Harperism: How Stephen Harper and His Think Tank Colleagues Have Transformed Canada

As of October 20, 2015, Stephen Harper is no longer prime minister. That will certainly reduce government corruption and electoral fraud. But what else will change? Thanks to 40 years of persistent messaging by the Fraser Institute and its neoliberal allies, the climate of ideas that made Stephen Harper possible will still be in place. Any government, no matter what it claims its program to be, will be profoundly challenged in bucking the prevailing neoliberal headwinds.Under Harperism, First Nations can only succeed, the environment can only be protected, jobs can only be created, the economy can only grow, through an unfettered free market. And it’s up to government to create and enforce markets, not look after its citizens.This presentation discussed the changes Harper has made and the difficulties succeeding governments will have in unravelling them.Donald Gutstein is an adjunct professor in the School of Communication at SFU and co-director of NewsWatch Canada, a media-monitoring project. He teaches in the areas of news media, propaganda analysis and documentary research. His new book, Harperism: How Stephen Harper and His Think Tank Colleagues Have Transformed Canada, was published in September 2014.