Unit 4: Canadian National Identity

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

A bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada. It forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982.

Royal Proclamation, 1763

A document that set out guidelines for European settlement of Aboriginal territories in what is now North America

Responsible government

A government that answers to the people rather than to colonial governors

Oka Crisis, 1990

A land dispute between a group of Mohawk people and the town of Oka, Quebec that resulted in violence and a police standoff

Equalization payments

An aspect of Canadian federalism whereby the federal government collects money through direct taxation and then redistributes it more equally to ensure that all provinces can maintain adequate standards in health and education services

Official bilingualism

An official government policy under which a country or province recognizes two official languages. English and French in Canada

Institution

An organization established for and united by a specific purpose. Institutions provide services such as social assistance, education, and cultural events.

Economic nationalists

People who believe that a country's businesses and industries should be protected against foreign interests

Inherent right

The right to self-determination that exists for Aboriginal peoples in Canada because they occupied the land and governed themselves for thousands of years before Europeans arrived in North America

Charlottetown Accord, 1992

The second attempt by the Canadian government since 1982, to amend the constitution in Canada. Its main provisions was to accept Quebec as a distinct society and recognize Aboriginal self-government. It was rejected in a national referendum.

Canadian unity

The sense of Canada being a cohesive whole

Separatism

The striving to become separate from a larger group

National Energy Program (NEP)

1980 federal policy under which the government made oil companies in Alberta lower oil prices throughout Canada to protect Canadians from paying global market prices for oil and gas

Statute of Westminster, 1931

A British law that granted full legal freedom to its colonies including Canada

Pluralism

A belief or doctrine that a society should reflect an inclusive approach that encourages diversity

Bill 101

A law passed in 1977 by the Parti Québécois government which made French the only official language in the Quebec. Among its provisions was the sign law which required that all businesses display outdoor signs only in French. The Act also stipulated that all children, except those with a parent whose first language was English, must attend French-speaking schools. This meant that all non English-speaking immigrants would attend French schools.

Multiculturalism Act, 1988

A law that aims to preserve and enhance multiculturalism in Canada

Quebec sovereignty movement

A movement advocating for Quebec to separate from the rest of Canada and become a nation of its own

National identity

A people's sense of what makes them a nation

Quiet Revolution

A period of intense social, political, and economic change in Québec. During this period, which lasted from about 1960 to 1966, Québécois began to assert their rights and affirm and promote their language and culture. Growing nationalism among French Canadians and a desire for the separation of Quebec from the rest of Canada

Conscription Crisis, 1917

A political and military crisis in Canada during World War I. It was mainly caused by disagreement on whether men should be conscripted to fight in the war. Most English Canadians supported it and most French Canadians were against it. It almost caused Qubec to separate.

Dual federalism

A political arrangement in which power is divided between the federal and state or provincial governments in clearly defined terms

1980 Referendum

A referendum called by René Lévesque and the PQ government on Quebec sovereignty, asking for a mandate to negotiate a new agreement with Canada based on sovereignty-association

1995 Referendum

A referendum held in Quebec in 1995 to determine if Quebec would remain a province in Canada or be separated from Canada

Multiculturalism

A society in which the cultures and traditions of many different groups coexist and are encouraged

Cooperative federalism

A system of government in which powers and responsibilities are shared between states or provinces and the federal government

Asymmetrical federalism

A system of government in which provinces or states possess different powers than the federal government, but power is divided unevenly between provinces or states

Canadian federalism

A system of government in which provinces share power with a federal government

Indian Act, 1876

An act which gave the federal government control over every aspect of the lives of First Nations people. It was designed to encourage their assimilation.

White Paper, 1969

Canadian policy paper proposal that would abolish the Indian Act, which the federal government viewed as discriminatory, dismantling the special legal relationship between Aboriginal peoples and the Canadian government in favour of equality

English-French relations

Challenge to Canadian unity

Diversity

Differences in characteristics of people; can involve personality, work style, race, age, ethnicity, gender, religion, education, functional level at work, etc.

FNMI

First Nations, Metis, Inuit

Assembly of First Nations

Formed in 1980 to represent all the Aboriginal groups across Canada in their dealings with the federal government

Challenges to Canadian Unity

French-English relations, Aboriginal rights, American influence, & regional tensions

Cosmopolitan

Including people from many different countries

Residential schools

Part of the Indian Act -Boarding schools where First Nations children were gathered to live, work, and study. Schools were operated by government and churches and were designed to assimilate First Nations children into mainstream society

North American Integration

The political and economic merging of North America

Mosaic culture

Many cultures coexisting eg. Canada

Melting pot

Many cultures mixing to form a new culture eg. USA

Distinct society

Meech Lake Accord reference to recognize Quebec as a "distinct society" having the right to take action "to preserve and promote the distinct identity of Quebec."

Federal response to national unity issues

Meech Lake Accord, Charlottetown Accord (Constitutional reform)

Confederation of Canada

The process by which the British colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick were united into one Dominion of Canada on July 1, 1867

Rene Levesque

Served as premier of the Canadian province of Quebec from 1976 to 1985. In addition, he founded the Parti Quebecois, a political party that aims to make Quebec an independent nation

Conquest

Taking control of a people or place through military force

Official Languages Act, 1969

The Act that recognizes French and English as Canada's official languages, and that all federal institutions must provide services in English and French

Meech Lake Accord, 1987

The Canadian government's attempt to win Québec's consent to the revised Canadian Constitution by amending the Constitution to declare Quebec a distinct society

Sovereignty-association

The central concept of the separatist Quebec political party, the Parti-Québécois (PQ) when it was led by René Lévesque, that the province would become an independent nation politically but would remain associated with Canada economically

Aboriginal self-government

The concept that Aboriginal peoples have the right to establish local governments that would be equal and parallel to the provincial and federal governments

Western alienation

The feeling on the part of western Canada that federal policies favour central Canada

Urbanization

The growth of cities and the migration of people into them

Constitution Act, 1982

The last legislation the British Parliament passed for Canada that made it completely sovereign

Quebec Act, 1774

This act gave French Canadians self-determination and gave colonial territory to Quebec

Patriated

Transferred from the control of the British government to that of the Canadian government. The patriated Canadian Constitution of 1982 gave the provinces more rights and powers than they had under the British North America Act of 1867

LaFontaine and Baldwin

Two politicians from Upper and Lower Canada who demonstrated French-English cooperation when they worked together to achieve responsible government and biculturalism