Nation By Any Other Name
In a very overlooked story, the Canadian parliament passed a motion recognizing Quebec as a nation within a unified Canada. Which means, roughly, almost nothing. They are still legislated from Ottawa and they still owe oaths of allegiance to the Queen of England, as Canada's head of state. (The Prime Minister is the head of government). Quebec has no self-governing rights, at least no more than every other province in Canada. The bill specifically recognized the Quebecois, those Canadians who speak French and are descended from French colonists rather than English, as a nation, not just the political boundaries of Quebec province. So, in a way, Quebec is a nation inside a country inside a commonwealth.
Well, first of all, let's define terms. In international relations political speak, a nation is defined as a homogenous ethnic group of people, irrespective of political boundaries or affiliations. Examples include Indian tribes in the US, Kurds in Iran, Iraq and Turkey and countless others. Nations are often defined by a lack of political boundaries and/or recognition and are usually then the targets of college students, sociologists and IKEA marketmen looking for a new brandname to put on a new table. A state is usually what people mean they say country or nation. A state is a political entity with recognized boundries, able to provide defense, means of collecting revenues, possessing infrastructure and generally recognized as a state by the international community (usually shorthanded by UN recognition). So, when Canada declared that Quebec was a nation, that was the right terminology but it was declaring something that was already in existance. The Quebecois are a nation, and have been for a while. But, despite all that, this could have real ramifications.
Quebec has tried before for separation and have never really felt like part of the country. Going back to when the Constitution of Canada was ratified without Quebec's signature. With the American Constitution, every state's legislature voted for the Constitution, even though only 9 of 13 were needed to ratify. Canada, being answerable to the Queen and NOT the people, did not require such things and let Quebec not sign the Constitution. Specifically, then Canadian PM Trudeau got every provinical premier to sign it and placed it before Quebec's provinical premier, all signed. He refused to sign, and Trudeau had the British Parliament approve it, and that was that. In light of this, as soon as they got the chance they put forth a referendum on whether or not they should break off from the rest of Canada. So, in 1995, there was a referendum to separate that failed by a thin margin of 50.6% to 49.4%. About 56,000 people decided the fate of Quebec, and most of Canada. If Quebec were to break off, Canada would lose some of their biggest cities, Montreal and Quebec, and the St. Lawrence seaway, which is the biggest entrance way for goods into Canada, as well as divide Newfoundland from the rest of Canada.
So, as Quebec is recognized more as a nation, what does this mean for tem as a state? Well, oddly, this is both a blessing and a curse for their cause. For some, this will be enough to mollify their anger and they'll be happy as Canadians whose ethnic rights are respected. For other, it will galvanize them into action and show them that there is possibly hope in dealing with the government so long as they don't give up. Time will tell which group will dominate the conversation, but given Canadian politics, odds are on the mollified. It seems to be a pretty stedy pattern that every 12 years, or so, there's a small fight, something happens and Quebec stays both Canadian and Quebec. And there's the peace: Canada gets to remain a unified country and some people get to feel proud of who they are.
Because every so often, peace and pride go hand in hand.
So it is written, so do I see it.
Well, first of all, let's define terms. In international relations political speak, a nation is defined as a homogenous ethnic group of people, irrespective of political boundaries or affiliations. Examples include Indian tribes in the US, Kurds in Iran, Iraq and Turkey and countless others. Nations are often defined by a lack of political boundaries and/or recognition and are usually then the targets of college students, sociologists and IKEA marketmen looking for a new brandname to put on a new table. A state is usually what people mean they say country or nation. A state is a political entity with recognized boundries, able to provide defense, means of collecting revenues, possessing infrastructure and generally recognized as a state by the international community (usually shorthanded by UN recognition). So, when Canada declared that Quebec was a nation, that was the right terminology but it was declaring something that was already in existance. The Quebecois are a nation, and have been for a while. But, despite all that, this could have real ramifications.
Quebec has tried before for separation and have never really felt like part of the country. Going back to when the Constitution of Canada was ratified without Quebec's signature. With the American Constitution, every state's legislature voted for the Constitution, even though only 9 of 13 were needed to ratify. Canada, being answerable to the Queen and NOT the people, did not require such things and let Quebec not sign the Constitution. Specifically, then Canadian PM Trudeau got every provinical premier to sign it and placed it before Quebec's provinical premier, all signed. He refused to sign, and Trudeau had the British Parliament approve it, and that was that. In light of this, as soon as they got the chance they put forth a referendum on whether or not they should break off from the rest of Canada. So, in 1995, there was a referendum to separate that failed by a thin margin of 50.6% to 49.4%. About 56,000 people decided the fate of Quebec, and most of Canada. If Quebec were to break off, Canada would lose some of their biggest cities, Montreal and Quebec, and the St. Lawrence seaway, which is the biggest entrance way for goods into Canada, as well as divide Newfoundland from the rest of Canada.
So, as Quebec is recognized more as a nation, what does this mean for tem as a state? Well, oddly, this is both a blessing and a curse for their cause. For some, this will be enough to mollify their anger and they'll be happy as Canadians whose ethnic rights are respected. For other, it will galvanize them into action and show them that there is possibly hope in dealing with the government so long as they don't give up. Time will tell which group will dominate the conversation, but given Canadian politics, odds are on the mollified. It seems to be a pretty stedy pattern that every 12 years, or so, there's a small fight, something happens and Quebec stays both Canadian and Quebec. And there's the peace: Canada gets to remain a unified country and some people get to feel proud of who they are.
Because every so often, peace and pride go hand in hand.
So it is written, so do I see it.