The foundations of the Canadian nation are built on the key elements of Canadian identity – creating a pluralistic society. This range of differences in views and values may be considered too diverse to be considered a nation; however, Canadian nation exits. The evidence of this existence can be seen through Canada’s politics, language, and culture. Notorious to the world for the stability and security, Canadians pride themselves on the unprejudiced law integrated in the Canadian identity. Under which all citizens are considered equal. Made possible by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms; where all citizen are given the fundamental rights needed by an individual. The Charter of Rights and Freedoms further ensures that theses rights are applicable to all, under Guarantee of Rights and Freedoms; eliminating any possibility of discrimination within or by the political system of Canada. Therefore, the citizens living in Canada does not need to feel the fear of unjust ruling or those with power. The evidence of this is shown through media’s involvement …show more content…
Not just Canada, language in general allows people to connect with each other. This connection is essential because in order to understand another, one must comprehend their thoughts. The only way this can be done is through spoken words; thus, having no language barrier results in less conflict caused by misunderstandings. An important trait to have for pluralistic society to exists without conflicts and violence. That is why; Canada being bilingual minimizes conflicts between diverse groups of people. Nevertheless, having two official languages does not restrict an individual from learning a different language or communicating with it – in fact, it is favored. What having two official languages does however, it allows people from different backgrounds to understand each other and their worldviews: creating a sense of
Although Quebec is in Canada, a majority of Quebecers do not identify with the national identity of Canada. Both societies create a sense of identity as well as nationalism (Hiller, 295). Hiller mentions two approaches to assessing Canadian identity; the unitary approach and the segmentalist approach (Hiller, 277). The unitary approach suggests that society consists of people who regardless of their ethnic back ground, identify as belonging to the national society, while the segmentalist approach concentrates on groups and communities that share racial, linguistic, occupational, or cultural similarities (Hiller, 28). While most Anglophones are more unitary or pan-Canadian, Quebec heavily identifies with the segmentalist approach. This dissimilarity of identity perspective may be problematic for the country, at the same time however, it can also be viewed as a struggle where contradictory parties find a way to compromise and reshape Canadian society together (Hiller, 277). Canada’s former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau made it his objective to unite Quebec with the rest of Canada. In 1969 Trudeau’s government implemented Bill C-120, otherwise known as the Official Language act, which made French an...
...to identity with at least one of the countries predominate languages, English or French, dictated the degree in which they could participate in Canadian life. According to the Commission, this participation was real under two conditions: “that both societies, the French-speaking as well as the English-speaking, accept[ed] newcomers much more rapidly than they have done in the past; and that the two societies willingly allow other groups to preserve and enrich, if they so desire, the cultural values they prize[d]” (RCBB Book 1 xxv). It creates an interesting take on the acceptance of those “othered” groups, as change was necessary not only on the part of the minorities but also from Canada’s French and English-speakers. The Commissions work remains focused on language and culture, more so than ethnicity amongst a bilingual, bicultural and “othered” Canadian society.
Source I is a quote from the Paris Peace Talks by British Prime Minister; Lloyd George, where he states a desire for Germany to suffer. This line was said after the end of World War I, where nations met up to discuss the Treaty of Versailles or the treaty to end World War I. In that treaty, it claimed that Germany was responsible for the war and included all the punishments for Germany. Britain and France wanted to make Germany hurt, in return from all the losses it’s caused them, like death of loved ones and damaged property. Squeezing an orange until its pips squeak, means to apply intense pressure on one, until it suffers or in Germany’s case, becomes economically and militarily weak. The Treaty of Versailles harshly punished
Lister Sinclair’s pamphlet Change Comes to Canada was distributed at the Canadian Government Pavilion during Expo 67. Sinclair looks at the meaning of the name Canada. She analyses common points in people’s daily lives such as the meaning of ‘our home and native land,’ Canadian history, Canadian resources, transportation, climate and culture that tie each Canadian together. She claims that “every Canadian who thinks about Canada has his own idea about the meaning of that dream.” She argues that there is no actual national identity but individual identities that made up our national identity. She challenges the questions related to a national identity. It is interesting that something that questions the national identity would be distributed at Expo 67; but, it provides in...
Many people across the globe argue that nationalism within Canada is simply not feasible. It is said that we as a people, differ so greatly with our diverse cultures, religions, and backgrounds that we cannot come together and exist together as a strong, united nation. In his book, Lament for a Nation, George Grant tells the reader that “…as Canadians we attempted a ridiculous task in trying to build a conservative nation in the age of progress, on a continent we share with the most dynamic nation on earth. The current history is against us.” (1965) Originally directed towards the Bomarc Missile Crisis, the book argues that whatever nationalism Canada had was destroyed by globalization as well as the powerful American sphere of influence. Although it is true that the book was initially written as a response to the events that took place in the late 1950s, many of the points are still valid today.
Canada is an example of a nation with the question of a country wide unification among all its citizens on the table since the time of confederation in 1867 and even a few years prior. What some these factors that make Canada different from areas around it? How can a country that dominates such large land mass and that bares such vast cultural differences, be united? Can Canadians ever come to agreement upon the values they hold to be important? The debates of these questions continue to plague Canadian parliaments, especially when examining the differences between Canada and the province Quebec. Even though many argue and hope for Canada’s unity in the future, the differences in political socialization and culture present throughout the country creates a blurry vision of Canadian harmony and makes it extremely difficult to realistically vision Canadian unification. Is that, however, a bad thing?
Separation of Quebec can negatively impact on Canada`s culture, heritage, bilingualism, education, and economy. That is, separation of Quebec is consequential in terms of import and export, foreign investors, market within the country, currency, Bank`s fund, and employment opportunities. Furthermore, separation of Quebec violates Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom. Separation of Quebec violates rights of Anglophone and francophone people and creates problems for their education. Also, separation of Quebec negatively affects mobility rights of Canadian citizens. By having unified government it is possible for Quebec government to have local control whenever feasible. There are politicians in other parts of the world that can act as driving for to break apart Canada for their own benefit. Political stability is a key factor behind Canadians success. Separation of Quebec and trade with USA and other countries can result in over dependence of Canada on other countries. To avoid this threat Canadian youth must work harder and seek advice from experts in law, economy, and politics. If Quebec separates, Canadian will lose huge lands and population will shrink. If boundaries remain the same it can be problematic for residents who have trade with neighbor provinces or residents who have properties that will negatively impacted from division of Quebec. If boundaries don’t remain the same there will be huge debate in terms of new
Any person, place or event that has held the honour of being commemorated in Canada has been recognized of an extreme importance to the country. It is impossible to research commemoration in Canada without reading about world war one and two; The great wars are arguably the most commemorated events in History let alone Canada. Understanding this they are not the only events that receive attention from Canada, the government recognizes many other occurrences as, well, anything from Sir John A. Macdonald day on the 11th of January to the anniversary of the statute of Westminster on the 11th of December. I do not believe that any one event can be placed above or below another, and that they all hold a value in whatever way that may be. This Essay
Prior to World War One, Canada was seen as part of the British Empire, rather than a country with a national identity of its own; but the war changed that, and the country itself, in many ways.
Quebec’s history and geography clearly sets it apart as a distinct political and cultural North American region. It is uniquely the only large cultural hearth of French language, customs, and heritage on the continent. With this uniqueness comes solidarity among the people of Quebec and sometimes feelings of separation from the rest of Canada.
Their values are similar in terms of government, diversity and human rights. In both countries, the governments are run democratically. The people of the country vote for their leader rather than the leader be appointed by themselves like a dictator. Both countries are civil with each other because both the people and the governments believe in democracy over communism or fascism. Therefore, we get along in a way that we have parallel views about how our countries are to be run in peace and equality. Also, Canada and the United States bond over the diverse populations we have and the cultural influences we have endorsed over the years. In Canada, more than 200 languages were reported in the 2011 Census of Population as a home language or mother tongue . Likewise, there are about 14 million households in the United States which English is not spoken as a first language . With this variety of languages and cultures, Canada and the USA share the same inclusive values and therefore develop a healthy relationship. Additionally, these two countries both believe that all human beings deserves rights and freedoms with no exclusions or exceptions. Of course there are some people within these countries who think the opposite of equality, however as a whole, both countries try to enforce human rights and freedoms. For
July 1st 1867 marks the date of Canada’s birth, the day Canada became a country. Since its birth, Canada has been the greatest country to exist. Don’t agree? There are some reasons where you can argue with my opinion, but here are just 3 of many reasons why Canada is the greatest/best country to live in. Those 3 reasons being Canada’s amazing healthcare plan, the economy in Canada, and the safety in the country.
This was the first time that Multiculturalism was recognized in the Canadian Constitution. This is the next most important government policy because it makes it more ingrained in the laws and history of Canada and it makes laws against the discrimination of the separated cultures that make up the Canadian population. In the constitutional act of 1982 it states, “Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.” The quote proves that this chapter of the constitution was very important as a social aspect of multiculturalism moving forward. It changed not only how culture got along with one another but how they were seen as a whole as well. The act made discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex, age, or mental or physical disability constitutionally illegal. In the same video of the Ukrainian immigrant owning a small store in Winnipeg, it shows the discrimination that the Ukrainians go through as passers through come into his shop. In the video he says that people don’t see him as a ‘Canadian’ but he has lived in Canada for most of his life and is just as much of a Canadian as the people saying that to him. The Chapter of Rights and Freedoms is one of the most important social multicultural legislation because it puts it into law that men, women and children like the store owner are known as Canadians and have the same rights as anyone
I like to believe that being Canadian means that I am different than other people from other countries, I like to believe that we are strong and just because we are young doesn’t mean we are not. I also like to believe that we are unpredictable.
Canada, also known as the “Great White North” is the second largest country in the world with a rich history located North America. Canada was originally inhabited by the Aboriginal people who crossed the Bering land bridge. The Aboriginals called this land “Kanata,” meaning “village.” These people would later be known as “Indians," named by the first explorers who mistakenly thought they were in the East Indies.