Browse "Politics & Law"

Displaying 796-810 of 949 results

  • Memory Project Archive

    Hugh Bartley (Primary Source)

    "Mainly you’re so busy you don’t have time to get scared. You’re trying to get out of whatever kind of a problem you got into, and in this case the airplane made it simple for us."Hugh Bartley served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. See his full testimony below.Please be advised that Memory Project primary sources may deal with personal testimony that reflect the speaker’s recollections and interpretations of events. Individual testimony does not necessarily reflect the views of the Memory Project and Historica Canada. 

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/mpsb/vimy/HughBartley/567_resize.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/mpsb/vimy/HughBartley/567_resize.jpg Hugh Bartley (Primary Source)

  • Article

    Mumilaaq Qaqqaq

    Mumilaaq Qaqqaq, Inuk Member of Parliament (born 4 November 1993 in Baker Lake, NU). In 2019, Qaqqaq became, at age 25, Nunavut’s youngest MP in history, and the first from the New Democratic Party (NDP) since Nunavut became a territory in 1999. Before entering politics, Qaqqaq was a public speaker and activist who raised awareness of the various crises that Inuit face (suicide, food insecurity, housing, climate).

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/MumilaaqQaqqaq/Mumilaaq_Qaqqaq_CBC_image.jpeg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/MumilaaqQaqqaq/Mumilaaq_Qaqqaq_CBC_image.jpeg Mumilaaq Qaqqaq

  • Article

    Nancy Karetak-Lindell

    Nancy Uqquujuq Karetak-Lindell, CM, Inuit leader, senator, politician (born 10 December 1957 in Eskimo Point, NT [now Arviat, NU]). Nancy Karetak-Lindell is an Inuit senator from Nunavut and was the Member of Parliament for Nunavut from 1997 to 2008. She has also served as the president of the Inuit Circumpolar Council Canada. A financial comptroller by trade, Karetak-Lindell had a long career working for Inuit organizations and held a number of government positions prior to becoming a senator (see Senate of Canada). Karetak-Lindell is recognized as the first female parliamentarian to represent the Eastern Arctic, as well as the first person to represent the new riding of Nunavut when it was established. She was also a key figure in the negotiations to create Nunavut in the 1990s.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/NancyKaretak-Lindell/Nancy_Karetak-Lindell_2025_resized.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/NancyKaretak-Lindell/Nancy_Karetak-Lindell_2025_resized.jpg Nancy Karetak-Lindell

  • Article

    Nathalie Provost

    Nathalie Provost, PC, Secretary of State (Nature), Member of Parliament, engineer, gun control activist (born in 1966). As a survivor of the femicide that occurred on 6 December 1989 at Montreal’s École Polytechnique (see École Polytechnique Tragedy), she is a well-renowned and socially engaged anti-gun activist. In 2025, she was elected as Liberal Member of Parliament for Châteauguay–Les Jardins-de-Napierville. She was then appointed Secretary of State for Nature under Mark Carney’s government.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Nathalie-Provost.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Nathalie-Provost.jpg Nathalie Provost

  • Article

    Native People's Caravan

    The Native People’s Caravan was a cross-country mobile protest that took place in 1974. Its main purpose was to raise awareness about the poor living conditions and discrimination experienced by Indigenous peoples in Canada. It travelled from Vancouver to Ottawa, where the subsequent occupation of a vacant warehouse on Victoria Island, near Parliament Hill, extended into 1975. The caravan brought various Indigenous groups together in protest of broken treaties, as well as a lack of government-supported education, housing and health care. As a result, meetings between Cabinet ministers and Indigenous leaders became more frequent. The protest is remembered as an important turning point in Indigenous activism in Canada. 

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/e9e4a925-a033-404d-9819-a3bb46fe9c8e.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/e9e4a925-a033-404d-9819-a3bb46fe9c8e.jpg Native People's Caravan

  • Article

    Nellie J. Cournoyea

    Nellie J. Cournoyea, OC, ONWT, premier of the Northwest Territories 1991–95, politician (born on 4 March 1940 in Aklavik, NT). Cournoyea is the first Indigenous woman to lead a provincial or territorial government in Canada.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/IndiLeaderStamps/nellie-cournoyea-stamp.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/IndiLeaderStamps/nellie-cournoyea-stamp.jpg Nellie J. Cournoyea

  • Article

    Nicholas Kasirer

    Nicholas Kasirer, FRSC, lawyer, professor, author, justice of the Court of Appeal of Quebec, justice of the Supreme Court of Canada (born 2 February 1960, in Montreal, QC). Nicholas Kasirer is a bilingual former law professor who is well-versed in both civil law and common law. He has been one of three Quebec justices on the Supreme Court of Canada since 16 September 2019. Kasirer previously served on the Court of Appeal of Quebec. He has been published widely on many aspects of the law. He was also dean of McGill University’s Faculty of Law from 2003 to 2009.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/nicholas-kasirer-rr-hr.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/nicholas-kasirer-rr-hr.jpg Nicholas Kasirer

  • Article

    North-West Mounted Police

    The North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) was the forerunner of Canada's iconic Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Created after Confederation to police the frontier territories of the Canadian West, the NWMP ended the whiskey trade on the southern prairies and the violence that came with it. They helped the federal government suppress the North-West Resistance and brought order to the Klondike Gold Rush. The NWMP pioneered the enforcement of federal law in the West, and the Arctic, from 1873 until 1920.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/9a255267-0aad-4dff-bdcd-57cfec136787.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/9a255267-0aad-4dff-bdcd-57cfec136787.jpg North-West Mounted Police

  • Article

    Numbered Treaties (Plain-Language Summary)

    The Numbered Treaties are a series of 11 treaties. A treaty is an agreement between two or more nations. The Numbered Treaties were signed by the Canadian government and Indigenous people. All 11 treaties were signed between 1871 and 1921. The Numbered Treaties cover parts of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario. They also cover portions of Yukon and the Northwest Territories. The treaties provided the Canadian government with land. The government wanted land for industrial development and white settlement. In exchange, the government promised Indigenous people special rights and benefits. These treaty terms are controversial and contested. The Numbered Treaties have ongoing legal, social, and economic impacts on Indigenous communities. (See also Treaties with Indigenous Peoples in Canada.) (This is a plain-language summary of the Numbered Treaties. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Numbered Treaties.)

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/4f1d71aa-8b25-417f-a88b-2a078f3b1768.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/4f1d71aa-8b25-417f-a88b-2a078f3b1768.jpg Numbered Treaties (Plain-Language Summary)

  • Article

    Official Languages Act (1988) (Plain-Language Summary)

    The Official Languages Act of 1969 made English and French the two official languages in Canada. The Official Languages Act of 1988 offered more detail about how the policies of bilingualism should be put into practice. It highlighted the responsibilities of federal institutions with respect to official languages in Canada. An important goal of the Official Languages Act is to ensure the equality of English and French in federal institutions and in Canadian society. (This article is a plain-language summary of the Official Languages Act of 1988. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry on The Official Languages Act (1988).)

    "https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Official Languages Act (1988) (Plain-Language Summary)

  • Article

    Olivia Chow

    Olivia Chow, mayor of Toronto 2023­–present, politician, organizer, artist (born 24 March 1957 in Hong Kong). Olivia Chow began her career in Toronto municipal politics as a school trustee in the 1980s. She went on to serve as a city councillor from 1991 until 2005. In 2006, she entered federal politics as a Member of Parliament. She took a prominent role in the NDP caucus alongside her husband, NDP leader Jack Layton. In 2023, Chow became the first racialized person elected mayor of Toronto.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Olivia_Chow_at_Mayoral_Candidates_Roundtable_2014_cropped.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Olivia_Chow_at_Mayoral_Candidates_Roundtable_2014_cropped.jpg Olivia Chow

  • Article

    Palbinder Kaur Shergill

    Palbinder Kaur Shergill, QC, judge of the Supreme Court of British Columbia in New Westminster (born in Rurka Kalan, Punjab, India). Shergill spent 26 years practising law before she was appointed to the Supreme Court of British Columbia. She was the first turbaned Sikh woman to be appointed as a judge in Canada.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/PalbinderKaurShergill/Palbinder_Kaur_Shergill_Tweetonly.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/new_article_images/PalbinderKaurShergill/Palbinder_Kaur_Shergill_Tweetonly.jpg Palbinder Kaur Shergill

  • Article

    Pat Carney

    Patricia Carney, CM, PC, Member of Parliament 1980–88, senator 1991–2008, journalist, economist (born 26 May 1935 in Shanghai, China; died 25 July 2023). Pat Carney’s career was marked by many firsts. After working as the first female business columnist with a major daily newspaper in Canada, she became the first female Conservative politician from British Columbia to be elected to Parliament, in 1980. She was re-elected in 1984 and served as Minister of Energy, Mines and Resources, Minister of International Trade and president of the Treasury Board. She was the first woman to head each portfolio. In 1990, she became the first woman from British Columbia to be appointed to the Senate. Carney played a key role in negotiating NAFTA and cast the deciding vote that kept abortion legal in Canada.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Pat_Carney.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/Pat_Carney.jpg Pat Carney

  • Article

    Patriation of the Constitution

    In 1982, Canada “patriated” its Constitution. It transferred the country’s highest law, the British North America Act (which was renamed the Constitution Act, 1867), from the authority of the British Parliament to Canada’s federal and provincial legislatures. The Constitution was also updated with a new amending formula and a Charter of Rights and Freedoms. These changes occurred after a fierce, 18-month political and legal struggle that dominated headlines and the agendas of every government in the country.

    "https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/images/tce_placeholder.jpg?v=e9dca980c9bdb3aa11e832e7ea94f5d9 Patriation of the Constitution

  • Article

    Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka Case

    The crimes of Paul Bernardo and his wife Karla Homolka were among the most horrifying and controversial in Canadian history. This article contains sensitive material that may not be suitable for all audiences.

    "https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/60d763f2-60f1-49b9-ae90-ea3f0d0916ec.jpg" // resources/views/front/categories/view.blade.php
    https://d3d0lqu00lnqvz.cloudfront.net/media/media/60d763f2-60f1-49b9-ae90-ea3f0d0916ec.jpg Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka Case