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Showing posts from January, 2019

Influential Canadians: Terry Fox

What has he done that contributes to a national identity in Canada? Terry Fox       Terry Fox was a cancer research activist, and used his voice to raise awareness of cancer. When he was experiencing months of chemotherapy he saw the pain and suffering others who had been diagnosed with cancer was going through. This became a driving force in Fox's mission to help. Dick Traum, an amputee that ran the New York City Marathon, had inspired Fox with an idea. What if he would run across Canada on his own feet, to raise awareness and funds for cancer research? In April 1980, Terry Fox's Marathon of Hope initiated. More than 5,000 km were logged on his training runs. He also gained the support of a multitude of companies and organizations: the Canadian Cancer Society, War Amputations of Canada, Ford Motor Company, Imperial Oil, and Adidas. On average, Fox was set on running about 42 km per day. Terry Fox contributes to a national identity in Canada because his actions are what

Influential Canadians: Celine Dion

What has she done that has contributed to a national identity in Canada? Celine Dion         The Quebec born singer has gained popularity all over the world. Not only does she use her talents in the musical arts to sing, but she uses her platform to be an ambassador for Canada. In July 26, 2013, Dion received the Order of Canada award. This award elevated her level to the Companion of the Order of Canada. This is the highest rank of the Order of Canada. She was honored because Dion represents the Canadian values worldwide. This is seen in her participation in social and humanitarian causes. An example of a cause she actively took part in is the Cystic Fibrosis Canada. CFC is a Canadian based organization that deals with the disease Cystic Fibrosis. It educates the public about what it is, and how its caused. There are a number of events that take place as fundraisers. For example, there is a super magical princess and superhero ball themed event coming January 19, 2019. Dion is

Multinational Model

What is the multinational model?        The multicultural model functions with a structure of government that has semi-autonomous (independent) nations operating within a central union.  The Multinational Model in Canada         The strength of the individual nations in Canada have distinct and strong regional diversity. Which suggests that Canada is moving toward a multi nationalistic approach in it's governance. The overall structure of Canada's government closely resembles the multinational model. This is seen in the divisions of governments. Canada has a federal government that holds parliamentary powers effective and important to the nation as a whole. In addition, there are provincial and territorial governments that have legislative assemblies. This division of government is primarily responsible for regional concerns. The Canadian federal system was deemed the system that could best serve society. Especially because of the distinct Canadian groups, French and Eng

Global Leadership

What is Global Leadership?         Global leadership deals with the issues of global concerns. Individual, regional, national, or multinational actions are in involved in finding solutions to global issues. For example, the United nations combats global adversities such as poverty. They deal with this issues through the use of humanitarian aid. The UN is comprised of multiple nations that engage with very diverse groups to find solutions. Global Leadership in Canada      The United Nations Human Development index is a system based n comparing that measure of education, life expectancy, literacy, and standard of living. In 2006, the specific goals set were specialized on issues of power, degrees of poverty, and the growing global water crisis. Canada ranked first place, as of the 1990's and into 2000. Canada ranked sixth place, as of 2006. It is clear that Canada is obligated to uphold a role of leadership role in the global community. This is evident in Canada's high

Aboriginal Self-Determination

What is Aboriginal Self-Determination?         It is the right of Aboriginal nations to freely determine their political status and freely pursue economic, social, and cultural development. Aboriginal Self-Determination in Canada Georges Erasmus, Aboriginal political leader          In the past, a number of treaties have been signed between the Canadian government and Canada's Aboriginal peoples. These treated centralized on the idea that Aboriginal self-government is acknowledge in the Canadian context. However, the recognition has diminished over time. In addition, the Aboriginal are not asking to for their self-government and determination to be granted by the federal government. Instead, they want the acknowledgement that their self-governance and determination already exists. Self-governance is defined as a right that a nation has to control and mange their own affairs. This includes things that affect their people and their cultural identities. Multiple Aboriginal

Pluralism

What is pluralism?        A pluralistic society is where members of different groups are encouraged to maintain their independent cultural traditions and differences are valued and protected. It discourages homogenization of people, which is when one culture dominates over the others. Which leads to the marginalization of smaller cultures. Marginalization is when a culture is treated as insignificant, and unimportant. This form of society emphasizes the need for social unity and cohesion by promoting the importance of diversity and respect for differences. Pluralism in Canada          Canada today is significantly different, in terms of the ethnic races living in the countries, in comparison to 50 years ago. The country has shifted from primarily English and French to a mosaic of the world's people and aboriginal peoples are being recognized.  This big shift is primarily caused by the influxes of immigrants accept into the country. 5,448,485 foreign born permanent resident

Promoting an Alternate Canadian Identity: Louis Riel

What were his motives and goals behind creating a national identity for Canada? Louis Riel Canada, Britain, and the U.S were attacking the Hudson’s Bay Company rule in the 1850’s. The HBC decided it would be best to surrender its monopoly, which included Rupert’s Land, the North West, the Red River settlement. This led to the migration of Protestant settlers from the East to move into the primary. They created tension and fear in the Roman Catholic Metis through their aggressive methods. Metis felt that preservation of their religion, land rights, and culture was threatened, as the British and Canadian government didn’t care about the Metis. This mentality of viewing the Metis as insignificant is seen because the negotiations of the Metis land and home were made as if no population existed there. This treatment served as a major motivation. Louis Riel’s main goals: Prevent the mapping out of Metis territory as part of the Canadian colony Preserve the Metis’ lan

Visual Rep of Bilingualism and Multiculturalism

Note: Comedian isn't meant to be there, instead the word should have been Canadian         This image is my visual representation of Canada's multiculturalism and bilingualism. I will highlight on a few terms that I've selected to add to my visual. Canada's multiculturalism is represented by the words recognition, acknowledgement, aboriginal, diversity, treaties, and cultural mosaic. Multiculturalism is known as a the presences of many different cultural or ethnic groups in a nation. With that, Canada is often referred to as a cultural mosaic, being composed with so many different cultural and ethnic groups. Efforts to acknowledge the importance of  respecting diversity in Canada are often made. For example, with the Meech Lake accords aimed to recognize Quebec as a "distinct society". Another example would be the land claim agreements between the Aboriginal peoples and the Canadian government. It allows for the Canadian government to acknowledge the Abo

Various Opinions on Bilingualism and Multiculturalism

Bilingualism and multiculturalism have created disunity in Canada:         The preceding statement is true to an extent, the validity is seen in the separatists in Quebec. Canada is known as a bilingual country, having English and French as the official languages. Numerous groups that vouch for Quebec separating from Canada were formed. For example, the Parti Quebecois' leader, Rene Levesque, suggested that Quebec gains sovereignty-association. Sovereignty associations is when Quebec is politically separated from Canada, but it still connected to the country economically. In 1980, a referendum was held. The Quebeckers were asked whether they wanted Quebec to remain a part of Canada or leave it. These desires to separate were born out of the inequality. There was inequality between the anglophones and the Francophone in France. Anglophones were receiving higher pay than the Franco-phones, according to a study in the 1960's. Job opportunities for Francophone who did not speak

What National Identity Means To Me

      To me, national identity is an identity that individuals of a nation collectively hold. These individuals set aside their differences by connecting to the shared beliefs and values of that nation. This creates a sense of belonging, cohesion, and unity between the members. For example, singing the Canadian national anthem promotes a sense of belonging.       However, national identity in Canada seems to be harder to define. The country is known as a "cultural mosaic" meaning that a multitude of different cultures and ethnic groups reside in the country. Some individuals may feel as though Canada is a incoherent muddle of cultures. These individuals want Canada to have a distinct Canadian identity, meaning removing some laws that apply to the founding/distinct groups. For example, some rights that are given exclusively to Aboriginal people, and French being an official language. However, I believe that you cannot just remove these laws and ights as they are a part of