Modern Canada
Postwar Canada enjoyed record prosperity and became an active member of the international community — a multicultural, peaceful, and prosperous nation.
Postwar prosperity and the welfare state
Postwar Canada enjoyed record prosperity. The discovery of oil in Alberta in 1947 began Canada's modern energy industry. By 1951, for the first time, a majority of Canadians could afford adequate food, shelter and clothing. Canada built a comprehensive social safety net: employment insurance was introduced in 1940; Old Age Security was devised as early as 1927; the Canada and Quebec Pension Plans were established in 1965; and the Canada Health Act ensures universal healthcare coverage for all Canadians. These programs reflect Canada's values of fairness, compassion, and collective responsibility.
International engagement
Canada joined the United Nations (UN) at its founding in 1945 and NATO in 1949, a military alliance with Western democracies to deter Soviet aggression during the Cold War. Canada also joined NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command) with the United States to protect North American airspace. Canada participated in the Korean War (1950–53), with 500 Canadians killed and 1,000 wounded. Canada has taken part in numerous UN peacekeeping missions around the world, earning a reputation as an honest broker and peacekeeper. Former Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for proposing the first UN peacekeeping force during the Suez Crisis.
The Constitution Act of 1982
A defining moment in modern Canadian history came in 1982, when Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau patriated the Canadian Constitution. For the first time, Canada could amend its own constitution without approval from the British Parliament. The Constitution Act, 1982 included the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees fundamental freedoms, democratic rights, mobility rights, legal rights, equality rights, and language rights for all Canadians. It also recognized and affirmed the existing Aboriginal and treaty rights of the Aboriginal peoples of Canada. The 'notwithstanding clause' (Section 33) allows Parliament or provincial legislatures to override certain Charter rights for a five-year renewable period.
Canada and Quebec
Quebec experienced rapid social, economic and political change in the 1960s known as the Quiet Revolution. In 1963, Parliament established the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism (the B&B Commission). The Official Languages Act (1969) guarantees French and English services in the federal government. In 1970, Canada helped found La Francophonie, an international association of French-speaking countries. The October Crisis of 1970 saw the FLQ (Front de libération du Québec) kidnap a British diplomat and a Quebec cabinet minister; Prime Minister Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act. The Quebec sovereignty movement was defeated in referendums in 1980 (59.6% No) and in 1995 (50.6% No — a very close result).
Immigration and multiculturalism
Since 1947, more than 5 million people have immigrated to Canada. The Immigration Act of 1976 introduced a points-based system for skilled workers. In 1971, Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau proclaimed multiculturalism as an official policy — Canada was the first country in the world to adopt multiculturalism as a government policy. The Canadian Multiculturalism Act became law in 1988, enshrining in law Canada's commitment to a pluralist society. Since the 1970s, most immigrants have come from Asian countries including India, China, the Philippines, and Pakistan. The government has formally apologized for past discriminatory immigration policies, including the Chinese Head Tax (apology in 2006) and the forced relocation of Japanese Canadians during WWII (apology in 1988).
A changing society and arts
By the 1960s, one-third of Canadians had origins that were neither British nor French, reshaping Canadian identity. Canadian artists have achieved international recognition: the Group of Seven (founded 1920) captured Canada's rugged wilderness landscapes; Emily Carr painted the West Coast; Kenojuak Ashevak pioneered modern Inuit art. Canadian literature produced Nobel Prizes and international acclaim through authors like Alice Munro (Nobel Prize in Literature, 2013). Canadian athletes have excelled worldwide — Wayne Gretzky played for the Edmonton Oilers from 1979 to 1988 and is considered the greatest hockey player of all time; Terry Fox began his Marathon of Hope in April 1980 before cancer stopped him; Rick Hansen circled the globe in a wheelchair in 1985–87, raising $26 million for spinal cord injury research.
Advertisement
Key Facts
- •Oil discovered in Alberta in 1947 — began Canada's modern energy industry
- •Employment insurance introduced in 1940; Old Age Security from 1927; Canada Pension Plan from 1965
- •Canada joined the UN in 1945, NATO in 1949, and NORAD jointly with the US
- •Korean War (1950–53): 500 Canadians killed, 1,000 wounded
- •Lester B. Pearson won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1957 for creating the first UN peacekeeping force
- •Constitution Act 1982 patriated the Constitution and entrenched the Charter of Rights and Freedoms
- •Official Languages Act (1969) guarantees French and English federal services
- •Canada helped found La Francophonie in 1970; was the first country to adopt official multiculturalism policy (1971)
- •Quebec sovereignty defeated in referendums in 1980 (59.6% No) and 1995 (50.6% No)
- •Wayne Gretzky played for Edmonton Oilers 1979–1988
- •Terry Fox began Marathon of Hope in April 1980
- •Rick Hansen circled globe in wheelchair in 1985–87, raising $26 million
- •Government apologized to Japanese Canadians in 1988 and to Chinese Canadians for Head Tax in 2006
- •Alice Munro won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2013