blame Canada
A catch phrase for shifting attention away from a problem or serious social issue by humorously laying responsibility on Canada.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“When things go wrong, people often joke and blame Canada.”
“You cannot just blame Canada every time you lose your car keys.”
“Instead of fixing the actual policy issues, the politicians just blame Canada to distract the angry voters.”
“Whenever the local sports team loses a game, the fans jokingly blame Canada for the bad weather that slowed down the players.”
“During the office meeting, my boss tried to blame Canada for our low sales numbers to lighten the mood after a difficult month.”
“Rather than accepting accountability for the systemic failure of the project, the committee chose to blame Canada, a deflection that amused the public but solved nothing.”
first recorded 20th c.
The expression originates from the 1999 satirical film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, which featured a song titled “Blame Canada”. The phrase entered the wider lexicon as a sardonic shorthand for scapegoating the nation, following the song's appearance in the production.
Last updated August 10, 2026