6.4.1 Visions of Nation-1

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6.4.1 Visions of Nation - 1

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Should individuals and groups in Canada embrace a national identity?

Big Idea:

  Differing perspectives of the future vision of Canada

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What does it mean for a nation’s citizens to be unified by a national identity? There may be about as many answers to this question as there are citizens in a country! In general, a people’s identity is based on shared ethnic, geographic, cultural, language, religious, and political factors. Only tolerance in a civic nation will maintain the unity of a pluralistic society.



As an example, Japan can be viewed as a civic nation, not only because the Japanese people share certain political beliefs and values, but also because it has a parliamentary government and a legal system based on civil law. Most Japanese people also share common racial, cultural, and religious traits as well as the same language – Japanese. The national identity of Japan has changed over the centuries. It has evolved from a locally-governed feudal system to a country united against threats of invasion. Today, Japan’s sense of national identity has developed to the point where students are tested on their level of patriotism and interest in their country’s traditional culture.

Unlike Japan, Canada is a very pluralistic society. This pluralism contributes to Canada's national identity as well the the individual identities of its citizens. Consequently, many debates have focused on emerging issues, such as the extent to which new immigrants change Canada's traditional national identity, or whether our bilingual policy is still relevant for an increasingly diverse population. Building a pluralistic country that genuinely respects and appreciates diversity can be challenging. Collectively, these issues can further compound the challenge of finding a mutually agreed-upon vision of Canada as a nation.

Look at the map below highlighting the ethnic populations throughout Canada from the Statistics Canada 2006 Census. Looking ahead to the 2036 census, what do you think will change in the map? Will all of Canada have a similar pluralistic background?