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Historical Canadian Identity

Promoting An Alternate Canadian Identity: Henri Bourassa


What were his motives and goals behind creating a national identity?


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Henri Bourassa
At the time, there were numerous unacknowledged issues revolving around the Francophones. For example, the francophone opinion on conscription. Many francophone were against conscription, while most anglophone were for it. In 1914, Canada entered the First World War primarily because Britain was in war. They felt like they were fighting for Britain’s imperialism rather than building Canada's sense of nationalism.

How did he turn his goals into actions?


  • He used his platform of Le Devoir, known as an the most influential French newspapers in Canada, to voice his concerns on French Canadian issues such as conscription, and etc.
  • Bourassa protested the Liberal Cabinet’s choice to send Canadian troops to help the British during the South African War by resigning his set without the permission of the Parliament
  • He posed the idea that the Parliament should be the only authority figure with the power to declare war on behalf of Canada in 1900 when he was returned to the House

How did his actions help create the Canada we know today?


By using his voice through the newspaper, a nationalist movement in French Canada occurred. It centralized on Canada’s relationship with Great Britain, the relationship of French to English culture, and what values should guide economic life.

Even though his idea about only giving power to the Parliament to declare war was rejected, it helped. This initiated a nation-wide acknowledgement of the French Canadians’ perspective. This issue has been one of the backbones to Canadian politics.

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