A Sad Day for Canada; Jack Layton's State Funeral

Jack Lauyton cycling with wife, Olivia Chow

NDP leader and Toronto activist leaves profound legacy

My international readers may not be aware of the sad occurrence in Canada this week – we lost a true hero. In Toronto tomorrow we will be having a big State Funeral for Jack Layton, a politician who represented the poor and the young. He was the Official Leader of Canada's Opposition when he died of cancer last week, and tens of thousands of people will likely come to his funeral (inside Roy Thomson Hall and outside at David Pecaud Square, just west of RTH).

His New Democratic Party elected over 100 representatives in our 2011 election, including Members of Parliament as young as 20, 21, 23... amazing!

Tomorrow we say goodbye to him, but there will be lots of music and profound speeches at his funeral. He carried proudly the populist / social democratic values of his forebears Tommy Douglas and Ed Broadbent, and his legacy lives on.

Just Google "Jack Layton of Canada" if you want to learn more about him, or visit the Jack Layton wikipedia page.

Schedule, guests and performers at Jack Layton funeral, Toronto

Remembering Jack at his Toronto funeral

State funeral for NDP Leader Jack Layton, Saturday 2 pm, Roy Thomson Hall / David Pecault Square

A procession will take Layton’s casket from Toronto City Hall to Roy Thomson Hall sometime after 11 a.m. Saturday. The funeral at Roy Thomson Hall will commence at 2 p.m. About 800 seats inside the hall will be open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis. Video screens will be set up in David Pecault Square, to the west of Roy Thomson Hall, for overflow crowds.

Expected guests

A total of 1,700 seats in the hall are reserved for membes of Layton’s family (including his wife Olivia Chow, children Mike and Sarah and their partners, granddaughter Beatrice and other close relations), MPs, premiers and former NDP premiers, other politicians and invited guests. Some of the guests include:

Interim Liberal leader Bob Rae
Interim Bloc Québécois leader Louis Plamondon
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May
Former Liberal leaders Michael Ignatieff and Stephane Dion
Former Bloc leader Gilles Duceppe
Former prime ministers Paul Martin and Jean Chrétien
Former NDP leaders Alexa McDonough and Ed Broadbent


The service

Several individuals are expected to give eulogies, including Stephen Lewis, the former Ontario NDP leader famous for his activism on social justice issues, and Layton’s children, Michael and Sarah.

McDonough, Broadbent and Doer are among those expected to be pallbearers.


From what I've been able to glean from the web and other media, Saturday's funeral for Opposition Leader Jack Layton will be filled with music and poignant memories. Some highlights are sure to include:

Eulogy - To be delivered by Stephen Lewis

Officiant - Pastor Reverend Dr. Brent Hawkes will deliver a couple of specific messages Jack wanted to be read at his funeral.



Rise Up - Parachute Club singer / writer Lorraine Segato will sing her anthemic tune.




Hallelujah - Steven Page of Barenaked Ladies will perform this haunting, melancholy, yet uplifting song.





Quebecois singer Martin Deschamps met Layton several times and is planning on traveling from Montreal to Toronto to perform at Roy Thomson Hall.



The service is intended to be religiously and politically inclusive, and will have readings from Christian, Jewish, Muslim and other traditions.






On Saturday night the CN Tower will glow with orange light in honour of Jack Layton and his affiliation with the NDP (whose main colour is orange), a really kind gesture and symbolic of Toronto's love for this passionate, thoughtful man.