This article is cross-posted with Borealia: Early Canadian History, where it was published on 23 October 2023. E.A. Heaman I am very sorry to see Quebec raising the fees on students not from Quebec. A long time ago I was one of those out-of-province students. I grew up in British Columbia and had never been east when I transferred from… Read more »
By Sean Graham John Turner & Political Leadership | RSS.comIn our premier episode, I’m joined by Steve Paikin of TVO’s The Agenda to talk about Prime Minister John Turner, whose lengthy career spanned the decriminalization of homosexuality and abortion, stagflation, and free trade. We discuss Turner’s career, legacy, and what we can learn about modern politics from studying Canada’s 17th… Read more »
https://activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/History-Slam-148.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadBy Sean Graham As an undergraduate student, I had an idea for a paper in my fourth year seminar on Canadian history to write about the 1930 federal election. It was a campaign that I was intrigued by – you had an economic collapse, a new leader of the Conservative Party, and a Prime… Read more »
Of course, the real interest in the piece, as in the book manuscript I had just completed, wasn’t what happened in 1911 but what happened at the next election in 1917, namely, the most racially polarizing campaign in Canadian history.
By James Cullingham As the imbroglio concerning Jody Wilson-Raybould, Jane Philpott and the Liberal government emerged, an immediate wave of sentiment broke across social media. The panicky message can be summed up: “In light of this scandal, Canadians will inevitably end up with an Andrew Scheer government.” This type of thinking reflects a reductive historical and political fallacy that assumes… Read more »
By Edward Dunsworth It’s been quite a month for the far right in Toronto. Two weeks ago, proto-fascist hype man Steve Bannon – unable just days prior to attract more than twenty-five people to an event in Kansas – drew a sold-out (and well-heeled) crowd to downtown Toronto’s Roy Thompson Hall, where he squared off against former George W. Bush… Read more »
https://activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/History-Slam-123.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadBy Sean Graham In the lead up to Canada 150 last July, there was no shortage of projects looking at Canada’s political history. One of my favourites was the Confederation Debates project. With a massive team, the project organized, scanned, and digitized thousands of documents related to each province and territory’s entry into Confederation…. Read more »
By Adam Coombs Doug Ford invoking the Notwithstanding Clause to slash the size of Toronto City Council generated fiery responses from both supporters and detractors. Regardless of where one stood on the issue, all commentators were quick to argue that their side was the one protecting democratic norms and practices while their opponents were undermining them. Premier Ford made this… Read more »
https://activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/History-Slam-Episode-119.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadBy Sean Graham The 2015 election of Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party, along with the 50th anniversary of his father’s election as Liberal leader, has generated plenty of renewed interest in the life and career of Pierre Elliot Trudeau. The popular conception of the elder Trudeau has been that he is very much… Read more »
https://activehistory.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/History-Slam-117-Sarah-Cox.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadBy Sean Graham There are a couple things that are universal in political campaigns. Candidates will talk about creating new jobs and stress the need to leave a legacy for our kids and grand-kids (we do all for the kids, after all). In recent years, with environmentalism becoming increasingly popular politically, politicians have combined… Read more »
