Liberalism in Practice Chapter 11 Social 301 Maher Arar CBS News Interview with Arar Read Page 368 Text To what extent do you think the actions of the US and Syrian governments challenged individual or collective rights ID: 575361
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Slide1
Complexities of Liberalism in Practice
Chapter 11Social 30-1Slide2
Maher Arar
CBS News Interview with Arar
Read Page 368 Text
To what extent do you think the actions of the US and Syrian governments challenged individual or collective rights?
What role does Canada play in the Arar Affair?Slide3
Promoting Rights
Fundamental Rights: (necessary for an individual to enjoy free will or personal autonomy)
Life, Liberty, and Personal Safety
Guaranteed in Legislations (entrenched):
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (1982)
Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms (1975)
Bill of Rights (1791)Slide4
RULE OF THUMB
NO INDIVIDUAL HAS THE RIGHT TO INFRINGE ON THE RIGHTS OF OTHERS. INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS CAN AND MUST BE BALANCED IN THE INTERESTS OF PERSERVING THE RIGHTS OF EVERYONE IN THE COMMUNITY.Slide5
The most certain test by which we judge whether a country is really free is the amount of security enjoyed by minorities
-Lord Acton, 1877-
Do you agree? Why or why not?Slide6
Collective Rights in Canada
Modern liberalism can accommodate collective rights
Minority rights are protected
Supreme Court of Canada
gives collective rights high
priority
4 organizing constitutional principles in Canada
Federalism
Democracy
Rule of Law
Respect for minorities
Primary difference between the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the American Bill of Rights is
the inclusion of collective rights
Page
378 -379Slide7
CANADIAN CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS, 1982
The CCRF, 1982 contains the following:
Individual Rights
Collective Rights
Language rights
Aboriginal rights
Multicultural character of CanadaSlide8
Pierre Elliott Trudeau
His goal was to entrench rightsHe succeeded by having the CCRF, 1982 enshrined in the Constitutional Act
What does it mean to entrench rights?
What does it mean “to enshrine” in the Constitution?Slide9
Why Entrench Rights?
Protection ensures that rights legislation cannot be easily overturned without due process.
Due Process consists of major debate in government, amendment formulas and public support; however, change is needed to keep up with the times.
For example: Women’s Rights, Aboriginal Rights and African-American RightsSlide10
Collective Rights Come From The Extension of Individual Rights
Supreme Court of Canada extends rights
Government extends rights via the written constitution
Delwin Vriend Case 5 Page 371
Can no longer fire people based on their sexual orientation
Trudeau’s Omnibus Bill, 1968
Government could no longer morally intervene in divorce, homosexuality and abortionSlide11
LANGUAGE RIGHTS
ALBERTA
Alberta School Act, 1968
Use of French as a language of instruction 50% of daily school time
Extended to 80% in 1976
Applied to publicly funded schools
CANADA
CCRF, 1982
Sec 23 (1)(a)(b) instruction provided in minority language if:
1
st
language learned was French or English where they live, OR
One has received primary education in English or French and the language is of the minority where one livesSlide12
Aboriginal Rights
Aboriginal rights are also protected
in the CCRF, 1982
Section 25
Section 26
Section 35
CCRF cannot be used to take away Aboriginal or Treaty rights
Rights granted cannot be used to deny other rights that exist in Canada
Existing Treaty & Aboriginal rights affirmed
Aboriginals include: Indian, Inuit and Métis
Include rights via land claims or those future acquired
Granted equality to males and femalesSlide13
Illiberal Practices
in Liberal DemocraciesSlide14
Smoker’s Rights Denied
Anti-Smoking movement is promoting the exclusion of 5 million Canadians which equals 20 % of the population.
Should the government pass legislation to restrict the rights of individuals? Slide15
Disenfranchisement
1867 BNA Act, 1867 excluded women from voting
Until 1960 Natives and other non-whites were excluded from voting
During the 19
th
century, postmasters and postal employers in various provinces could not vote
1917 to 1920 War Times Election Act – Italian, German and Ukrainian Canadians, along with Mennonites,
Hutterites
and
Doukhobors
who spoke an enemy language lost the right to vote
1934 to 1955 –
Doukhobors
and others who refused to bear arms or conscientiously objected to military service lost the right to vote
Japanese Interment Camp VideoSlide16
The War Measures Act
The War Measures Act – gave emergency powers to the government when the existence of “war, invasion or insurrection, real or apprehended” was present.
Used During:
WWI
WWII
1970 October CrisisSlide17
War Measures Act WWI
Used from 1914 – 1918Canadians with an ethnic background from Germany, Austria-Hungary or the Ottoman Empire were declared “enemy aliens”The Act limited: Freedom and privacy – “enemy aliens” had to register themselves and carry ID cards
Censorship – could not publish or read anything except English and French
Mobility – could not leave the country without permits
Private Property – could not own a firearms
Freedom of Association – could not join groups deemed inappropriate, dangerous or seditiousFaced deportation, internment camps, confiscation of property
NO apology was granted after WWI nor were people released from camps immediately. (2 years) Slide18
War Measures Act WWII
Japanese Canadians were interned (22, 000 ppl)Most interned Japanese were native-born Canadians
Military and RCMP dismissed public claims of the “Japanese danger” as inaccurate and based upon no evidence.
Problem was the anti-Japanese public opinion
18-45 year old males were sent to work camps
Women sent to the BC wilderness to live in communal buildings Slide19
Japanese Internment and Work CampsSlide20
WWII – WMA
Japanese faced poor living conditions Japanese property was seized and sold without compensation
End of WWII, Japanese could either be deported or move east of the Rockies as they were ban from BC
1949 – regain the right to go back to BC
1988 – PM Mulroney acknowledged unjust actions and $21,000 in compensation for those who could prove they were directly wronged.
Japanese Internment CampsSlide21
1970 October Crisis
FLQ – use of socialism, violence and terrorism to reach their goalsJames Cross and Pierre LaPorte kidnapped LaPorte
is assassinated Trudeau deemed this “apprehended insurrection”
FLQ was outlawed
Canadians would be presumed a member if one attended a meeting or spoke
favourably of the FLQ. Page 400Slide22
October Crisis500 people were arrested without warrants i.e. teachers, artists, journalists, unionists – people who supported Quebec Nationalism
Criticisms: powers of government were too broad for 2 kidnappings and one murderTreated all separatists as terrorists Slide23
Post 9-11 Reactionism
Restrictions on Religious SymbolsUS PATRIOT Act, 2001
No Fly ListSlide24
Restriction on Religious Symbols
Began in the 1990s to secularize public institutions i.e. limited prayer in ParliamentRecently France implemented laws which were discriminatorily applied to the hijab (Muslim) and turbans (Sikh), yet yarmulkes (Jewish) and crosses (Christian) were allowed.
Students wearing the hijab or turbans were expelled.
Sikhs and Muslims sued the French government and were reinstated to school BUT the law remains.
Belgium followed suit and no visible symbols of philosophical, religious, political or other opinions were to be worn by public servants when serving in public. Slide25
US PATRIOT ACT
What is it? The Act dramatically reduced restrictions on law enforcement agencies' ability to search telephone, e-mail communications, medical, financial, and other records; eased restrictions on foreign intelligence gathering within the United States; expanded the Secretary of the Treasury’s authority to regulate financial transactions, particularly those involving foreign individuals and entities; and broadened the discretion of law enforcement and immigration authorities in detaining and deporting immigrants suspected of terrorism-related acts.
The act also expanded the definition of terrorism to include domestic terrorism, thus enlarging the number of activities to which the USA PATRIOT Act’s expanded law enforcement powers can be applied.Slide26
US PATRIOT ACT, 2001Why was the act needed?
“Need for the increased security to deter and punish terrorist acts in the US and around the world” – US GovernmentOpposition to the Act? The Act was heavily challenged by groups that saw the law as a threat to personal liberties.
Student VoicesSlide27
US PATRIOT ACT, 2001US Courts Ruled Against:
National Security Letters – sensitive customer information from the Internet providers and other businesses seized without a warrant.Gag Provision – censorship of protestors who opposed the Patriot Act
Reality of the Act is that it has been used to target minority groups such as Muslims and Arabs.Slide28
No Fly Lists
Transport Canada’s Specified Person List - someone “potentially posing an immediate threat to aviation security”If on the list you may not allowed on domestic flights in Canada Criticisms:You are NOT told you are on the listPotential racial profiling
Denies legal rights “ innocent until proven guilty”
and you cannot challenge your inclusion on a list
Example: Maher
Arar