Flq Essay

“I have nothing but my heart, I have given it long ago to my country.” These are Louis Riel’s last words before his execution. Two themes that have been debated is whether Louis Riel is a traitor or hero to the Métis. There have been many controversial figures throughout Canada’s history, but Louis Riel is one of the most controversial figure. His perspective on how he dealt with manner is still debated today. A key aspect discussed today is why Riel is a hero to his people; the Métis. Louis Riel had once recognized the turmoil the Métis had to face, through this Riel proved that one must take actions in order to achieve a person’s right.

The strained relationship peaked in the 1960's, with the Front de libération du Québec separatist group conducting numerous attacks on the Canadian population, including bombings and kidnappings. The goal of the FLQ was to fight for Quebec's independence, but the radical means that the party used made it more of a terrorist group when they went as far as to kidnap and kill Quebec Labour Minister Pierre Laporte. This caused the federal government to deploy the Canadian army to calm public outcry and enable martial law to regain control of the situation. Eventually, the leaders of the FLQ were rooted out, then tried and convicted for their

Riel was determined to protect the rights of everyone in the settlement. When the Canadian Party was armed and prepared to attack, he imprisoned them by force. The belligerent Thomas Scott was executed by a majority vote. Then Riel decided to negotiate with the Canadian government, which at first refused to recognize him. Undaunted, the provisional government drafted a proposal for the creation of the province of Manitoba. Unfortunately, the leader of the Canadian Party escaped and reached Ottawa first, spreading prejudicial news of the execution and creating outrage. The delegates from Red River had a hard time getting recognition from Macdonald's government, but eventually their case was heard and agreed upon. The Manitoba Act was created granting land rights, as well as making two official languages and education systems. Overall, the Red River Rebellion was a success, but they could've used more peaceful means when dealing with the Canadian Party, especially since they didn't act beforehand. The Red River Rebellion did not end all of the Metis problems though.

The Quebec City mayor sent reinforcements from Ottawa to help control the rioting, which had been going on for two days. On the Easter Monday the crowds organized against the military presence in the city. Armed rioters started to fire at the troops and vise versa. There was an estimated four men killed by the fire and dozens injured. These riots represent one of the most violent disturbances in Canadian history. These riots erupted over conscription, which grew from how things were before in French Canadian nationalism. The military crackdown that lasted in Quebec until the end of the war resulted in an increase in state power in the growing of French Canadian nationalism. These riots over the conscription and the French Canadians sticking to their ways lead to a many difficult and unpleasant times in Quebec.

“I am more convinced everyday that without a single exception I did right. And I have always believed that, as I have acted honestly, the time will come when the people of Canada will see and acknowledge it.”- Louis Riel. We believe that Louis Riel is innocent of treason. Also, 92% of the class believes that Louis Riel is innocent. Mr.Riel is an ambitious, daring, well educated, political leader, who is a proud leader of the Metis. First, he was protecting the Metis rights. Secondly, he was threatened by racism and the Canadian Party. Finally, he negotiated with the Canadian government to create Manitoba. As you see, Louis Riel is innocent of treason.

“Maîtres chez nous” or in English “Masters of our own house”. These words spoken by Premier Jean Lesage caused an uproar in Quebec by giving the citizens a sense of confidence they had never felt before. Jean Lesage played a crucial role in the modernization of Quebec in a short period of time after recuperating the province from the “Great Darkness”. While the rest of Canada was undergoing innovation, Quebec fell behind due to Maurice Duplessis. After the death of Duplessis, Lesage ran for Premier and was elected in 1960. He promised to improve Quebec through social, economic and cultural changes and proved so by creating programs and replacing others. One of Lesage’s accomplishments to modernize Quebec was being able to subside the Catholic Church’s role and replace it with a more commanding provincial government role. Another achievement of Lesage’s to rejuvenate Quebec was nationalizing private electricity companies which allowed workers to speak French entirely, guaranteed the Quebec economy benefits, and adjusted wages. Finally, the Quiet Revolution allowed the rest of Canada to hear the nationalist views of Quebecers after the FLQ terrorist group terrorized several mailboxes, kidnapped James Cross and killed Pierre Laporte.

On October 23, 1844, in Red River Manitoba, Louis Riel Sr and Julie Lagimodiere, devout Christians, brought a young Métis boy into the world. Little did they know, Louis Riel Jr. would grow up to become known to many as “the founder of Manitoba.” His life was filled with excitement, both political and personal. The question is, were his actions against the government acts of honor and truth, or deception and lies?

For some time, many Quebecois had faith in the FLQ, believing the group would speed the process of separation from Canada; however the FLQ’s loyalty to these beliefs is questionable. Ultimately, it was perceived that the FLQ’s only goal was to give Quebec its justice; they wanted to see them united in a free society. On the other hand, during the October Crisis, they had not been able to prove that. When the FLQ kidnapped British diplomat James Cross, it publicized 7 demands, of which only one concerned French-Canadians, pertaining to fairer working conditions which was later dropped (Tetley, 2007). The rest concerned the FLQ themselves: publication of the Manifesto (a public declaration of policy and aims), the name of an informer, $500,000 in gold, the release of 23 jailed terrorists, and to transport them to either Algeria or Cuba (Knowlton, 1990). A goal of Quebec’s at the time, the protection of the French language, was a cause that preoccupied much of the nation, but was not a particular concern for the FLQ. In fact, the 1970 Manifesto was written in and proclaimed in informal French and “Fringlish” (Knowlton, 1990). The FLQ’s dedication to their cause is doubtful. FLQ believed that they weren’t going to get caught, hence their slogan “Independence or death” (Brown, 2011). However, when justice prevailed, the members chose exile rather than martyrdom. This made it clear that the FLQ’s dedication

Under the sweeping authority of the act, 465 Canadians were so rounded up. A day later, on Saturday October 17th, the body of Pierre Laporte was found stuffed in the trunk of a green Chevrolet. In Ottawa, government sources said the FLQ assassinated Laporte because War Measures was enacted. The tension that night was palpable. John Turner, the minister of justice, looked distraught. In his office, Trudeau ministers Gerard Pelletier and Jean Marchand were weeping openly at the death of an old friend and colleague. Early in December 1970, police discovered the location of the kidnappers holding James Cross. He was released after his FLQ captors were given safe passage to Cuba. Four weeks later Paul Rose and the kidnappers of Pierre Laporte were found in the corner of a country basement. They were tried and convicted for kidnapping and murder. The October Crisis was the first time in Canadian history the state itself, both in Ottawa and in Quebec City, was held to ransom by extremists and terrorists. It was also the first time, in peace time, that Ottawa invoked War Measures. It was a drastic step to take and one laced with very dangerous side effects. In the guilt-by-association atmosphere engendered by War Measures hysteria, the terrorism and extremism of the separatist FLQ tarnished all separatist movements in Quebec. Also, Rene

The relationship between the Canadian government and Quebec has been in constant turmoil for years. This paper will discuss and critique Quebec’s five demands made in 1986 by the Liberal government and their current implications. Reasonable demands are ones in which a limited amount of asymmetrical federalism grants provincial sovereignty. Currently all provinces have certain guaranteed rights, however Quebec’s rights provide more autonomy. Quebec, though home to the largest population of French speaking Canadians, have asked too much of the Government of Canada. This is evident Quebec’s increased control over immigration, Supreme Court Justices appointment, and their veto on future constitutional negotiations. Conversely, the demand of recognizing Quebec as a distinct society is however reasonable and has been accommodated into Canadian society, and the ability to restrict federal spending power keeps the federal power in check. In this essay, I will discuss each demand, and argue whether or not it is reasonable.

-Trudeau understood this to mean an amendment to the Criminal Code or extraordinary temporary emergency legislation. (Pg. 166)

During both the 1970 and 1973 elections, the caucus won under 10 seats out of a possible 110 – even though they had roughly 30 per cent of the popular vote** (FOOTNOTE Canadian encyclopedia). Despite their initial failure though, the PQ emerged victorious in the 1976 election, defeating the liberal opposition while taking 41 percent of the popular vote and 71 seats. This victory was attributed largely to an electoral strategy in which the party promised to hold a plebiscite on Quebec independence during its first year in office – a promise it would keep, though not within the originally proposed timeline. This surprising win by the PQ is considered on of the most important elections in Quebec’s history, rivalled only by the aforementioned 1960 vote that brought Jean Lesage and his Liberals into prominence. The repercussions of this famous election were seen not only in the province of Quebec, but also throughout the rest of

Talking about a very important person in history, Louis David Riel. Was Louis David Riel guilty or was he not guilty? Louis David Riel should be proved not guilty in the case of treason. If the government had kept their promises to the Meets and I, about the supplies that were promised to us. Treason is a crime of betraying one’s country.

On October 16, 1970 Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act. It was the first time this Act had been invoked in peacetime, although was justified by the evidence of an insurrection. To start off, the first domestic use of the War Measures Act was invoked which led to improvements on the act. It was invoked and gives emergency power to the federal government and this act further suspended Canadians’ fundamental civil freedoms. Some civil freedoms include: the right to be protected against unwarranted or arbitrary arrests, detentions, searches and seizures, and the right to an attorney. The Act however allowed the government to declare anyone who publicly supported the FLQ to be a member of the group, arrest and hold any of the FLQ without bail for up to 90 days, and imprison FLQ member for up to five years. This builds a trust bridge between the government and the citizens. The citizens have to trust the

Not only has the period for which someone can be detained gone up from three days to seven, police are now able to make arrests based solely on the officer’s suspicion that a terrorist act may occur (Zwibel, 2). Prior to the passing of the bill, officers had to show a judge that the arrest/detention would prevent a terrorist act, only once the judge approves and grants a warrant could the detainment occur (Watters, 1). This bill allows for too much discretion and freedom for law enforcement, which is contrary to the values of the Charter of Rights and the Rule of Law (Government of Canada), which states that everyone is subject to the law and nobody is above the enforcement of the law. Granting these officers the ability to decide who may be detained is providing them with far too much power, which most officers would likely abuse. Another right, which is stated in Section Six of the Charter of Rights and