How Did Quebec Nationalism Influence Canadian Politics

INTRO

While invoking a somewhat contentious relationship with the Federal and Quebec government, Quebec nationalism has shaped the dynamics of Canadian politics. Through a discussion of several historical events, Canadian politics have been influenced by Quebec nationalism. In this paper, I will argue how various significant changes to the constitution, the restructure of the Federal government from centralized to decentralized, and influencing policies that ultimately made Quebec a distinct society in Quebec.

TOPIC 1

Since Canada is a federal state, the constitution assigns separate jurisdictions to the Federal Government and to the 10 provinces. These provincial governments have constitutionally recognized authority to enact laws in their

These issues were “non-territorial and of national character”. Previously, there was a but in kind of ‘regional veto’, where authorization was required from all five regions of Canada. Under the Amending Formula of 1982, unanimity with all provinces and the national government was no longer required. Instead, revisions only needed the authorization of parliament and support of seven provinces representing at least 50 percent of the population. Until then, Quebec, Ontario, BC, the prairie and the maritime provinces could prevent any constitutional changes they did not agree with. For example, in 1951, due to constitutional constraints, the House of Commons accommodated Quebec’s request for acknowledging provincial autonomy in the old age security act. Quebec believed that the province was not addressed in a way that was acceptable for its "residents, its government, or its legislature" to consent to the 1982 constitution. Although Quebec was affected most, those who gave consent proceeded without the consent of the Quebec Assembly. As ___ points out, this was unprecedented. In the eyes of Quebec citizens (Quebeckers), this was an injustice as it violated one of the fundamental rules of federation: "what affects all must be agreed to by all or by their

In the judicialization of the Canadian political system, the judicial system became hierarchical with the Supreme Court's jurisprudence binding on all other courts. The judicialization of Canadian politics began when the judiciary started producing landmark court rulings concerning various contest issues more frequently (Hunt, 2013). The Supreme Court achieved what national politicians trying to amend the constitution could not, acknowledgment and validation in protecting the Quebec society and its most important feature: the French language. It also entrenched the policies of the Official Languages (Articles 16-20, 23) and multiculturalism (Article