Week 7 - Regionalism And Language

Question 1

Regionalism is defined by scholars who say that political conflict is shaped by:

Answer 1

More specifically: that political conflict is shaped by tensions between the “centre” (i.e., Quebec and Ontario) and the “periphery” (i.e., the Atlantic provinces and especially the West

Question 2

Why regionalism? (Geography)

Answer 2

➢Canada is immense geographically, while population was, and still is, rather small
➢Building and maintaining East-West linkages a challenge (i.e., infrastructure and communications)
➢Population is largely dispersed and disconnected – concentrated on U.S. border

Question 3

But if we have __________ and _________ then why is regionalism still a thing in Canada?

Answer 3

•Decades of interprovincial and international immigration
•Rapid advances in transportation and telecommunications

Question 4

3 issues caused by economic disparities and the 3 PERSISTING economic differences:

Answer 4

Issues:
•Tremendous variation in economic development across Canada’s regions
•Equalization program brought in as a means of reducing tension caused by unequal access to natural resources
•Entrenched in 1982 patriation

Persisting differences:
•Equalization payments have failed to close the gap between regions
•There remains substantial differences in the economic profile of Canadian regions
•Alberta and SK: oil & gas; Ontario and Quebec: manufacturing; Atlantic: fisheries

Question 5

How do SMPs cause regionalism

Answer 5

Single member plurality (SMP) rewards parties for regional support
•Historically Conservatives stronger in the West, and Liberals in Quebec
•Regional parties like the Progressives, Reform, and BQ often pop up

Question 6

How does Intergovernmental conflict lead to regionalism and vice versa

Answer 6

• Executive federalism ensures policy making has often been done by the Prime Minister and Premiers
• Growing provincial power led to conflict along regional lines

Question 7

Define province building and implications

Answer 7

•Political elites in the provinces are vested in regionalism because it allows them to expand their influence
•Province-building: using constitutional, legal, and taxation avenues to expand power within their jurisdictions at the expense of Ottawa
•Rivalry with Ottawa also serves the electoral interests of most Premiers

Question 8

Most federal systems feature intrastate federalism that allows regional tensions to be diffused in national institutions. How is Canada weak on this dimension?

Answer 8

1. Senate: Substantial weight to QC and ON; unelected with limited power
2. Supreme Court: 6/9 justices from Ontario and QC
3. Federal cabinet: Limited if governing party fails to draw from region; cabinet less important now

Question 9

What are the ways we can think about defining Canada’s regions?

Answer 9

• economic regions
• cultural and social regions
• provincial identities

Question 10

List the economic regions of Canada (5)

Answer 10

•BC: forestry, minerals, fishing
•Prairies: agriculture, oil and gas, potash
•Ontario: manufacturing, finance
•Quebec: manufacturing, forestry, hydroelectric
•Atlantic: fishing, agriculture, oil and gas (Newfoundland)

Question 11

How can we split up the regions by social and cultural differences? What is the problem with this?

Answer 11

•Some argue there are deep cultural and social differences between the regions
•As in, the West is more individualistic and right-wing, while Quebec is the least
•BUT: Only limited evidence of deep political divides

Question 12

What is provincial identities and can this define regions?

Answer 12

Provincial identity: personal sense of belonging to your province

•Strong provincial identities and attachments outside of Ontario
•Only in Quebec does provincial identity come at the expense of Canadian ID
•Sizable # of people in Atlantic Canada, Quebec and the West more attached to their province

Question 13

Define western alienation and the two assumptions

Answer 13

•Western alienation: belief that Western interests are ignored in Ottawa to the benefit of Ontario and Quebec

•Two assumptions: that Westerners have a unique political culture and that the Western provinces have been wronged by Ottawa

Question 14

Western political culture rooted in populism? Define populism and whether this can support the western alienation theory

Answer 14

•Perhaps Western culture is more reflected in its populism?
•i.e., conceiving of politics as conflict between the “people” and political elites
•Long history of referenda, recall elections in the Western provinces, and free votes

•But it doesn’t really seem like Westerners stand out from the rest of Canadians
•This is true both of right-wing and left-wing populism

Question 15

Explain the AB and SK terms of entry

Answer 15

•Alberta and SK were carved out of the North-West Territory in 1905
•Territorial leaders wanted one large province – called Buffalo
•PM Laurier instead carved the proposed province in two to divide political opposition
•Federal government maintained control of natural resources until the 1930s

Question 16

Explain the western economic policies that supports the western alienation theory

Answer 16

•National Policy of PM Macdonald financed government through tariffs
•Policy benefitted industrial interests in ON and QC and at expense of Western farmers, led to protest parties
•Centralized banking system forced Westerners to secure loans from banks in Central Canada
•These restrictions relaxed in the 1970s

•National Energy Policy forced West to sell oil below market price to benefit Easterners in the 1970s
•Disputes over pipeline expansions take on a similar flavor as the NEP debate
•Equalization program consistently advantages Eastern Canada

Question 17

What are the demographics of language politics?

Answer 17

•At the time of the Conquest in 1763, Francophones outnumbered Anglophones 8:1
•Parity was achieved by 1800
•Immigration from Britain and the United States reduced Francophones to 1/3 by 1871

•A high birth rate allowed French Canada to keep pace with English Canadian immigration until the 1950s
•Francophone share remained at 1/3 until the 1950s
•Since then, Francophones have fallen to 22 percent of the population**

• French language is robust in quebec
• Outside of QC, French Canadians are older; 50% of married Francophones have Anglophone partner
• bilingualism increases mostly in French speaking areas****

Question 18

Outline the timeline of the evolution of French Canadian nationalism

Answer 18

1. Ethnic conflict before the 1960s
2. The quiet revolution
3. Quebec’s policy response
4. Ottawa’s policy response

Question 19

What are the 4 main aspects of ethnic conflict before the 1960s

Answer 19

Conflict between the English and French led to growing dissatisfaction
•Hanging of Louis Riel
•Abolition of French Language schools in Ontario and Manitoba
•First Conscription Crisis
•Second Conscription Crisis

Question 20

Outline the main events of the quiet revolution

Answer 20

1. Conservative Quebec was held together by Maurice Duplessis and the Union Nationale and their allies in the Church and Anglophone business interests
   - They were opposed by academics, journalists, union activists, and liberal politicians in the Quebec Liberal Party
2. Duplessis’ death allowed victory by the Liberal Party in 1960 and the beginning of the Quiet Revolution
3. The growth of the secular Quebec state at the expense of the Catholic Church
4. Quebec state could allow for rattrapage: “catching up” to the rest of Canada

Question 21

4 main aspects of the legacy of the quiet revolution

Answer 21

.Growth of secular Quebec nationalism and separatism
2.The transformation of the Quebec state from the smallest to the largest in Canada
3.Increasing disputes between Quebec and Ottawa
4.Decline in Catholic authority, along with religiosity and birth rate

Question 22

4 main aspects of Quebec’s policy response

Answer 22

1.Bill 101 and the promotion (restriction) of French (English)
•Relevant in operation of English schools and business regulation
2.Greater provincial control over immigration and social services
3.Sovereignty referenda (from PQ governments)
4.Cultural accommodation and restrictions on public displays of religion (e.g., Laicity Act)

Question 23

3 + 3 aspects of Ottawa’s policy response

Answer 23

1.Exercising of British colonial symbols (e.g., a new flag)
2.Official Languages Act of 1969 established the Commission of Official Languages
3.Constitutional protection of bilingualism and minority language instruction

1.Asymmetrical federalism
2.Constitutional reconciliation (e.g., Meech Lake and Charlottetown)
3.Recognition of Quebec as a distinct society

Goal is to establish the federal government has the principal protector of interests of the Quebecois

Question 24

Which of the following IS NOT a reason for the persistence of regionalism in Canada?

1. Intra-state federalism institutions are weak in Canada
2. Canadians are more attached to their provincial identities than their national identity
3. Premiers have political incentive to mobilize regionalist sentiment against Ottawa
4. Economic disparities between regions remain sizable

Answer 24

2. Canadians are more attached to their provincial identities than their national identity

Question 25

Which of the following is an example of intra-state federalism
1. Prime Ministers appoint cabinet ministers so that all regions of the country are adequately represented
2. First Minister Meetings provide a forum for the PM and premiers to coordinate policy
3. Provinces have control over the administration of justice, while the federal government is in charge of the Criminal Code
4. Quebec has unique powers over immigration and the administration of its Civil Code

Answer 25

1. Prime Ministers appoint cabinet ministers so that all regions of the country are adequately represented

Question 26

Which of the following were Western protest parties at the federal level?
1. Reform party
2. Progressive party
3. NDP
4. Cooperative Commonwealth Federation

Answer 26

1, 2

Question 27

True or false: Alberta and Saskatchewan historically have a common political culture revolving around individualism and belief in the free market

Answer 27

False

Question 28

Which of the following was NOT a characteristic of traditional French-Canadian nationalism?

1. Viewing French Canada as a distinct nation defined by language and religion
2. The desire to remain faithful to French Canada’s heritage as embodied by New France
3. The need for control over the province of Quebec to pursue the interests of French Canada
4. Rejection of the materialism and secularism of English Canada

Answer 28

3

Question 29

What name of the period featuring the massive growth and secularization of the Quebec state?

Answer 29

The quiet revolution