What is a Canadian …
and why is the Charter so important?
Canada is a vast country of breath-taking beauty and humbling grandeur.
It is a land rich in resources which give people the opportunity to achieve their dreams, live in safety and raise their family fostering a deep sense of national pride knowing that this is a country that was built on principles and values which transcend base instinct and survivalist mentality.
In Canada you are given opportunity to create the life you desire without fear of repression or tyranny.
We are the True North – Strong & Free!
Our founding fathers gave credence to this land for our identity so, it is essential to know some of Canadas more significant attributes.
1. Canada is the second biggest country in the world.
2. Canada has the most coastline in the world.
3. Canada has 2 million lakes.
4. Canada’s territories cover 6 time zones.
5. Canada has the longest international border (US) in the world.
6. There are more than 630 First Nation (indigenous) communities in Canada, which represent more than 50 Nations and 50 Indigenous languages.
History
Aboriginal studies using genetics show that the first inhabitants of the Americas share a common ancestor that developed as an isolated population in what is known as Beringia.
According to The Canada Guide: “… the first peoples of Canada, who belong to what is sometimes called the Amerindian race, migrated to western North America from east Asia sometime between 21,000 and 10,000 B.C. (approximately 23,000 to 12,000 years ago), back when the two continents were connected by a massive land bridge known as the Bering Plain. In the centuries that followed, these peoples spread all across the lands that now comprise Canada and the United States, forming hundreds of distinct settlement communities across the vast landscape. Though population estimates vary wildly, the early Amerindians likely numbered in the millions.”
The very first non-indigenous settlers in Canada were Vikings who landed on the northernmost tip of Newfoundland in a place called L’Anse aux Meadows in the year 1021. The first to step on Canadian land had a possible connection with Leif Erikson according to comments in the Icelandic sagas recorded around the 1200’s
The Italian John Cabot was the first European known to have landed on Canadian soil nearly 500 years after the Vikings. According to records Cabot sighted land at a location somewhere in the northern Atlantic provinces on June 24, 1497.
The first European settlement was established by French explorers Pierre de Monts and Samuel de Champlain in 1604 at Port-Royal, in Acadia (present-day Nova Scotia). In 1608 Champlain built a fortress in what is now known as Québec City.
Canada has become one of the largest immigrant populations in the world with 1 out of 5 not being born in Canada making it one of the most culturally diverse countries on earth.
The people who come to Canada make up a mosaic of cultures which have influenced our politics, helped shape the laws of this land and create our national character.
For centuries people who chose to make Canada their home have embraced the many aspects which make this country stand out among others.
Heritage
Canadians have a grand heritage of discovery and development that rivals any other country.
Throughout the decades there have been many landmark events that put Canada on the World stage.
From the Hudson Bay Company trading beaver pelts to the Transcontinental Railroad which traversed 4600 km connecting the east coast to the west coast and was constructed in less than 5 years.
From the 1890’s Klondike Gold Rush which drew over 100,000 prospectors to the Yukon region to Logging and Maple syrup industry, Canada consistently makes international headlines.
Honour
Throughout history Canadians have achieved distinction, honour & fame through their deeds and words leaving a profound legacy and unmistakeable mark on mankind.
Canadians have served in wartime against seemingly insurmountable odds.
From the War of 1812 to the Battle of the Somme, Vimy Ridge to Passchendaele – Canada fought and suffered nearly 51,000 injured and dead in those battles alone. In total 620,000 troops were sent to fight in World War 1, 67,000 died and 173,000 wounded.
To this day there are multiple memorials and the famous poem written by Lt. Colonel John McCrae “In Flanders Fields”. For this reason, we wear a poppy on our lapel each Remembrance Day.
Canadians showed their strength and courage in World War 2 as well, the most notable being Juno Beach during the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944. In total over 1 million Canadians fought and 45,400 died in WW2.
We have a long history of service and the “Highway of Heroes” outside of Toronto honours our fallen.
This is however, just one side of Canadian sacrifice and achievement there is also the countless contributions to society through welfare, healthcare, innovation, technology, comedy, literature and the Arts.
Canadians have helped shape the world around them contributing with their significant abilities, talents and passion for life.
Canadians enjoy life to the fullest and are avid travellers and explorers.
We love our culture, food, pubs, beer and sports – especially Hockey!
So … What makes a Canadian?
Why have so many achieved so much from such a small population?
To understand this question, one would need to look at the history of Canada which was built upon the foundations laid by influential figures in the past.
We are an amalgamation of native and immigrant people who have come to this wild, beautiful and natural resource rich land seeking opportunity, prosperity and adventure.
Canadians are unique amongst other people in the world and much of our identity is drawn from the land we inhabit.
Our Volksgeist is as much the land itself as it is the people who live here.
Volksgeist or Nationalgeist refers to a “spirit” of an individual people (Volk), its “national spirit” or “national character”.
A common theme in early Canadian nationalist thinking was that the harsh Canadian winters imbued an ideal national character:
Self-reliant, strong, prosperous and free.
These traits were deemed to be the construct of a superior race of more masculine men and resilient women.
William A. Foster, Charles Mair and Robert G. Haliburton – Members of the Canada First Movement, a post-Confederacy nationalist group based in Toronto, were one of the first to argue for Canadian independence from Britain and the United States.
They postulated that Canada’s cold environment produced a vigorous Canadian national identity which was the essence of our Volksgeist.
These visionaries read the writings of Thomas D’Arcy McGee and heartily agreed with his perception of a new Canadian nation.
Collectively, they decided to promote McGee’s political ideology and put their talents to work furthering their goals toward confederation.
McGee espoused a romantic vision of a new nationality destined to challenge its neighbour to the south and British roots by virtue of the superior moral fibre and intellectual vigour of its young men. (& women)
Robert G. Haliburton said in 1869:
“Our snow & frost give us what is more value than gold or silver, a healthy, hardy, virtuous, dominant race.”
In 1871 William A. Foster said that Canadians are:
“Northmen of the New World.”
“A Northern people, as the true out-crop of human nature, more manly, more real, than the weak marrow-bones superstition of an effeminate South.”
In 1875 Charles Mair wrote:
“Whilst the south is in a great measure the region of effeminacy and disease, the north-west is a decided recuperate of decayed function.”
Looking back at the sentiments of those founding figures who helped create Canada’s democracy gives you a sense of the pride these men had in the people who shaped Canada prior to confederacy.
Birth of a nation
On March 29th 1867 Queen Victoria gave Royal Assent to the British North American Act, 1867.
With this act the Provinces of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick formed one Dominion, under one name – ‘Canada’.
This act created a ‘federal dominion’ and established the operation of the government and structure. This structure includes the House of Commons, Senate the Justice system and a taxation system.
Canada was built on a foundation laid by those who were determined to create a country which retained the positive attributes of their British roots but saw a need for improved governance and unique ideology for this “New World”.
They decided that Canada must stand out from its neighbour to the south and forge a different direction under a monarchical form of government.
Giving deference to a sovereign head of the government is preferable to a President according to our first Prime Minister – John A. Macdonald;
“I believe that it is of the utmost importance to have that principle recognized so that we shall have a sovereign who is placed above the region of party—to whom all parties look up; who is not elevated by the action of one party nor depressed by the action of another; who is the common head and sovereign of all.”
In March of 1982, an act, which many consider to be the most significant event in Canadian history was given royal assent by Queen Elizabeth II, the Canada Act 1982.
The ratification of the Canada Act 1982 by British Parliament led to another proclamation on April 17, 1982, when Queen Elizabeth II and Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau with the then Minister of Justice, Jean Chrétien, and Registrar General André Ouellet, signed the Proclamation which ratified the Constitution Act, 1982. This allowed Canada to formally assume authority over its own constitution granting full sovereignty.
Human Rights
Long before the Canada Act or Constitution Act of 1982 there was much discussion about human rights following World War 2.
In Canada, Saskatchewan was first to pass into law a Bill of Rights in 1947. This established fundamental freedoms and equality rights for the people of the province.
The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.
Civil rights activists in Canada had been advocating for equal rights and the end to discriminatory laws based on sex, ethnicity, race and religion for years. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights bolstered efforts toward human rights in Canada.
The Bill of Rights in Saskatchewan was inspiring and influential for John Diefenbaker, who was a Member of Parliament from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.
Four years prior to being elected to Parliament in 1936, Diefenbaker had begun drafting a Bill of Rights which reflected his own experience with French-Canadian discrimination and that of natives, Métis and European immigrants.
On March 16, 1950, Diefenbaker spoke in a public forum expressing the importance of Individual freedoms such as religion, speech, press and association which were, at the time, under threat by the state.
Diefenbaker stated a Bill of Rights was needed to take a: “forthright stand against discrimination based on colour, creed or racial origin”.
Diefenbaker spoke publicly about the need for a bill of rights in his federal election campaign in 1957.
Diefenbaker was elected that year and, as Prime Minister, successfully introduced the Canadian Bill of Rights, which was enacted by Parliament in 1960.
This new Bill of Rights protected all Canadians with numerous rights such as:
Freedom of speech, Freedom of religion the Right to equality, Life, Liberty, security of the person and Fundamental Justice. As well it guaranteed the Right to counsel and the enjoyment of property.
The Bill of Rights was deemed a great leap forward for Canadians Human Rights however, there was room to improve, and it was criticized as not reaching the goal for which it was intended.
The limitations within the Bill of Rights are that it does not explicitly amend any conflicting statutes nor does it provide for removal of conflicts with statutes or grant insertion of allowances for those statutes, making it difficult for legal rulings.
These conflicts put the onus on the courts to repeal or amend those laws found to contravene the Bill of Rights.
Further criticism evolved questioning if the Bill of Rights would be binding on future Parliaments since it was not a Constitutional amendment.
Finally, it was argued that the Bill of Rights lacked authority due to it being a statute under the legislative authority of Canadas Parliament and therefore limited to matters covered by Section 91 of the Constitution Act, 1867.
This meant there was necessary consideration for mitigating the conflicts and authority issues thus, debate continued on the matter for more than 2 decades.
Finally in the early 1980’s there was concerted effort put forth on how to rectify the failings of the Bill of Rights and consensus was established that the rights and freedoms should be part of Canada’s Constitution.
Now, enshrined in the Constitution is what every Canadian will say is their most cherished document – the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This Charter forms the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982.
As a result of efforts put forth by the government under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, The British Parliament formally passed the Charter of Rights and Freedoms as a part of the Canada Act 1982.
The Charter of Rights and Freedoms, often referred to as the ‘Charter’ guarantees Canadian citizens certain political rights and gives civil rights to everyone in Canada regarding the policies and actions in all areas and levels of the government under the full authority and protection of the Constitution.
The Charter was drafted to unify all Canadians with a set of principles that embody those rights and freedoms.
The Lifeblood of Canada
The Charter gives Canadians the liberty, security, self-worth and pride to pursue their dreams without limitation, to endeavour toward a better future for themselves and their children.
Canadians sleep in comfort and live without fear knowing that their Rights and Freedoms are protected by their Constitution.
The Charter is one of the most endearing reasons why we proudly display our flag on nearly all our possessions and never hesitate to tell others we are Canadian.
This document is core to what this nation stands for and who we are as a people.
For these reasons, when we elect a leader, it is with a profound expectation that they will uphold their duty to protect our beloved Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The Charter is under attack by the very person we elected to uphold it – Prime Minister – Justin Trudeau
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