Canadianism or Canadian patriotism refers to a patriotism involving cultural attachment of Canadians to Canada as their homeland. It has been identified as related, though in some cases distinct, to Canadian nationalism. [1] In contemporary times, this patriotism has commonly emphasized Canada as a multicultural cosmopolitan society. [2]
Canada's first Prime Minister John A. Macdonald worked with George-Étienne Cartier and other representatives, in founding the country, in which Canada was recognized as having been created by 'two founding races' which the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism later defined as 'Canadians of British and French origin' apart from 'the other ethnic groups' to the explicit exclusion of 'the Indians and the Eskimos' in its Book I. General Introduction, Paragraph 21, often referred to today as English Canadians and French Canadians. [3]
Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier in his 1911 electoral defeat speech, responded to various accusations by asserting his support for Canadianism, saying:
I am branded in Quebec as a traitor to the French and in Ontario as a traitor to the English. In Quebec I am branded as a Jingo, and in Ontario as a Separatist. In Quebec I am attacked as an Imperialist, and in Ontario as an anti-Imperialist. I am neither. I am a Canadian. Canada has been the inspiration of my life. I have before me as a pillar of fire by night and as a pillar of cloud by day a policy of true Canadianism, of moderation, of conciliation. I have followed it consistently since 1896, and now I appeal with confidence to the whole Canadian people to uphold me in this policy of sound Canadianism which makes for the greatness of our country and of the Empire. [4]
Canadianism was especially important within the Liberal Party of Canada, Liberal Party figures such as O. D. Skelton neither rejected ties between Canada and United Kingdom, nor claimed that Canadians composed a unitary nation - taking into account rejections of this by French Canadian supporters of a Canadian patriotism, such as Henri Bourassa. [5] Pierre Elliot Trudeau, as Prime Minister of Canada sought to develop a common Canadianism across cultural boundaries through advancing a Canadian society based upon civic rights, as manifested with the adoption of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. [6] Trudeau emphasized Canada as being a multicultural society, his vision of multiculturalism was individualist in associating cultural identity with individual choice. [7]
The version of patriotism promoted by the Liberal Party that sought to distance Canada from the United Kingdom was initially strongly opposed by the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada (PC). Prime Minister John Diefenbaker of the PC Party, emphasized Canadian nationalism, asserting that there was "One Canada, One Nation", believing that the goal of Macdonald and Cartier of unifying the people of Canada could be achieved. [8] Prior to becoming Prime Minister, Diefenbaker emphasized the need for Canadian identity to be reconcile unity and diversity, saying in 1946 during a debate in the House of Commons on citizenship: "Canada must develop, now that we achieve this citizenship, unity out of diversity...". [8] In 1964, Diefenbaker rejected the then-proposed maple leaf flag for Canada by the Liberal government, because it held no reference to Britain and he claimed that did it honour the "founding races" of Canada, and demanded that any new flag have the British Union Jack and the emblems of the "founding races". [9] The PCs later accepted the current Canadian flag, with the red maple leaf appearing on the party's logo in the 1970s. In 1980, PC leader Joe Clark, during his short tenure as Prime Minister, added a new element to the description of Canada's identity, describing Canada as a "community of communities" - in that Canadians could express multiple identities within a Canadian identity. [6] Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and Clark as Constitutional Affairs Minister attempted to resolve political disagreement with Quebec over the Constitution Act of 1982 through propositions of constitutional reform in the failed Meech Lake and Charlottetown accords. [6]
The successor to the PC Party, the Conservative Party of Canada, led by Prime Minister Stephen Harper recognized the Québécois as a nation within a united Canada. [10] Harper later elaborated that the motion's definition of Québécois relies on personal decisions to self-identify as Québécois, and therefore is a personal choice. [11]
The New Democratic Party of Canada (NDP) has influenced Canadian identity, particularly via former NDP leader and Saskatchewan Premier Tommy Douglas who was identified in a major public opinion poll by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) as the "Greatest Canadian", largely due to his advocacy for publicly funded universal health care for medically necessary services that was eventually adopted by Canada. [12] NDP leader Jack Layton also has become a major figure in Canadian politics who upon his sudden death from cancer, was granted a state funeral in 2011 by Prime Minister Stephen Harper. [13]
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau, also referred to by his initials PET, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 15th prime minister of Canada from 1968 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1984. He also briefly served as the leader of the Opposition from 1979 to 1980. He served as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada from 1968 to 1984.
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a centre-right federal political party in Canada that existed from 1942 to 2003.
The Liberal Party of Canada is the longest-serving and oldest active federal political party in Canada. The party has dominated federal politics of Canada for much of its history, holding power for almost 70 years of the 20th century. As a result, it has sometimes been referred to as Canada's "natural governing party".
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada of the 37th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party won a third majority government.
The 1997 Canadian federal election was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members to the House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party won a second majority government. The Reform Party replaced the Bloc Québécois as the Official Opposition.
The Meech Lake Accord was a series of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and all 10 Canadian provincial premiers. It was intended to persuade the government of Quebec to symbolically endorse the 1982 constitutional amendments by providing for some decentralization of the Canadian federation.
The 1984 Canadian federal election was held on September 4, 1984, to elect members to the House of Commons of the 33rd Parliament of Canada.
The following is a timeline of the Canadian federal election, 2004. More on the election in general is available in the article 2004 Canadian federal election.
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada of the 39th Parliament of Canada.
Canadian nationalism seeks to promote the unity, independence, and well-being of Canada and the Canadian people. Canadian nationalism has been a significant political force since the 19th century and has typically manifested itself as seeking to advance Canada's independence from influence of the United Kingdom and the United States. Since the 1960s, most proponents of Canadian nationalism have advocated a civic nationalism due to Canada's cultural diversity that specifically has sought to equalize citizenship, especially for Québécois and French-speaking Canadians, who historically faced cultural and economic discrimination and assimilationist pressure from English Canadian-dominated governments. Canadian nationalism became an important issue during the 1988 Canadian general election that focused on the then-proposed Canada–United States Free Trade Agreement, with Canadian nationalists opposing the agreement – saying that the agreement would lead to inevitable complete assimilation and domination of Canada by the United States. During the 1995 Quebec referendum on sovereignty that sought to determine whether Quebec would become a sovereign state or whether it would remain in Canada, Canadian nationalists and federalists supported the "no" side while Quebec nationalists supported the "yes" side, resulting in a razor-thin majority in favour of the "no" side that supported Quebec remaining in Canada.
This is a seat by seat list of candidates in the 2004 Canadian election.
The history of Canada (1960–1981) refers to the period immediately following the prosperous 1950s until the new constitution of 1982, the Canada Act.
Canadian leaders' debates are leaders' debates televised during federal elections in Canada, made up of two debates, one in French and one in English, usually held on back-to-back nights. The first time these debates were held was during the 1968 election. They were until recently produced by a consortium of the main Canadian television networks, namely the CBC/SRC, CTV, Global and TVA, although other channels such as CPAC carry the broadcasts as well.
The 2008 Canadian federal election was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada of the 40th Canadian Parliament after the previous parliament had been dissolved by the Governor General on September 7, 2008. The election yielded a minority government under the Conservative Party of Canada, led by the incumbent Prime Minister, Stephen Harper.
The 41st Canadian federal election was held on May 2, 2011. It resulted in a Conservative majority government under the leadership of Prime Minister Stephen Harper. It was the third consecutive election win for Harper, and with 166 of 308 seats, giving them a majority government for the first time in their eight-year history. It was also be the first right-of-centre majority government since the Progressive Conservatives won their last majority in 1988. The Conservative Party won 39.62% of the popular vote, an increase of 1.96%, and posted a net gain of 24 seats in the House of Commons.
The 2015 Canadian federal election held on October 19, 2015, saw the Liberal Party, led by Justin Trudeau, win 184 seats, allowing it to form a majority government with Trudeau becoming the next prime minister.
