Canada And The Twentieth Century

The 1950s and 1960s were widely recognized as the second “Golden Age” after the 1920s. However, it is questioned whether it really was a period of growth and stability for all the citizens of Canada. Many French Canadians have brought up the question about if their rights and needs were properly recognized by Canada during this time period. The needs of French Canadians were met to an extent by Canada in the 1950s and 1960s because of the inclusion of their culture, the economic standing of French Canadians, and the unification of Canada as a country.

Comparatively, First nations were forgotten as people and were given little importance. Notably, when Newfoundland and Labrador joined confederation, the Terms of Union did not mention anything about the fate of their land’s aboriginals and consequently they received fewer rights than the other tribes who were registered under the Indian Act, which already limited them to very little.

Since the colonization of Canada First Nations people have been discriminated against and assimilated into the new culture of Canada through policies created by the government. Policies created had the intentions of improving the Aboriginal people’s standard of living and increasing their opportunities. Mainly in the past hundred years in Canadian Society, policies and government implemented actions such as; Residential schools, the Indian Act, and reserve systems have resulted in extinguishing native culture, teachings, and pride. Policies towards the treatment of Aboriginal Canadians has decreased their opportunities and standard of living because of policies specified previously (Residential schools, the Indian Act, and reservation systems).

With the proposal of the ‘Statement of the Government of Canada on Indian Policy’ (hereafter referred to as the White Paper) in 1969 by Jean Chretien, existing tensions over the role and future of First Nations within Canadian society would finally come to a head. Prior to the introduction of this policy, government bureaucrats and missionary organizations had finally begun to realize that directed change and economic development were not taking place amongst First Nations communities as they had wanted, and decided in the favor of a change. This change in policy brought about the White Paper, which was a cleverly veiled assimilationist proposal of the Canadian government to the First Nations peoples of their country. This shift in policy

The Indian Act was a challenge by the Canadian government to adjust the aboriginals into the Canadian culture including bring in residential schools, separating every First Nations in trying to “improve”, and practice them for standard society (Emberley, 2009). First Nations people were also not allowed to possess any land or offer the land that used to be theirs before the Indian act as this segregation put limits maintaining or even owning anything (Emberley, 2009). This lead to the point on everything being restricted for the First Nations including losing history, practicing

Ever since the late 1400’s when the European discovered North America they brought along with them a practice of domination leaving the first nation people with very little rights forcing them to stand defenceless. Ever since the settlers arrived, the lives of the First Nation people have forever been damaged with the implementation of new ways of living. These changes have created an image

A country can make quite a name for itself with its military prowess, but when the white flag waves, how can it keep itself relevant? It’s a question that begs answering, and has been answered, correctly and otherwise, in countless ways. In the aftermath of WWII, it was imperative that Canada answer this question for itself. The nation had become a powerful force on the field of battle, but as the war came to its close, Canada had to find a way to keep its status. In this, the country succeeded; with peacekeeping missions around the world, issues addressed at home, and disaster aid for those who needed it, it easily kept its relevance on a global scale. Even with the end

For decades, Controversial and intrusive piece of federal legislation governed almost all aspects of Aboriginal life, from the nature of band governance and land tenure systems to restrictions on Aboriginal cultural practices. Most critically, the Indian Act defines the qualifications for being a “status Indian,” and as such has been the centerpiece of Aboriginal anger over federal attempts to control Aboriginal identity and membership. Since being passed by Parliament in 1876, the Indian Act has been the touchstone for Aboriginal affairs in Canada. Few documents in Canadian history have generated as much debate, anger and sorrow as the Indian Act. Yet the legislation persists as a central element in the management of Aboriginal affairs in the country. While Aboriginal anger with historic and current terms of the Indian Act is deep and powerful, Indigenous politicians and governments remain strongly divided as to the value and purpose of the legislation. This is hardly surprising, given that the political structures and political cultures of Aboriginal communities across the country have, for generations, been created and distorted by the imposition of Indian Act government systems

The country that we have come to call Canada, has been built and shaped by wars, and military confrontations. In the 19th century, Canada had many conflicts that helped change and make Canada, some of which are: The War of 1812, Rebellions of 1838, The Fenian Raids and the Red River Rebellion. These obstacles presented, threatened the security, defense and the stability of Canada, which was a British colony(I feel that this does not make sense). Canada relied almost exclusively on the militia, which was composed of ordinary citizens and not a professional standing army. Although, the militia did provide basic defense, they were not qualified enough.

The Fist Nations people in Canada have struggled against the Canadian government for decades before achieving their rights and freedom today. When British settlers came to Canada, they took over Native land forced the Natives out of their homes, they were not considerate of their rights. The government later on tried to assimilate the aboriginals into "white culture" because they believed that keeping the tradition Native culture would slow down Canada's social developments and would slow down immigration.

Nowadays, Canada is a multicultural country. Canada has always been an accepting and welcoming society. But in the 19th century, Canada had a lengthy and horrible antisemitism history. Canada prides itself on the Charter of Human Rights and Freedom but denied and were not willing to help the Jewish refugees. It is disturbing and shameful in Canadian history.

In 1534, when Jacque Cartier first voyaged to Canada, the first disrespectful action against the Indigenous community took place. Due to a geographical error, the European’s addressed the persons as ‘Indians’, which, unfortunately, is a term still used today. Today, the Canadian Government is still not respecting the Indian Act Peace Treaty, taking away the FNMI communities rights and unsatisfactorily providing the group financially, socially, and environmentally.

Prior to contact with Europeans, Indigenous peoples relied on their own established ways of political systems and institutions, in other words, Indigenous peoples were a self-governing society. However, many of these political systems were legally suppressed and ignored by the federal government as an attempt to assimilate and “civilize” Indigenous peoples. The 1876 Indian Act “dismantled traditional systems of governance and imposed external controls in the form of local Indian agents and the federal bureaucracy of the Department of Indian Affairs (now Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada) on individuals and communities” (Henderson, 2006). Indigenous peoples have been trying to get back the right to govern themselves and preserve their cultural identities since the arrival of Europeans, and in addition, there has been a current and long going debate

Canada’s prosperity and success can be attributed to many different events in history, in many different points in time. In this essay, I will be discussing how the Statute of Westminster, which was a British law that stated Canada’s new political powers (Hillmer, Norman. "Statute of Westminster." The Canadian Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Apr. 2015); the Bank of Canada, which solidified Canada’s economy during the Great Depression ("The Bank 's History." - Bank of Canada. Web. 27 Apr. 2015); and WWII, and how it changed Canada into a key part in the future. (C.P. Stacey. "Second World War (WWII)." The Canadian Encyclopedia. Web. 27 Apr. 2015); all contributed to the changing of Canada. During the period 1930 to 1945 Canada gave and developed as an independent country due to the Statute of Westminster giving us independence; the Bank of Canada, and how it stabilized our economy; and, our participation in WWII earning us more recognition and boosting our economy.

The respected the Indians as humans. Meaning that they honored formally signed treaties made with the Indians, and treated the Indians with respect; not as pawns in the way of Manifest Destiny. But they also asserted Canadian law