Full Description
Few moments in Canadian history are as intriguing as the political battle between Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and the "Gang of Eight" provincial premiers who opposed his plans to "patriate" Canada's constitution from Britain. This volume revisits these constitutional negotiations, including the personalities, visions, and political struggles that shaped the resulting constitutional agreement. Offering fresh perspectives on the politics of this key moment in Canadian history, it focuses on the players behind the patriation process, including First Nations and feminist activists, who helped shape Canada's new constitution. Patriation and Its Consequences also explores the long shadow of patriation, including the alienation of Quebec, the character of Canadian federalism, Indigenous constitutionalism and Aboriginal treaty rights, and the struggle to ensure gender equality rights in Canada.
Contents
Part 1: Introduction: The Significance of Constitution Making
1 Looking Back on Patriation and Its Consequences / Lois Harder and Steve Patten
2 Constituting Constitutions: The Patriation Moment / Janine Brodie
Part 2: Tracing the Long Road to Patriation
3 Constitutional Nationalism: Politics, Law, and Culture on the Road to Patriation / Eric M. Adams
4 The Evolution of the Charter / Barry L. Strayer
5 The Rise of Spectator Constitutionalism, 1967-81 / P.E. Bryden
Part 3: Shaping Patriation: Law, Political Vision, Political Actors, and Political Struggle
6 Law, Politics, and the Patriation Reference of 1981 / Philip Girard
7 The Judiciary in Trudeau's Constitutional Vision: Intellectual Trajectory and Origins of the Charter / David Schneiderman
8 More Distress than Enchantment: The Constitutional Negotiations of November 1981 Seen from Quebec / Guy Laforest and Rosalie Readman
9 Tracking Justice: The Constitution Express to Section 35 and Beyond / Louise Mandell and Leslie Hall Pinder
10 "28 - Helluva Lot to Lose in 27 Days": The Ad Hoc Committee and Women's Constitutional Activism in the Era of Patriation / Marilou McPhedran, Judith Erola, and Loren Braul
Part 4: The Political and Constitutional Consequences of Patriation
11 Patriation and the Law of Unintended Consequences / Peter Russell
12 Canadian Federalism since Patriation: Advancing a Federalism of Empowerment / Alain-G. Gagnon and Alex Schwartz
13 An Indigenous Constitutional Paradox: Both Monumental Achievement and Monumental Defeat / Kiera Ladner
14 The Sad but True Story of a Shrinking Equality Opportunity Structure / Alexandra Dobrowolsky
List of Contributors; Index
