Reflecting the spirit of the age, the Canadian Senate has approved new gender-neutral wording for O Canada, Canada’s national anthem. And now the new lyrics to are official. Canadian Heritage Minister Melanie Joly says the two word revision to the national anthem became law when the legislation was given royal assent.
The new wording changes the second line of the anthem’s English version to “in all of us command” from “in all thy sons command.”
Members of Parliament broke into applause after singing the updated version in the House of Commons a few hours after the bill received royal assent.
Joly says the government will update its materials and spread news of the change at no extra cost. Though the first official version of the anthem was already gender-neutral, the recent change was pressured by efforts of gender-equality advocates. The original version was Robert Stanley’s adopted in 1908. In this version, the second line of the anthem read “True patriot love, thou dost in us command.” It’s not clear when that lyric was changed to “in all thy sons command.”
The update is the culmination of efforts by former Liberal MP Mauril Belanger, who died two years ago, to make the anthem more inclusive.
“Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot… Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed.