Canada has often been cited internationally for its success as a multicultural society and for its ability to manage this diversity through a federal constitution. The strands of diversity include the constitutional relationship between English and French Canada, federalism more generally, the status of Aboriginal peoples, Canada’s immigration and integration strategies, affirmative action, and a general guarantee of equal protection for men and women. Together they tell a complex story of pluralism, consolidated through a long and incremental period of constitution-building. Multiculturalism and the Canadian Constitution brings together scholars of cultural diversity from backgrounds in law, political science, and history to address key components of the changing Canadian story: the evolution over time of multiculturalism within Canadian constitutional law and policy; the territorial dimension of Canadian federalism; and the role of constitutional interpretation by the courts in the development of Canada as a multicultural state. Wide-ranging and provocative, the essays illustrate how deeply multiculturalism is woven into the fabric of the Canadian constitution and the everyday lives of Canadians.

Together, the strands of Canada's diversity tell a complex story of pluralism, consolidated through a long and incremental period of constitution-building. This book brings together scholars of cultural diversity to address key components of the changing Canadian story: the evolution over time of multiculturalism within Canadian constitutional law and policy; the territorial dimension of Canadian federalism; and the role of constitutional interpretation by the courts in the development of Canada as a multicultural state. The essays illustrate how deeply multiculturalism is woven into the fabric of the Canadian constitution and the everyday lives of Canadians.

Since he immigrated to Canada two decades ago, Neil Bissoondath has consistently refused the role of the ethnic, and sought to avoid the burden of hyphenation -- a burden that would label him as an East Indian-Trinidadian-Canadian living in Quebec. Bissoondath argues that the policy of multiculturalism, with its emphasis on the former or ancestral homeland and its insistence that There is more important than Here, discourages the full loyalty of Canada's citizens. Through the 1971 Multiculturalism Act, Canada has sought to order its population into a cultural mosaic of diversity and tolerance. Seeking to preserve the heritage of Canada's many peoples, the policy nevertheless creates unease on many levels, transforming people into political tools and turning historical distinctions into stereotyped commodities. It encourages exoticism, highlighting the differences that divide Canadians rather than the similarities that unite them. Selling Illusions is Neil Bissoondath's personal exploration of a politically motivated public policy with profound private ramifications -- a policy flawed from its inception but implemented with all the political zeal of a true believer.

Marking the Sesquicentennial of Confederation in Canada, this book examines the growing global influence of Canada's Constitution and Supreme Court on courts confronting issues involving human rights.

After decades of extraordinary successes as a multicultural society, new debates are bubbling to the surface in Canada. The contributors to this volume examine the conflict between equality rights, as embedded in the Charter, and multiculturalism as policy and practice, and ask which charter value should trump which and under what circumstances? The opening essay deliberately sharpens the conflict among religion, culture, and equality rights and proposes to shift some of the existing boundaries. Other contributors disagree strongly, arguing that this position might seek to limit freedoms in the name of justice, that the problem is badly framed, or that silence is a virtue in rebalancing norms. The contributors not only debate the analytic arguments but infuse their discussion with their personal experiences, which have shaped their perspectives on multiculturalism in Canada. This volume is a highly personal as well as strongly analytic discussion of multiculturalism in Canada today.

Consolidated as of April 17, 1982.