Category Archives: Political History

In the Shadow of Genocide: Elizabeth MacCallum Challenges Anti-Jewish Racism and Zionism

John Price This is the first post in a two-part series based on a recently published article in the International Journal, “Resisting Palestine’s Partition: Elizabeth MacCallum, the Arab World and UN Resolution 181(II).”  The second post in the series is available here. “I am a Zionist,” declared Justin Trudeau just before stepping down as prime minister. “No one in Canada,” he stated,… Read more »

Two Lefts, Two Paths: Quebec Left Politics and the Immigration Question through Bill 84

Francesco Coirazza “Multiculturalism finally no longer applies to Quebec! […] It’s a model that has always been harmful to Quebec,” claimed Minister of the French Language Jean-François Roberge in the salon rouge of the Quebec legislature on 28 May 2025. On that day, Quebec’s National Assembly passed Bill 84: An Act Respecting National Integration, a controversial law introduced by the… Read more »

Against Lament: Developmentalism and Fourth-World Perspectives

An image of an article from the publication CUSO Bulletin. The featured image is of a 24-year old woman named Marie Smallface, of the Blackfoot Nation.

Jody Mason In her incisive discussion of Elon Musk’s recent gutting of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Jill Campbell-Miller correctly assesses the move as motivated by MAGA-movement isolationism. She further notes that Musk’s actions are complicated by the fact that, for many decades, the aid paradigm has also been subject to substantive critique from those who, unlike… Read more »

An Unsung Chinese Canadian: Yick Wong

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Andrew R.S. Marchese As Canadians continue to reflect on the centennial of the 1923 Chinese Immigration Act (Exclusion Act), growing attention is being paid to the everyday, untold stories of those who resisted its harsh impact. Likewise, there has been a hunger for historical figures that highlight complexities and intersectional identities in both a community and national-historical context. Among the… Read more »

Diseased Neoliberalism

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If the present crisis, defined by a rising and self-confident politics of reaction, is understood historically as the diseased radicalization rather than the demise of neoliberalism, perhaps we might yet make a proper interregnum of our time. That is, we might begin to struggle toward a new order, doing so not with inherited instruction manuals but instead with new ones born from “a spirit that embraces the notion of a deep and indeed unsettling transformation of society.” As diseased neoliberalism continues to self-generate all measure of morbid symptoms, we might find suddenly that there is all the more collective will to give it the death it deserves.

Lessons from the Past: How Mark Carney and the Liberals Can Tackle Housing Challenges in First Nations with a Renewed Focus on Building Homes and Reconciliation

A black-and-white copy of a house blueprint. It is a modest one-and-a-half story home with a little porch. The cladding is labeled "1X8 rustic". The roof is labeled "shingles". A feature on the roof is labeled "ventilator." The whole image is labeled "perspective view."

The Indigenous and Northern Housing plan within Canada’s current National Housing Strategy is a good start, but it does not go nearly far enough to meet the long-standing housing needs of First Nations communities. With the new Liberal platform prioritizing the rapid development of affordable and sustainable homes, Prime Minister Mark Carney has a chance to begin remedying some of the historical and ongoing injustices that First Nations peoples encounter regarding housing on reserves. This can be accomplished by integrating the AFN’s proposal into the National Housing Strategy, providing a streamlined process for First Nations to benefit, and working directly with First Nations to meet the specific needs of each community, steering clear of the paternalistic dynamics that have largely fueled the housing crisis experienced by First Nations communities throughout Canada.

The Politics of Tariffs

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Gilbert Gagné This is the third post in a series on tariffs based on a roundtable organized at Bishop’s University in February 2025. Read the introduction by David Webster here and the first post by Heather McKeen-Edwards here. The second post by Gordon S. Baker appears here. Everything seems to be about tariffs now; how exposed to potential US tariffs… Read more »

The Legacy of Tariffs in US history: Renewing the McKinley-Hawaii Strategy?

Gordon S. Barker This is the second post in a series on tariffs based on a roundtable organized at Bishop’s University in February 2025. Read the introduction by David Webster here and the first post by Heather McKeen-Edwards here. Donald Trump’s transactional use of tariffs does not break new ground. In fact, tariffs have played an instrumental role in American… Read more »

On Tariffs

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David Webster— Tariffs on you!— No, bigger tariffs on you!— No, I have the biggest, most beautiful tariffs, and I am slapping them on you! Anyone could be excused for thinking it was a battle of toddlers. But this is deadly serious: a trade war, one that reminds us of moments of trade tension between Canada and the United States… Read more »

The Economic Consequences of Tariffs

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This is the first post in a three-part series on the history of tariffs. You can read the introduction by David Webster here. Heather McKeen – Edwards The idea of tariffs is far from new, politically or economically. In fact, most countries in the world have some tariffs right now. Tariffs are a type of trade barrier, and their goal… Read more »