill without in-depth debate.

The English version of “O Canada” was written in 1906. Since then, the lyrics have been changed twice. For example, in 1913, “thou dost in us command” was changed to “in all thy sons” to honor the soldiers going off to fight in World War I.