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Quebec separated from Canada in 1980
Quebec separation essay
Quebec's independence journey
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Canada is known by outsiders to be a very peaceful country. But if you ask any Canadian they well tell you that is unfortunately not the case. For there is a large ongoing conflict between Canadians. The conflict is between the French and the English, or more specifically between Quebec and the rest of Canada. As a result of this conflict, along with some wrongdoing and propaganda. Quebec has considered and has gone as far to hold referendums over Separatism (Surette,2014). Separatism is that the province of Quebec separates from the rest of Canada to form its own country. Which would have immense effects on indubitably Quebec but also the rest of Canada (Martin, 2014). This report will focus on the root causes and origin of Quebec Separatism, the current state of Quebec Separatism and finally how we as a society can act towards Quebec Separatism.
Root Causes and Origin
The root causes of Quebec Separatism go back almost a thousand years! This is because a large cause for Quebec Separatism is the conflict between the French and the English people. These conflicts go back to when France and England first became countries, and ever since then it seems the two countries have been at constant war with one another (Henley, 2011). This constant fighting spawns a built in belief of hatred for one another (Henley, 2011), which would make it hard for the two to live in the same country as they try to do in Canada. But out of all the wars the French and English fought, the most influencing for Quebecois and all of Canada was the sever year war taking place between 1756 and 1763 (Upper Canada History, 2011). The special thing about this war was that part of it was over the influence of the territory to be later Canada (Upper Canada histor...
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Patriquin, M. (2014, April 11). The epic collapse of Quebec separatism. Retrieved May 15, 2014, from Maclean’s website: http://www.macleans.ca/politics/the-epic-collapse-of-separatism/
Quebec Separatism. (2006). Retrieved May 15, 2014, from The History of Canada website: http://www.linksnorth.com/canada-history/quebecsep.html
Scott, M. (2011, November 28). More anglophones see English-French relations as problem. Retrieved May 12, 2014, from Montreal Gazette website: http://www.montrealgazette.com/life/More+anglophones+English+French+relations+problem+Poll/5777450/story.html
Surette, R. (2014, March 24). Quebec separatism and the peculiar entity called ‘English Canada’. Retrieved May 16, 2014, from Rabble website: http://rabble.ca/columnists/2014/03/quebec-separatism-and-peculiar-entity-called-english-canada
The Meech Lake accord was a set of constitutional amendments that were designed to persuade Quebec Province to accept the Canadian Constitution Act of 1982 (Brooks 152). This accord derives its name from the Meech Lake, where these negotiations were held by Mulroney Brian, the Canadian Prime Minister, and the ten premiers of the ten Canadian Provinces (Brooks 211). By the time the Canadian constitution was being implemented, Quebec was the only province that had not consented to it. Somehow, the partition of the constitution in 1982 was carried out without Quebec’s agreement, but it was still bound by the same law. Attempts were made to persuade this province to sign the constitution, which it agreed to do but only after its five demands are fulfilled by the Canadian government. Unfortunately, these demands were not met and this accord failed in 1990, when two provincial premiers failed to approve it. This paper answers the question whether Quebec asked for too much during the Meech Lake Accord negotiations.
Although, Quebec’s population share many similar characteristics amongst one another it is not essential to decide “the people” (Heard, 2013). To be considered a state you must represent all the people in it. Quebec prefers independences for the reason of a commonality
“René Lévesque's Separatist Fight." CBC News. CBC/Radio Canada, 13 Feb. 2014. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.
A century ago, Canada was under control by the British Empire. The battles we fought the treaties we signed and the disputes we solved all helped us gain independence from our mother country “Britain”. Canadians fought a long battle protecting others, and from these battles we gained our peaceful reputation and our independence from Britain. Canada became a nation on July, 1st 1867. Although we were an independent country, our affairs and treaties were all still signed by Britain. In the next years Canada would establish its own government, and lead its own affairs. Many important events led to Canada’s independence, one of the earliest signals that Canada wanted to establish autonomy was the Chanak affair of 1921. In addition the battle of Normandy, which occurred on June 6 1944, contributed to the autonomy of Canada. The Suez Canal Crisis, which took place in the year 1956, earned Canada a place in the media spotlight, displaying Canada as a peaceful country that deserves the right to be independent. One of the final steps that aided with Canada’s independence from Britain was the Canada Act of 1982. Independence from Britain steadily increased throughout the 20th century because of political decisions made in Canada.
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.
Canada: The Quiet Revolution in Quebec The English-French relations have not always been easy. Each is always arguing and accusing the other of wrong doings. All this hatred and differences started in the past, and this Quiet revolution, right after a new Liberal government led by Jean Lesage came in 1960. Thus was the beginning of the Quiet Revolution.
The fall of Quebec was a turning point in Canadian history, changing it from a French colony to a British colony. Had this battle gone the other way, English might be the second language, not French. The battle of Quebec was one of many battles during the 'Seven Year War'. They called it the Maritime War. It was officially declared in May 1756. Britain and Prussia were on one side and France, Spain, and Austria on the other. The war moved across the Atlantic Ocean from Europe because the French and the British were fighting over furs and land. Britain, while subsidizing and aiding Prussia, its only European ally, sought victory in America and sent what was for that century an overwhelming number of regular troops in order to stiffen the military of the American colonies.
Furthermore, the issues of representation in the House of Commons are even more evident in terms of the alienation of certain provinces. Western Canada has experienced political alienation due to the dominance and influence of Ontario and Quebec over policy-making as both provinces contain the founding Cultures of Canada (Miljan, 2012, p. 53) Also, the fact that Ontario and Quebec make up more than 60 percent of Canada’s population attracts policymakers to those provinces while marginalizing the interests of westerners (Miljan, 2012, p. 53). Thus, policymakers will favor Ontario and Quebec as these provinces harbor the most ridings as well as the bigger electors’ base. In fact, Western Canada is also underrepresented in both the House of Commons and the Senate when compared to the Maritime provinces as the Maritime provinces are overrepresented compared to their population. Also, many western Canadians are turned off by the federal government as they have been alienated from major political action and discussion due to low representation (Canada and the World Backgrounder, 2002). In other words, Ottawa does not address the needs and hopes of Western Canada
Thompson, John Herd, and Mark Paul Richard. "Canadian History in North American Context." In Canadian studies in the new millennium. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2008. 37-64.
Regionalism is a growing concern for Canadians` as it affects economic stability, nationalism and western alienation. The economic stability is reliant on the regions having strong economic bases (Stilborn, 19). Nationalism with Quebec is a prime example of how distinct regional cultures hinder Canada’s unity, as they want to separate from Canada, while still having the federal Canadian government financially support them. Western Alienation is also a prime political culture that is regionally distinct.
May, E. (2009). Losing Confidence: Power, politics, and the crisis in Canadian democracy. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart.
In this paper, I plan to take a deeper look at this situation and try to figure out what it would actually be like if Quebec was its own country. & nbsp ; & nbsp ; & nbsp ; & nbsp ; & nbs The premier of Quebec, Lucien Bouchard, has been attempting to separate from Canada for quite sometime. If he had it his way, this topic would be old news by now. His main problem is the Federalist, English speaking citizens of his province. They have been very vocal on their stance to stay apart of Canada. They have sent around several resolutions stating this.
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.
In the past 30 years, two “Rebellions” have taken place between the Métis and the Government of Canada. I strongly believe that the terminology used to describe the Red River “Rebellion” and North West “Rebellion” is misused and should be modified to correctly represent these events. Due to the nature of these events, the more accurate term to use would be “resistance” as the Métis were strictly defending their rights as human beings. A rebellion is defined as an effort by many people to change the government or leader of a country through the use of violence. A resistance however, is the refusal to accept or comply with something; the attempt to prevent something by action or argument. The Métis were not in pursuit of changing the government; they simply wanted a voice in Confederation. The use of the term “rebellion” delivers the wrong impressions of the Métis. Their use of violence was not an act of destruction but of defense. It is for the following reasons that I believe the term “”rebellion” should be corrected to “resistance”.