J. M. Bridgeman
Value #1 PEACE: I was listening to a CBC radio interview of Canadian historian Desmond Morton talking about how Canada has been, at least since the last battles between foreign nations fought on this soil (1814), a nation valuing PEACE. We were forced to be a peaceful nation, he says, because after that war, Great Britain decided that the cost of defense in such a large sparsely populated land far from Mother England was too great. After a cost-benefit analysis, it was decided to abandon the old imperial policy, and to abandon those remaining colonies by gradually withdrawing, encouraging responsible government, union, and eventual independence. Fifty years later, Canada emerged.
This is a bit of a back-handed compliment. Typically Canadian, you could say. "We may not be aggressive, but we're peaceful. We may not be boastful, but we're self-deprecating." What are some of the other values we hold to be TRULY CANADIAN, and how, historically, did we come to value them?
Value #2 FAIRNESS / JUSTICE: Canadians did not seek to conquer and exterminate the native peoples of this land. From the 16th century on, newcomers hired First Nations, formed strategic alliances with them, made treaties with them before moving in (except in BC), assured them lands in reserve, and guaranteed their rights in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Although some First Nations might see this differently, and history documents times when we have failed to live up to our goals, as a generalization, Canadians value JUST TREATMENT of all people.
Value #3 TOLERANCE, INCLUSIVENESS, BI- or MULTI-CULTURALISM: Great Britain permitted the French-Canadians to keep their language and religion and culture after the war (1763 / 1774). Although there were sound strategic reasons for doing this, and alternate solutions had been attempted and failed in Acadia, the Quebec Act became law and we have never repealed it. Subsequent constitutional documents have reaffirmed the principle of two founding nations. Those who argue for assimilation, for a cultural puree rather than stew, who let their own insecurities surface as negative anti-French or anti-other rhetoric, are speaking against a more than 200-year-old legal tradition, a tradition to be proud of, which helps create our unique identity in North America.
Value #4 LOYALTY: We didn't revolt against King George III when others did in 1776; we remained a monarchy welcoming exiled Loyalists from the revolting colonies. The constitutional monarch evolved to a figurehead role, evoking our history and our mainly British-inspired institutions such as parliament and political parties. Today the Queen is ably represented by a strong Canadian woman who emigrated to Canada as a child from Asia. Canadians have demonstrated their LOYALTY many times over, volunteering to join Empire forces in South Africa and World War I, and declaring war ASAP (a week after London, as MPs had to travel to Ottawa for the vote) in World War II.
Our sense of loyalty has evolved to the point where we expect people to retain a certain amount of loyalty to their own origins but to leave any historical anger and conflict behind when assuming Canadian citizenship or residency. The only Canadian politician to be assassinated, Thomas D'Arcy McGee, was targeted in 1868 as a result of ancient animosities in Ireland. Hundreds of Canadian citizens died in a terrorist bombing in 1985 as a result of animosities carried here from India. Loyalties which inspire actions that infringe on the rights of others are not welcome here.
Value # 5 HUMANITY / HUMAN RIGHTS: Canada abolished slavery in the 1830s when Great Britain did, and offered sanctuary to fleeing slaves who arrived via the Underground Railroad. We weren't immune to the bigotry which accompanies outdated ideas, as any member of a "visible minority" can attest to from personal experience. We have fought for male suffrage, female suffrage, universal suffrage, worker rights. We have instituted free universal education to secondary school level, and the right to medical care for all citizens, not just those who can afford it. We have abolished one by one laws which deny humanity and take away the rights of individuals (such as capital punishment, family and property laws against women, etc.) We struggle every day to ensure humane treatment and the meeting of basic needs (food, clothing, shelter) for all, starting here at home.
Value #6 RESPECT for AUTHORITY: For many years Canada was symbolized internationally by the RCMP, the Mounties, a police force commissioned in 1873 to prepare the West for railroad-building and immigration. One Mountie, Inspector James Morrow Walsh, who had befriended Chief Sitting Bull and his people during their years of sanctuary in Canada, escorted them to the border where a troop of U.S. Cavalry waited. Walsh didn't need a "show of force" because the Sioux respected him and the government and Crown he represented.
The other half of this "Respect for Authority" equation is RESPECT. Manners are the manifestation of respect in social situations. Canadians are notoriously POLITE, quick to say "Sorry," thanking even dispensing machines when they give us our selections. A typical Canadian respects everyone until a person does something to lose respect. Then we excuse ourselves and walk away.
Further to this "Respect for Authority" value, Canadians are sometimes accused of having no sense of humour. Personally, I don't like any humour that is disrespectful or abusive, or that ridicules other peoples' pain. I don't like humour that invades a public person's private life, or humour with an adolescent focus on sexuality or body parts. I do like comedians who are self-deprecating, observant, who stress the gap between ideal and real, who point out examples of people taking ourselves a bit too seriously. The best Canadian joke is how many famous comedians come from Canada. Jim Carrey is not the only one. He is just the cutest.
Value #1 PEACE: I was listening to a CBC radio interview of Canadian historian Desmond Morton talking about how Canada has been, at least since the last battles between foreign nations fought on this soil (1814), a nation valuing PEACE. We were forced to be a peaceful nation, he says, because after that war, Great Britain decided that the cost of defense in such a large sparsely populated land far from Mother England was too great. After a cost-benefit analysis, it was decided to abandon the old imperial policy, and to abandon those remaining colonies by gradually withdrawing, encouraging responsible government, union, and eventual independence. Fifty years later, Canada emerged.
This is a bit of a back-handed compliment. Typically Canadian, you could say. "We may not be aggressive, but we're peaceful. We may not be boastful, but we're self-deprecating." What are some of the other values we hold to be TRULY CANADIAN, and how, historically, did we come to value them?
Value #2 FAIRNESS / JUSTICE: Canadians did not seek to conquer and exterminate the native peoples of this land. From the 16th century on, newcomers hired First Nations, formed strategic alliances with them, made treaties with them before moving in (except in BC), assured them lands in reserve, and guaranteed their rights in our Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Although some First Nations might see this differently, and history documents times when we have failed to live up to our goals, as a generalization, Canadians value JUST TREATMENT of all people.
Value #3 TOLERANCE, INCLUSIVENESS, BI- or MULTI-CULTURALISM: Great Britain permitted the French-Canadians to keep their language and religion and culture after the war (1763 / 1774). Although there were sound strategic reasons for doing this, and alternate solutions had been attempted and failed in Acadia, the Quebec Act became law and we have never repealed it. Subsequent constitutional documents have reaffirmed the principle of two founding nations. Those who argue for assimilation, for a cultural puree rather than stew, who let their own insecurities surface as negative anti-French or anti-other rhetoric, are speaking against a more than 200-year-old legal tradition, a tradition to be proud of, which helps create our unique identity in North America.
Value #4 LOYALTY: We didn't revolt against King George III when others did in 1776; we remained a monarchy welcoming exiled Loyalists from the revolting colonies. The constitutional monarch evolved to a figurehead role, evoking our history and our mainly British-inspired institutions such as parliament and political parties. Today the Queen is ably represented by a strong Canadian woman who emigrated to Canada as a child from Asia. Canadians have demonstrated their LOYALTY many times over, volunteering to join Empire forces in South Africa and World War I, and declaring war ASAP (a week after London, as MPs had to travel to Ottawa for the vote) in World War II.
Our sense of loyalty has evolved to the point where we expect people to retain a certain amount of loyalty to their own origins but to leave any historical anger and conflict behind when assuming Canadian citizenship or residency. The only Canadian politician to be assassinated, Thomas D'Arcy McGee, was targeted in 1868 as a result of ancient animosities in Ireland. Hundreds of Canadian citizens died in a terrorist bombing in 1985 as a result of animosities carried here from India. Loyalties which inspire actions that infringe on the rights of others are not welcome here.
Value # 5 HUMANITY / HUMAN RIGHTS: Canada abolished slavery in the 1830s when Great Britain did, and offered sanctuary to fleeing slaves who arrived via the Underground Railroad. We weren't immune to the bigotry which accompanies outdated ideas, as any member of a "visible minority" can attest to from personal experience. We have fought for male suffrage, female suffrage, universal suffrage, worker rights. We have instituted free universal education to secondary school level, and the right to medical care for all citizens, not just those who can afford it. We have abolished one by one laws which deny humanity and take away the rights of individuals (such as capital punishment, family and property laws against women, etc.) We struggle every day to ensure humane treatment and the meeting of basic needs (food, clothing, shelter) for all, starting here at home.
Value #6 RESPECT for AUTHORITY: For many years Canada was symbolized internationally by the RCMP, the Mounties, a police force commissioned in 1873 to prepare the West for railroad-building and immigration. One Mountie, Inspector James Morrow Walsh, who had befriended Chief Sitting Bull and his people during their years of sanctuary in Canada, escorted them to the border where a troop of U.S. Cavalry waited. Walsh didn't need a "show of force" because the Sioux respected him and the government and Crown he represented.
The other half of this "Respect for Authority" equation is RESPECT. Manners are the manifestation of respect in social situations. Canadians are notoriously POLITE, quick to say "Sorry," thanking even dispensing machines when they give us our selections. A typical Canadian respects everyone until a person does something to lose respect. Then we excuse ourselves and walk away.
Further to this "Respect for Authority" value, Canadians are sometimes accused of having no sense of humour. Personally, I don't like any humour that is disrespectful or abusive, or that ridicules other peoples' pain. I don't like humour that invades a public person's private life, or humour with an adolescent focus on sexuality or body parts. I do like comedians who are self-deprecating, observant, who stress the gap between ideal and real, who point out examples of people taking ourselves a bit too seriously. The best Canadian joke is how many famous comedians come from Canada. Jim Carrey is not the only one. He is just the cutest.