Employing your Assignment 1 discussion of liberalism, conservatism, and nationalism as a point of departure, select THREE (3) significant examples

found in the political constitutions of either Mexico OR the United States of America OR Canada that demonstrate a link between one or more of these ideologies and the historical development of the constitution. (In the case of Mexico, anti-liberal ideologies may also be referenced.) Where possible, show that the political principles of constitutional founders were a key element in shaping your examples.

North American Politics

Research Paper #2
Sarah Ainuddin

PSCI 1003

Glen Williams June 8th, 2011

The Constitution of Canada is a constitution that is closely linked to the ideologies of conservatism, liberalism, and nationalism. Components of these ideologies are shown throughout the development of the Canadian Constitution. Although there are many areas of this constitution that display the ideologies of Liberalism, conservatism and nationalism, there are three significant areas where these ideologies are the most prominent. The creation of Canadas first constitution of 1867, the creation of the Charter of Right and Freedoms, and the creation of Canadas second Constitution Act in 1982 are the significant examples where the constitution is apparent to link to these favoured ideologies.

Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes that maintenance of traditional institutions and supports minimal and gradual changes in society.1The foundation for the organization of the Canadian legislature in the Constitution of Canada in 1867 can be derived from a basic conservative value. Canada's first constitution, that was then named the British North American Act, 1867, established Canada's federal political institutions while giving it control over most of its domestic policies. As Canada peacefully became independent from the British Empire, the country's constitutional founders actively sought to maintain the status quo known by the former colony by creating a constitution that reflected the British tradition and model of government. This acceptance of British constitutional principles is displayed in the introduction of the British North America Act as being required to adopt a constitution "similar in principle to that of the United Kingdom"2, emphasizing the unwritten nature of the British constitution. Another conservative aspect of the Canadianconstitution is the maintenance of the British monarch as head of state. This can be related to the ideas of Edmund Burke who believed
1 2

Honderich, Conservatism, 1 Robert, North American Politics: Canada, USA, and Mexico, 7

that the most reliable way to rule is by using a system based off of historical experience rather than modern theory3, which in the case of the Constitution of Canada is the use of the British constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. Therefore, due to these facts, Conservatism is a very apparent ideology in the 1867 Constitution of Canada.

Although conservatism is a very apparent ideology in the constitution of Canada, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is very prominent as well. Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights.4This section of the Canadian constitution is a profoundly liberal document that takes the views of many liberal philosophers. the very purpose of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms is protect the rights and liberties of the individual, which shadows John Lockes view that government is necessary to protect man's natural rights and enforce the natural law given to man by god.5While the Charter of Rights and Freedom does give the individual the freedom of religion, it still holds true to the spirit of John Locke's natural law beliefs that man should have his rights protected by a government. The charter also gives each citizen an equal right to vote and run for office which is stated by Leon P. Baradat as being the "liberal theory of representation" which was also subscribed to by Jong Locke.6Another liberal principle that is included in the Charter is Jeremy Bentham's principle of utility. According to this principle, Bentham argued that the only way to evaluate a policy is to measure the amount of pain or pleasure it brings to an individual or society, and that the ultimate objective of any policy is to bring the greatest happiness to the greatest number.7Facing harsh resistance from the leaders of the Franco-phone province of Qubec and most of the westernAnglo-phone provinces, then
3

Robert, Political Ideologies: An Introduction,51 Manning, Liberalism, 9-10 5 John,Liberalism, 16 6 Leon,Political Ideologies: Their Origin and Impact, 131 7 Leon,Political Ideologies: Their Origin and Impact, 102

prime minister and pro-charter supporter Pierre Elliot Trudeau was faced with the challenge of accommodating the concerns of these provinces while balancing the protection of rights guaranteed under the proposed charter. After many months of negotiation and strategic bargaining, the Trudeau government included two clauses in the Charter that allowed guaranteed rights to be ignored. The first of these clauses is section 1 of the charter which states that rights and freedoms are guaranteed only as they are "justifiable in a free and democratic society".8The second clause is section 33, referred to as the "notwithstanding clause", gives each province and Parliament the ability to enact laws that override Charter provisions for a maximum of 5 years.9These clauses gave the provinces and the people they represented that clauses they wanted in the Charter, thereby fulfilling some people who disagreed with the large loophole left in the charter. These aspects of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms display a strong link to liberalism in the Constitution of Canada.

Nationalism is a political ideology which involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms.10There are also nationalist traces in the constitution of Canada which is shown by the very creation of the Constitution of 1982. While Canada had been a self-governing entity since the first constitution act of 1867, the country still relied on the Parliament of the United Kingdom in order to amend its own constitution. It was not until the government of Pierre Elliot Trudeau made it its objective to repatriate the constitution did this change. After years of negotiating with each individual province and the leaders of the United Kingdom, Trudeau's government was successfully able to pass the Constitution Act of 1982 along with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The very
8 9

Leon,Political Ideologies: Their Origin and Impact,1 at 11 Leon,Political Ideologies: Their Origin and Impact, 1 at 12 10 Grosby, Nationalism: A Very Short Introduction, 5

passing of the Constitution Act has a strong nationalistic element to it as the repatriation meant that Canada was finally its own country free from the dependence of a foreign power. However, there is also another nationalist tendency to the creation of the new constitution. French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau, who was an unintentional father of the nationalist ideology, argued that if a people country were to be sovereign, they needed to be united through a common identity.11It can be argued that the charter of rights and freedoms fulfills this requirement through its equality of language rights. in the charter, both the English and French languages are given equal standing at the federal level, giving both major groups in Canada, the Anglo-phones and the Franco-phones, equal standing. These points both prove that there is a strong link between nationalismand the constitution of Canada.

Therefore, it is apparent that the ideologies of conservatism, liberalism, and nationalism each have their places in the development of the Constitution of Canada. Conservatism is shown through the desire to maintain the status quo of the British system in the 1867 Constitution, Liberalism is extremely apparent in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and Nationalism is also shown through the language equality provisions of the Charter and the nature of the repatriation of the constitution. The Constitution of Canada is closely linked between these three ideologies.

11

Joan, Rousseau and the French Revolution, 3

Citations:
Baradat, Leon P. Political Ideologies: Their Origin and Impact. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Prentice Hall. 2009 Eccleshall, Robert. Political Ideologies: An Introduction. New York: Routledge. 2003. Gray, John. Liberalism. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. 1995. Jackson, Robert J. North American Politics: Canada, USA, and Mexico. Toronto: Prentice Hall. 2009 James, Patrick. Constitutional Politics in Canada after the Charter: Liberalism, Communitarianism, and Systemism. Vancouver, Toronto: UBC Press. 2010. McDonald, Joan. Rousseau and the French Revolution 1762-1791. London: Athlone Press. 1965. Stanley, George F. G. A short History of the Canadian Constitution. Toronto: The Ryerson Press. 1969. The Canadian Constitution. Canada: Thomas Nelson and Sons, Limited. 1938. Varcoe, Frederick P. The Constitution of Canada. Toronto: The Carswell Company LTD. 1965.