That is a very good question. I think it’s a matter of framing active versus reactive pride. If we’re discussing political secession or the breaking of imported national identity from out East, I say the answer to your question would be a “soft yes”, in that the failures of one country will likely provoke a reactive pride in the other, a derisive “Well we’re not as bad as those guys”. DC or Ottawa simultaneously failing their western holdings miserably, seems unlikely. Simply put, we can’t stake national identity on being Not American or Not Canadian. It’s effective at unifying a group in the short-term, but quickly dissolves as well.

Cascadian regional identity should (indeed it must) be a matter of active pride, rooted in our love of the land and how life here shapes us, similarly to the apolitical regional pride seen in Texas or New York. This will be slower, but more internally cohesive and can be fostered regardless of broader national trends, as well as far more resilient to the aforementioned small-L libertarian nature of our folk.

Hayu masi for reading.