Is Canada A Liberal Democracy

To what extent was Pierre Trudeau’s vision of a “just society” actually achieved in Canada in (and since) the 1970s? Canada is a just society because of the changes to women's legal rights, ethnic minority human rights, and multiculturalism.

It’s astonishing, honestly, that so many can lead themselves to believe this when there is so much evidence of inequality among women. The United Nations defines 30% as the minimal, necessary amount of women in government to express the concerns of women (The Federation of Canadian Municipalities). Zero percent of U.S. Presidents have been female. As of January 2013, 18.5% of Congress, 20% of Senators, and 18.2% of Representatives are women in the U.S. government (National Women’s Political Caucus). The percentage of past female Prime Ministers in Canada is 0.05%. 24.6% of Canada’s current House of Commons, 36.1% of Canada’s Senate, and 26.3% of the Federal Cabinet consists of women (Equal Voice). Also, only 16% of Canada’s mayors are women, and 26% are municipal councillors (Federation of Canadian Municipalities). How could anybody not see the misrepresentation of women when it is ever so

Today, women in Canada earn about 72% of men’s wages for similar work: full-time, full year. Many doubters of the wage gap argue that women earn less than men mainly because they work fewer hours, as a group, then men do. However, the

Canada is a huge country located between the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean and consists of 10 provinces. This country is the host for immigrants from all over the world with different religions and cultures. It embraces all of these diverse groups of people. It was essential that some arrangements be made to accommodate for these divers groups’ needs and ultimately in the year 1960 legislation of Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was a huge step toward these affairs. The Charter was enacted by the parliament in order to respect each person’s rights and eligibilities in different areas and it is divided into subsections.

In the United States, we have a liberal democracy meaning our rights and liberties are protected. The US also has a multiparty electoral system with free and fair participation and a checks and balances system that prevents a single party from taking sovereign control. Liberal democracy is a political system that is supported by free and fair elections, but also a separation of powers between branches and the protection of its citizens basic liberties such as, freedom of speech, assembly, property, and religion (Zakaria 22). Constituitonal liberalism is mostly based on limiting power in government, while democracies tend to be more about its accumulation and use (Zakaria 30).

Throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s Canada achieves it’s ‘just society” by developing equal and fair rights through collective rights for some of its most affected groups. Canada achieved its goal in becoming a just society by amending the collective rights of the Aboriginals. Since Confederation the Federal

Although the Canadian government has done a great deal to repair the injustices inflicted on the First Nations people of Canada, legislation is no where near where it needs to be to ensure future protection of aboriginal rights in the nation. An examination of the documents that comprise the Canadian Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms reveal that there is very little in the supreme legal documents of the nation that protect aboriginal rights. When compared with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples it is clear that the Canadian Constitution does not acknowledge numerous provisions regarding indigenous people that the UN resolution has included. The most important of these provisions is the

Democracy is the ultimate political form of ideological liberalism. It refers to the ideal form of state, and is common to both classical and modern liberals.

* Education: Many women in Canada are educated and choose to pursue careers as opposed to

In examining the constitutional jurisprudence since 1982, it can be seen that most cases have followed along with Trudeau’s objectives of individual rights protection. However, Trudeau’s article The Value of a Just Society notes that communal rights of Aboriginal communities represent a notable exception. He defends this, mentioning that these collective rights are enshrined where “the rights of individuals may be indistinct and difficult to define.” The Canadian Constitution is uncommon in the fact that it protects cultural rights, such as linguistic and Aboriginal rights. It is important for Canada to protect these rights, as Canada is made up of many different groups of people. It was Trudeau’s desire that the constitution protect everyone equally, “without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.” By assigning rights to the individual rather than to collectives, linguistic

Australia is one of the best examples of a liberal democracy. The government is representative and responsible of accountable to the citizens and their needs. Ultimately the power rests with the people. A liberal democracy means political freedom, freedom of speech, freedom for the individual. Within a liberal democracy, free and fair elections are required to be regular. A fair election involves a democratic choice, the ability to vote without pressure and no manipulation (Willmott 2015, p.257). Each one vote has a singular value, and every person has only one vote. When the voting process is over and the votes are counted, the candidate with majority votes is elected. A more recently accepted feature of fair elections is the secret ballot.

The gender wage gap is a phenomenon that is much more complex than at first glance. Certain research has determined that in Canada, women make around 72 cents to the dollar to men, as well as 87 cents to the dollar for an hourly wage, including part-time workers (Canadian Women’s Foundation, 2013). With newly elected prime minister Justin Trudeau identifying as an open feminist, and our country being ranked 9th on the gender inequality index and 9th in the human development index (HDR, 2015), Canada is known to be a progressive country. Everything considered Canada has a low level of inequality in its country compared to others. Even with this progressive movement, the wage gap between men and women still exists.

The article “Canada is not a global leader in human rights”, by Christie McLeod in 2017 argues that although Canada defined himself as a “globally human rights champion, kind and caring nation”. A nation who worries more about people of other nations and cultures (refugees) instead of taking care of their own. Even though McLeod made some strong points on her article; about how in a certain way in the Canadian history, the government committed serious atrocities against the aboriginal people such as the privation of human rights of their population, the cultural racism with the improper introduction by obligation of the “civilized world”, and the basic right of clean water. It was a very interesting article, well researched with some important

Women remain at an economic disadvantage compared to men due to the fact that some occupations still pay women less than their male counterparts. This unequal pay reinforces the thinking that it is okay for men to make more than women just because of their gender. This is an obstacle within the workplace which prevents a woman from advancing her career and allows for higher positions to continue consisting almost entirely of men. Present day in the labour market, “Canadian women earn 23% less than men regardless of their age, education or occupation” (Struman, 2015). Even though women have been quite successful in seeking employment and many possess a decent education, women continue to face a difference in pay because of their gender. In order to be seen as equals women need to be earning the same amount as their male coworkers because they possess the necessary skills needed to complete the job. Differences in pay should be based on an individual’s qualifications and job experience not their gender. The difference in pay prevents women from achieving success and reinforces the point that women remain at an economic disadvantage. Gender based pay is problematic and “[t]he Canadian gender pay gap is the fifth largest among the 34 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries… [and] the pay gap is particularly pronounced for single mothers, racialized women, First Nations women, and women with disabilities” (Struman, 2015). Gender

Our society has the belief that women have always been portrayed as weak, emotional, and powerless. Throughout this article by Tavia Grant, it shows how women do not get the same opportunities men receive. Statistically shown, women are still earning less money than men regardless to the amount of education they possess (Grant). Women are accepted to hold obligations regarding family tasks while the men do the providing in the family. The article shows the disadvantages women have in Canada compared to men, however, it also shows gender inequality and gender discrimination.