Iimage that most Canadians believe to be true when the time came around for the 100th birthday. Most Canadians still believed that the Mountie always got his man. The RCMP was a small force when they were founded in 1873, but the above reasons aided the force in becoming famous around the world. The image of the Mountie may have began to change throughout the years since it was first established, but the overall positive look on the RCMP remained the same.
This Canadian police force became one of the most respected forces. “In the 1880’s it established law and order and grew into a force that was glamorized by legend and Hollywood and became one of the most respected police forces in the western world. “4 In 1973, Canadians still idolized the force and gave the force a great deal of respect and recognition. Throughout history the Mountie image had basically remained the same and in 1973 Canadians stood by our Mounties when controversy about them began to surface.
The force which was founded 100 years earlier had began to take on new duties such as espionage and getting involved in such activities as arresting citizens for possession of drugs. In editorials of 1973, many Canadians expressed that even though the image of the Mountie was beginning to receive some slack they were behind them since indeed in was their job. “… Obliged to perform a number if controversial and sometimes unpopular jobs, searching out and arresting marijuana smokers… looking for possible subversives in trade unions, government departments and university campuses.
Inevitably these activities have brought some criticism. It has been accused of many things-from being too rigid and military in discipline and methods, to failing to distinguish in its security work, between hard-line communists and harmless parlor radicals. Regardless, it has retained, and has deserved to retain, general public respect. 5 According to this quote from an editorial published in 1973, the Mountie had undergone a great deal of controversy but in fact still deserves respect and recognition for the jobs that are done.
In the late 1960’s drug use increased which put a strain on the Mounties’ image. “During the late 60’s drug life increased which effected the Mounties’ image. North America was on a glorifying youth kick and here were our Mounties arresting everybody’s sons and daughters for smoking a little marijuana. But we allowed it, they were only doing their job and forgave them for even that. “6 The Mounties’ who may have been perceived as the “bad guys” by some citizens since their children were being arrested for what they believed was something minor, in fact in the end came out looking like the “good guys”.
Even with the controversy surrounding these arrests, the RCMP’s image remained in tact. Since it was the year of the centenary, many issues about the RCMP began to surface. Even though many controversial facts arose, Canadians stood behind the force. “Ex-Corporal Jack Ramsay ‘exposed’ the internal harshness of the RCMP training and complained of unfair treatment within the ranks. Members of the opposition tried to make political hay with the story in Parliament. We yawned. We love our RCMP, and despite Ramsay, the image remained intact.
“7 Why would Canadians support the force even after hearing these allegations? It goes back to the fact that the Mounties are something that we take pride in. They are what we believe to be our national symbol. We do not want to believe that there is anything wrong with the Mounties; we do not want to taint their image that is known across the world. The image of the RCMP did in fact receive some severe criticism in the year of the centenary, but the majority of Canadians fully supported the force. They were proud to declare the RCMP as a national symbol.
“It’s unlikely that any police force in the world is more highly respected internationally than the RCMP. “8 Canadians do not wish to believe anything is wrong with the RCMP. We would not want to ruin our global image. We stand behind our force 100 percent. In 1973, many controversial issues began to surface about the RCMP, but Canadians chose to stand behind the Mounties while the celebrated their 100th birthday. When most people think of Canada the RCMP is one of the first things that come to mind.
Our beloved force celebrated its centenary in 1973, which caused for many Canadians to voice their opinions about the RCMP. The force received mostly positive opinions in the year of their 100th birthday. Many editorials surfaced about the Mounties in the few months before their August centenary which showed Canada how much we idolize the force. Many surveys were done to see how important Canadians deem the RCMP to be. More than ninety percent of Canadians believed that the Mounties were honest and very competent.
9 Even though the force had undergone many changes since it was founded in 1873, the image of the Mountie remained the same for Canadians. In the same survey Canadians expressed their opinions about the RCMP’s image. “Asked whether we were happy with our Mounties’ physical appearance, the way they deal with the public, their independence of political factors, their respect for citizens’ rights, we answered a resounding ‘yes’ on every count. “10 The force which had now existed for 100 years had came along way since its founding. “The RCMP has played a long and honourable part in our history.
Its fame has gone far beyond this country’s borders. “11 Reasons such as this reinforce the Mountie image. We as Canadians idolize an image such as this because it is idolized around the world. The opinions that were expressed in the 1973 editorials were indeed positive. “The RCMP is an institution that Canadians have come to trust. It has recognized procedures; its own sense of honour and propriety; a highly refined sense of duty. “12 The RCMP will always be known as the national symbol of Canada because of the way Canadians believe them to be portrayed.
We will never believe that there is something wrong with our force. We will never portray them as having a tainted image. The 1973 centenary was an important milestone for the RCMP. A force which was almost abolished in its few years was now celebrating its 100th birthday. Canadians believed that the Mountie was a national symbol. It was a force that was respected around the world. In 1973 many controversial things surfaced about the RCMP, but that did not stop Canadians from supporting the force. They believed that the RCMP was a force who has earned a great deal of respect and recognition.
Many Canadian citizens expressed the way they felt about the Mounties by sending in letters and editorials to the newspapers. Things such as espionage and drug arrests were mentioned in these letters but in the end the RCMP came out looking like the “good guy” since they were only doing their job. Many Canadians expressed how they were pleased with the overall image of the RCMP.
They believed the force to be extremely competent and reliable. In the late 1960’s drug use increased and caused strain on the force’s image, but when 1973 came along Canadians praised the RCMP for a job well done.
1 Hartley Steward, “The RCMP: After a century, they’re still good guys,” The Toronto Star, 23 May 1973,p. 6. 2 “The Mountie at 100 years,” The Toronto Star, 23 May 1973, p. 6. 3 Stewrad,p. 6. 4 “Mounties’ Centennial: A time for myth-making,” The Toronto Star, 6 March 1973, p. 3. 5 “The Mountie at 100 years,”p. 6. 6 Steward, p. 6. 7 Steward,p. 6. 8 Bruce West, “The Men in Red,” The Globe and Mail, 5 February 1973,p. 29. 9 Steward,p. 6. 10 “The RCMP: After a century, they’re still good guys,” p. 6. 11 “The Mountie at 100 years,”p. 6. 12 West, “The Men in Red,” p. 29.
