In June 1990, the residents of Toronto voted in favor to recommend to the Canadian government. One of the changes made to the lyrics of the anthem “O Canada” was from "in all, thy sons command" to “in all of us command”. In this part of the anthem, the word “sons” implied that women cannot feel true patriotism or love for Canada so Canadian’s woman feel offended. Other changes to the lyrics include the words of “our home and gracious land” instead of “our home and native land". Some Canadians feel that the words "Native Land" were not appropriated mainly for those non-native born (Moscoe).In this way, the song includes the people of the First Nation tribes and everyone in Canada is represented and can sing it joyfully.
The events in American history have also affected Canada from a political perspective, which lead to the Democracy that is present today. Another way the U.S. has affected Canada is from a military perspective because Americans are quick to jump to war and Canada has had to help control them which lead to them being peacekeepers. The United States helped mold the Canadian identity by being both a threat and support to the nation; this will continue into the 21st century but Canada will keep it’s unique identity. A country 's culture can be seen as interchangeable with identity; in Canada there is evidence of American culture everywhere.
Canada is well known for its peacekeeping efforts and contributions through peacekeeping. Yet, few of the population knows of Canada’s transition to peacemaking, and how Canada aims to return to keeping peace instead creating it. Peacekeeping first transitioned to peacemaking after the Cold War. The change caused public opinion to drop, resulting in Canada declining missions, and contributing less to the UN’s peacekeeping efforts. The Canadian government became unhappy with what Canada's Peacekeeping had become, and decided to take on and complete missions in a manner unlike the way that they were completed for years prior, but in a way alike peacekeeping once was.
The Canadian government shows respect to issues of other nations, but not First Nations. During the Quebec referendum, Canadian Politician and chief of the Red Sucker Lake community Elijah Harper declined the Meech Lake Accord because Canada was addressing the issues of Quebec instead of First Nations. The accord was about Quebec becoming “distinct society”, this insulted Elijah Harper when First Nations have been trying to become a distinct society and get special treatment. First Nations have been trying to reclaim their land for decades, but the Canadian government pushed aside the issues of First Nations and put the needs of Quebec above theirs. This explains how the federal government does not acknowledge the issues of First Nations.
For example, Indigenous people are excluded from these sources as not all are seen and considered a citizen of Canada. Not only that, but many individuals receive a Canadian citizenship if they commit to the nation. The government of Canada considers commitment through a good career or high level of education and experience which many indigenous people don 't have as they aren 't given that
As Robertson Davies stated, “ Canada is not going to have a national literature in the mode of those European lands where a long history has bound the people together, and where a homogeneous racial inheritance has given them a language, customs, and even a national dress of their own.” 2 We need to look at the work of Canadian authors who have come here from different backgrounds. Connecting with our multicultural student body is really important! As Canadians, we are lost in a sea of international influences – we hardly know who we are. And we do this without realizing it.
The dangers and challenges of this extent of conformity are thoroughly supported by research (Kirova, 2008, 110; Kymlicka, 2006, 150; Rudmin, 2003, 10-11). There are concerns with a heterogenous view of Canada as well. A major aspect of multicultural education is learning the differences between cultures (Kirova, 2008, 116). Focusing purely on the differences, even in a celebratory manner, do harm. While the goal is to promote understanding, this often has the unfortunate side-effect of creating a larger barrier between different cultural groups (Kirova, 2008, 116).
The idea of democracy is to let people choose their own leaders. In the case of the supreme court judges, they hold some of the most important decisions, without being elected. For me, this is a problem because as time changes and society evolves, the people running the country and making such decisions must have the same morals and ideas as the people living within the society. For example, as most of Canada accepted the idea of same sex marriage, it was still being decided in the highest courts even though society had already accepted it. Furthermore, I think that it is important for the judges to have the influence of society backing their decisions because if the judges are impartial to societies views, Canadian laws will no coincide with the mannerisms of the current and evolving society.
Opportunity to apply for Canadian passport With adequate time as permanent citizen of canada, you have the opportunity to apply for Canadian passport. The Canadian passport is highly prized and respected travel document in the world. With a Canadian passport you don 't need a visit visa to enter majority of the developing and developed world, visa is gotten on arrival. With a Canadian passport EU and G-8 countries, can be entered and stayed for a limited period without having any specific visa permission.
The concept of transparency “allows citizens to access information, in order to hold governments accountable” (Close & Croci, 2018, Pg. 203). Lastly, responsiveness, which refers to the governments ability to “respond to the interests of the public” (Close & Croci, 2018, Pg. 206). However, Canada’s seemingly democratic society and government proposes a dilemma as to whether Canada is still a democratic society or rather becoming less democratic. The level of democracy within Canada is debatable since no democratic aspect of our government has been affected directly. However, Canada’s pervasive issues of becoming less democratic of the last decade can be attributable to political disinterest due to pragmatic ideologies, low voter turn out and the inability for political parties to attract voters.
The relationship between the United States and Canada is another great result of the interplay of democracy and political culture and one of the greatest results of the was the NAFTA. There have always been people who were not particularly happy with the relationship of Canada and U.S, especially those who felt like it was not benefitting Canada, and there also people who doubted that the free trade agreement would ever work. As Inwood states, “the great debate that raged in Canada around the 1988 election concerning free trade was deeply resonant of the political culture of the country and touches on all aspects of public administration” (p.47). The arguments against free trade stated that Canada would not be able to integrate well into the system and that there would be more to lose than gain, while continentalists felt that it was nothing more than an opportunity and economic arrangement (Inwood, p.47). Canada had to make sacrifices when it came down to decision-making and traditional trade remedies, “Moreover, in political culture terms, the free trade debate has become a flash point for those who argue for the supremacy of the free market versus those who argue for a positive, interventionist state-all of which has a direct impact on public administration” (Inwood, 47)
Of the 630,000 Canadians that served in the war, more than 10,500 either sacrificed their lives or got injured in a World War 1 battle that changed the way Canadians looked at themselves (Morton, Desmond. " First World War (WWI). " The Canadian Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 10
Canadian Government is run on Democratic principles. Democracy means “Rule by the people”. Democracy is when the people of a Country vote for their Prime Minister and don’t get stuck with a dictator. The main focus of democratic Government is to have freedom and equality. Democracy is a large type of government it has three political philosophies, Socialism, Liberalism, and Conservatism.
A poll data released in April 2013 by Abacus Data, found that 75 percent of respondents agreed that he was pleasant and only 21 percent have a negative impression of him (Abacus Data, 2012). This positive trend continued up to the election. In the Canadian Federal Election, Liberal
There are many moments in Canada’s history that served to define the country. Some of these moments include Confederation in 1867, the discovery of insulin by Dr. Frederick Banting and his assistant Charles Best, the implementation of free health Care, the Canadian and Soviets hockey series in which Canada won, and many more. But, as argued in this paper, is the Canada Act in 1982. (It is important to keep in mind the Constitution Act, 1982 was annexed as a part of the Canada Act and may be referred to in this paper.) The Canada Act served to give Canada, and its populace, the greatest amount of independence and freedom that it has ever experienced, politically, culturally, and legally.