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CANADIAN HISTORY NEWS
added: Mon, 17th October 2005 | 1090 views | 0x in favourites
feed url: http://northernblue.ca/cblog/rss.php?version=0.91
Canadian History News
Latest feed entries:
GGs For Teaching Canadian History Announced
Her Excellency the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean, Governor General of Canada, will present the Governor
General's Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History to the following seven teachers at Rideau Hall on Thursday, September 28, 2006, at 10 a.m:
Antony Caruso - Aurora, Ontario - Holy Spirit Elementary School
Kim Chagnon and Mary Scott - Regina, Saskatchewan - St. Gabriel School
Jennifer Johnson-George - Calgary, Alberta - Prince of Wales Elementary
Julie-Catherine Mercadier - Montreal, Quebec - Ecole primaire Louisbourg
Greg Miyanaga - Coquitlam, British Columbia - Pinetree Way Elementary
Blake Seward - Smith Falls, Ontario - Smith Falls District Collegiate Institute
Keywords: Canadian History Canada Education Teaching
OTTAWA, Sept. 26 /CNW Telbec/ - Her Excellency the Right Honourable
Michaelle Jean, Governor General of Canada, will present the Governor
General's Award for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History to seven teachers
at Rideau Hall on Thursday, September 28, 2006, at 10 a.m.
The Governor General's Awards for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History
were established in 1996 by Canada's National History Society. Every year, the
Awards recognize teachers from elementary and secondary schools who have
inspired and challenged students about Canadian history, be it in the field of
social studies, economics, political studies, contemporary studies or
geography.
This year's acclaimed teaching strategies included the construction of a
tipi in Alberta, role-playing as secret agents for John A. MacDonald by
students in Ontario, the re-enactment of the Battle of Châteauguay in Quebec,
the erection of an historical wall of fame in Saskatchewan, uncovering the
past of a turn-of-the-century soldier in Ontario, and getting up close and
personal with Japanese internment survivors in British Columbia.
The 2006 recipients are:
Name / Place of Residence / School
<<
- Antony Caruso - Aurora, Ontario - Holy Spirit Elementary School
- Kim Chagnon and Mary Scott - Regina, Saskatchewan - St. Gabriel School
- Jennifer Johnson-George - Calgary, Alberta - Prince of Wales
Elementary
- Julie-Catherine Mercadier - Montreal, Quebec - Ecole primaire
Louisbourg
- Greg Miyanaga - Coquitlam, British Columbia - Pinetree Way Elementary
- Blake Seward - Smith Falls, Ontario - Smith Falls District Collegiate
Institute
>>
Detailed biographical information and photos of the recipients are
available for download through the press room of the History Society's Web
site atwww.historysociety.ca/abo.asp?subsection=new&page;=pre.
For further information: Media information: Lucie Brosseau, Rideau Hall
Press Office, (613) 998-0287, www.gg.ca; Nicole Harris, Maverick Media
Solutions Inc., (204) 470-4555
"Why should these people be allowed to destroy our history?"
The controversy over the Prairie Giant film continues, with this commentary in today's Leader-Post...
Douglas movie still a giant issue
Billy Morton (Sep. 19, Leader-Post) states that Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story is "just a movie". Nonsense, it is not "just a movie" to Morton, to Talking Dog Studios, to the CBC, to me or to Canadians.....
I am outraged, not only because the persona of my grandfather, Jimmy Gardiner, was misappropriated for the purpose of feeding egos and for financial gain, but also because I hate to see Canadian children fed historical pap and lies.
Saskatchewan is rich with true history. As a nation, our history forms part of our identity. Why should these people be allowed to destroy our history?....
[[Full article follows]
Keywords: Canadian History Canada Education Teaching
Not enough has been written about Prairie Giant when the film continues to be sold and promoted as history in spite of criticism from politicians and historians all across the political spectrum, including former Saskatchewan premier Allan Blakeney.
Morton raises an issue which has not been addressed, namely gratification through recognition, which would involve personal and institutional credit, and, of course, personal financial gain.
Morton accuses me of snubbing his colleagues at Talking Dog Studios. To clarify for Leader-Post readers, Rob Bryanton, now sole owner, has led Talking Dog since 1995. Bryanton is also identified in the Saskatchewan Corporate Registry (Entity # 101018715 as of April 18, 2006) as owning 37,500 Class A Shares of Minds Eye Entertainment Ltd.
Ten thousand Prairie Giant DVDs have now been distributed to our schools, libraries, video stores and homes. Bryanton describes the importance of DVDs to Talking Dog: "Remixing shows . . . for . . . DVD release has become an increasingly large part of our operation".
Most of those who contributed to the production of Prairie Giant were duped regarding the history in the film. They were exposed only to isolated scenes or narrow technical matters with which they were involved. But others knew.
Ralph Goodale (April 28, 2006 letter to the CBC) stated "The abuse is so glaring that one can only assume it was deliberate and therefore malicious". Comments by John and Bruce Smith, Kevin DeWalt and others associated with the film confirm that they knew what they were doing.
There was misappropriation of Jimmy Gardiner's persona for the benefit of select groups of people -- to serve their interests.
Morton suggests moving on. Yes, it would easier and less embarrassing for Minds Eye and friends to continue absorbing more public funding if the Gardiners would go away.
I am outraged, not only because the persona of my grandfather, Jimmy Gardiner, was misappropriated for the purpose of feeding egos and for financial gain, but also because I hate to see Canadian children fed historical pap and lies.
Saskatchewan is rich with true history. As a nation, our history forms part of our identity. Why should these people be allowed to destroy our history?
I truly do not understand how the minds of people like Billy Morton, Kevin DeWalt and John and Bruce Smith work. Do they place no value on Canada's history? Do they want their children and grandchildren fed lies instead of the truth? What kind of moral fibre do these people have? Do they not have any sense of shame?
And Morton, well, his recognition needs are modest --an industry-friendly Gemini award and the knowledge that Talking Dog is identified on 10,000 DVDs produced for Canadian schools and homes.
Billy Morton misses the point. Prairie Giant is a lie -- a lie that has been put into schools across the country.
Marg Gardiner
Gardiner is the granddaughter of former Saskatchewan premier James G. Gardiner.
Victoria
© The Leader-Post (Regina) 2006Keywords: Canadian History Canada Education Teaching
October is Women's History Month
Established in 1992 by the Government of Canada, this special month provides an opportunity to learn more about women's historic accomplishments and their contributions to Canadian society. This year's theme is:Aboriginal Women: The Journey Forward
"The theme - Aboriginal Women: The Journey Forward - reflects the Government of Canada's commitment to increasing awareness of Aboriginal women's contributions to Canada, to their communities and to their families. It also seeks to promote understanding of the realities of Aboriginal women's lives and the unique challenges they face."
Le Mois de l'histoire des femmes a lieu en octobre, à chaque année. Le thème de cette année est Femmes autochtones : Cap sur l'avenir
. Le thème - Femmes autochtones : Cap sur l'avenir - tient compte de l'engagement du gouvernement du Canada de sensibiliser les Canadiennes et les Canadiens aux contributions des femmes autochtones au Canada, à leurs collectivités et à leurs familles. Ce thème vise également à faciliter la compréhension des réalités vécues par les femmes autochtones et des défis uniques auxquels elles font face.Keywords: Canadian History Canada Education Women
More on Charlesbourg-Royale Find
[Photo: Archeologist Yves Chrétien in the Diggings]
The Charlesbourg-Royale site was uncovered by accident in 2005 by 43 year old Québec goverment archeologist Yves Chrétien while surveying for a proposed scenic lookout on the promontory of Cap Rouge.
"I was hired to do an archeological inventory," says Chrétien, but instead turned up the charred wooden remains of Cartier or Roberval's main fort about 30 centimetres below the surface of the ground. He was aware of the archeological potential, "but researchers had been looking for this site for more than 50 years, so I would say I had little hope."
"It truly is of major importance," says Chrétien. "It is the first French settlement in the Americas.... The site is very extensive, and very important, and we will be going over it very, very slowly - with a toothbrush."
"This is where it all started. This was where the Europeans made the very first attempts at colonizing the continent north of Mexico. This was the first of everything: the first European women to arrive here, the first carpenters, the first farm animals, truly the first real attempt at building a settlement."
Chrétien believes at least 85 settlers could be buried on the site. Locating their remains could reveal many details about the first French settlers. "It will be a unique occasion to reconstitute an important piece of history that has remained silent for over 400 years," he said.
Sample of Isoriato
Chrétien has dug up over 150 objects including ceramics, pottery, forged nails, a ring, glass beads, vessels, an axe, a shard of Iroquois pottery and a piece of blue faience pottery that dates the site pretty accuratey.
"My initial thought was that I didn't know that kind of material. So I did a quick Internet search to try to identify that kind of ceramic." He found a scholarly inventory of historic ceramics, which showed an identical "Istoriato" plate manufactured in Faenza, Italy, between 1540 and 1550, at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Chrétien suspects it might have belonged to Roberval himself.
Radiocarbon tests on six wood samples have also confirmed that the site dates from the mid-16th century.
See: Jacques Cartier Builds Fort Charlesbourg-Royal (Canadawiki)
SOURCE: CBC, Canwest, CP
Archeologists find Cartier's Fort Charlesbourg-Royal at Cap Rouge
[Photo: Archeologist Yves Chrétien Shows the Diggings; Steve Duchesne, Le Soleil]
News Release (translation):
Quebec Premier Jean Charest announces $7.7 million investment in the Cartier-Roberval archaeological excavation program and development.
Quebec, Friday 18 August 2006
Speaking on a promontory overlooking the Cap-Rouge River, Quebec Premier Jean Charest tday announced a $7.7 million investment in the Cartier-Roberval archaeological excavation program and development over the course of the three next years. The program will develop the site of forts erected by Jacques Cartier and Jean-François de La Rocque de Roberval, between 1541 et 1543.
To protect this historical site that is unique in North America and to allow future and current generations to benefit some fully, the government has given Quebec National Capital Commission the mandate to secure the site, and to put in motion an archaeological work program, and make people aware of the value of the site, and interpret the artifcts brought to light. These works will unfold over several years, but the site will be accessible to the public in time for celebrations of 400th birthday of Quebec in 2008.
"More that 460 years after the ships of Cartier then Roberval arrived to sail on the St. Lawrence, the remains of the first French establishment in America have finally been discovered. The government of Quebec, aware that this is a timely opportunity to throw some light on one of the founder episodes of the nation, today reaffirms its commitment to to be the prime promoter of Quebecois identity and therefore annouces a major investment in the estblishment of this exceptionally valuable archaeological find," declared the prime minister.
"By making sites as important as this accessible to all Quebeckers, we insure the passage of memory between these that have preceded us and future generations. I think especially of youths that these witnesses of our past help to better appreciate and understand our history. It is by knowing where they come from and they will value and better appreciate our precious inheritance," declared the minister of Culture and Communications, Line Beauchamp.
"This historical discovery is a major one for the region of the National Capital-National, since it surely shows us where everything began. I am happy that this beautiful discovery is the direct result of the commitment of our government, that aims to leave a durable inheritance to our capital for its 400 years, that is the realization of the Promenade Samuel de Champlain," said the Minister responsable for the region of the Capital-National, Michel Després.
It was during a preliminary archaeological inventory prior to the construction of a lookout connected to the connected to the Promenade Samuel de Champlain - the gift of Québec to its capital for its 400e birthday - that the discovery was made of the first artefacts associated with the remains of buildings of Cartier and Roberval.
Research in 2005 and this year resulted in the discovery of more than a hundred ancient objects, including ceramics and earthen cookware, fragments of faïence, wrought nails, a ring, pearls of glass, crucibles and an axe.
Among the discoveries that allow us to identify this site as being that of a European establishment of the XVIth century, are fragments of Italian faïence Italian of the Istoriato style produced in Faenza in this period, plus tessons of Iroquoian pottery found in the upper parts of the archaeological site as well as convincing results of two series of Carbon-14 dating.
The nature and age of these items, as well as the strata in which they were found, have convinced the government to adopt the measures announced today. Further analyses will allow these artefacts to deliver all their secrets.
Bearer of many other discoveries, the Cartier-Roberval archeology site will greatly enrich our knowledge of this period, the very first in the history of Quebec, Canada and America.
-30-
[Original French Follows Below]
Le premier ministre Jean Charest lance le chantier Cartier-Roberval, un programme de fouilles archéologiques et de mise en valeur de 7,7 millions de dollars
Québec, le vendredi 18 août 2006 Le premier ministre du Québec, Jean Charest, a annoncé aujourdhui, sur le promontoire surplombant la rivière Cap-Rouge à Québec, que le gouvernement investira, au cours des trois prochaines années, 7,7 millions de dollars dans le cadre dun programme de fouilles archéologiques et de mise en valeur du site des forts érigés par Jacques Cartier et Jean-François de La Rocque de Roberval, entre 1541 et 1543.
Afin de protéger ce lieu historique unique en Amérique du Nord et de permettre aux générations actuelles et futures den bénéficier pleinement, le gouvernement a confié à la Commission de la capitale nationale du Québec le mandat de sécuriser le site, dy réaliser un programme de travaux archéologiques, et de veiller à la valorisation et à linterprétation des vestiges mis au jour. Ces travaux se dérouleront sur plusieurs années, mais le chantier sera accessible au public à temps pour les célébrations du 400e anniversaire de Québec en 2008.
« Plus de 460 ans après que les navires de Cartier puis de Roberval soient venus croiser dans le fleuve Saint-Laurent, les vestiges du premier établissement français en Amérique sont enfin localisés. Le gouvernement du Québec, conscient quil sagit là dune chance inespérée de jeter de la lumière sur lun des épisodes fondateurs de la nation, réaffirme aujourdhui son engagement à être le premier promoteur de lidentité québécoise et annonce donc un investissement majeur pour la mise en uvre de ce chantier archéologique dune valeur exceptionnelle », a déclaré le premier ministre.
« En rendant accessibles à tous les Québécoises et Québécois des lieux de mémoire aussi importants et significatifs que celui-ci, nous assurons le relais entre ceux qui nous ont précédés et les générations futures. Je pense en particulier aux jeunes que ces témoins de notre passé aident à mieux apprécier et comprendre notre histoire. Cest en sachant doù ils viennent et ce quils valent quils veilleront bientôt sur ce précieux héritage », a déclaré la ministre de la Culture et des Communications, Line Beauchamp.
« Cette découverte historique est majeure pour la région de la Capitale-Nationale, puisqu'elle nous apprend que c'est bel et bien ici que tout a débuté. Je suis heureux que cette belle surprise soit le résultat direct de l'engagement de notre gouvernement, qui vise à laisser un héritage durable à notre capitale pour ses 400 ans, soit la réalisation de la promenade Samuel-De Champlain. » a insisté le ministre responsable de la région de la Capitale-Nationale, Michel Després.
Cest en procédant à un inventaire archéologique préalable à la construction dun belvédère relié à la promenade Samuel-De Champlain le cadeau du Québec à sa capitale pour son 400e anniversaire que les premiers artefacts associés aux vestiges des établissements de Cartier et de Roberval ont été repérés.
Les recherches menées en 2005 et poursuivies cette année ont permis la découverte de plus dune centaine dobjets anciens divers, dont des céramiques et des terres cuites grossières, des fragments de faïence, des clous forgés, une bague, des perles de verre, des creusets et une hache.
Parmi les découvertes qui permettent didentifier ce site comme étant celui dun établissement européen du XVIe siècle, on note la présence de fragments de faïence italienne de style Istoriato produite à Faenza à cette époque, lidentification de tessons de poterie iroquoïenne trouvés dans la partie supérieure du dépôt archéologique ainsi que les résultats probants de deux séries de datations au Carbone-14.
La nature et lâge de ces pièces, ainsi que la position stratigraphique dans laquelle elles ont été trouvées, ont convaincu le gouvernement dadopter les mesures annoncées aujourdhui. Des analyses ultérieures permettront à ces artefacts de livrer tous leurs secrets.
Porteur de nombreuses autres découvertes, le chantier archéologique Cartier-Roberval enrichira de manière exceptionnelle notre connaissance de cette période, la toute première de lhistoire du Québec, du Canada et de lAmérique.
- 30 -
Canada in 2020
"To get Canadians thinking about the challenges our country will face over the coming decades, the Dominion Institute - in partnership with the CBC, La Presse and The Toronto Star - has brought together twenty top thinkers to kick off a debate about what issues, events or trends could fundamentally transform Canada by the year 2020." What for example would Canada look like if oil cost $300 a barrel in the year 2020? How would the country function, or not, in the aftermath of the separation of Quebec? Where and how would we live if global temperatures rose dramatically in the next fourteen years? What will our cities look like by 2020? What forces could transform our economy, the healthcare system or role in the world?
"Each 2020 contributor has been asked to write a 2,000 word essay on the transformative event, issue or trend of his or her choice. These essays will be published in both French and English in La Presse and The Toronto Star over a five-month period starting July 1, 2006. Each contributor will also be interviewed by CBC TV News and CBC Radio.
Visit the Canada in 2020 web pages of the CBC and The Toronto Star.
Visitors to this website are encouraged to comment on the essays and submit their own 800 word opinion piece on the event, issue or trend that they think will have the greatest impact on Canada by 2020.
The essay submitted to the Canada in 2020 website that generates the most number of online comments and highest overall ranking by November 30, 2006 will receive a $2020 cash prize and be published in La Presse and the Toronto Star. Two runner up prizes of $500 each will also be awarded. Click here for contest rules and essay examples.
Canada in 2020 will conclude with a one day symposium in December where the twenty contributing authors, area experts and the public will gather to brainstorm on how we can best address the top challenge identified by over the previous five months. CBC Television and Radio will cover the symposium as part of their year-end programming."
Visit the Canadian Studies Centre at the University of Graz
Canadian Studies Centre at the University of Graz
Your Guide to Celebrating Canada Day:
1. Check out the Parliament Hill Web Cam
2. Learn about Flag Flying Etiquette
3. Watch CPAC™ in English | Français
4. View Parliament from Space
5. Read all about the Canadian Citizenship Act
6. Learn the Origin of the Name "Canada"
7. Sing "O Canada": English | Français
8. Contribute an article to Canadawiki
9. Give Your Brain a Workout with CanQuiz
10. Remember the 1st Newfoundland Regiment
Keywords: Canadian History Canada Day EducationHappy Albertsland, er... Tuponia Day!
"I read in one newspaper not less than a dozen attempts to derive a new name. One individual chooses Tuponia and another Hochelaga as a suitable name for the new nationality. Now I ask any honourable member of this House how he would feel if he woke up some fine morning and found himself instead of a Canadian, a Tuponian or a Hochelagander."
Thomas D'Arcy McGee, Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, February 9, 1865
As Confederation approached, the citizens and politicians of British North America discussed a number of potential names for the new nationality. The rejects:
Keywords: Canadian History Canada Education
Professor Laments Canada Day Quizzes
A Pox on Canada Day Quizzes
Instead of treating Canadian history as fodder for trivia, we should ask smarter questions , writes Michael Dawson in the Toronto Star, June 28, 2006.
As we approach July 1, I'm already dreading the inevitable: another Canada Day Quiz. Every year, it seems, the country hyperventilates about the nation's poor results on quizzes related to Canadian history. Accompanying media reports are the requisite lamentations from historians and educators about how little we know about Canadian history.
So, in anticipation of the inevitable, I think we need to take a deep breath and consider two things: Let's recognize that ignorance about what many people would consider general knowledge is not a recent phenomenon in Canada. And we might consider the extent to which these quizzes, themselves, highlight problems with the way we try to get people, especially young people, interested in history.
First things first. Young people, who often bear the brunt of the bad press generated by these quizzes, have a long history of not knowing what the not-so-young think they should know. Back in 1956, for example, the Victoria Daily Colonist printed an alarmist article documenting the fact that "an average Winnipeg Grade 11 class" knew very little about the British writer J.B. Priestley.
Asked to identify both Priestley and rock 'n' roll star Elvis Presley, the results were, perhaps, not terribly surprising. Only five of the 45 students correctly identified Priestley, while 18 committed the cardinal sin of confusing him with the man who "discovered" oxygen in 1774, Joseph Priestly. All of the students recognized Elvis.
And yet it's not just the young who sport an indifferent track record when it comes to general knowledge quizzes.
Three years before the Priestley-Presley test, the Vancouver Province conducted a poll in advance of that year's B.C. provincial election. It questioned 20 people about provincial politics. Four of the 20 couldn't name the premier. Another four could name him but didn't know what party he belonged to. Eight interviewees did not know who the candidates were for their riding. Lucky for us, 16 of the 20 planned to vote.
More interesting is the fact that these weren't high-school students being interviewed. A 39-year-old housewife didn't know the name of the premier and guessed that the Liberals, instead of the Social Credit party, were in power.
A 43-year-old stockkeeper confused the attorney general with the premier, while a 59-year-old-labourer was unable to name a single candidate in his local riding.
There is, then, a fairly entrenched tradition of Canadians lacking knowledge about contemporary issues, never mind historical ones.
I'm not saying we should throw up our hands and accept ignorance; I just think that maybe we're falling into the trap of expecting today's citizens to live up to standards that really didn't exist in the past, either.
That said, if we can all agree that we'd like everyone to take more of an interest in Canadian history, then we'd do well to recognize the limitations of the History Quiz approach.
As a history professor, I've actually used these quizzes as a teaching device, though perhaps not in the way they were intended. I've employed a 1997 newspaper quiz once in a while to help stimulate discussion among my students partly because it still boasts some of my favourite questions.
Our discussion usually focuses not on what my students don't know as we begin the term (as demonstrated by their indifferent results on the quiz), but on what this quiz tells us its designers think they should know. My students generally conclude the architects of the quiz would like them to know more about dates, wars, and prominent Canadians.
This allows us to embark upon a discussion of the merits and demerits of both the political history such quizzes embrace and the social history so dominant in Canadian academia.
I'm not suggesting we completely overlook the fact that wrong answers to some of these questions point to significant gaps in general knowledge.
Even before an introductory Canadian history course, students really should be able to answer question number 4 from a 1997 quiz ("Which country took control of Quebec away from France by winning the Battle of the Plains of Abraham?") and I'm still a little concerned that in response to a quiz last year only 51 per cent of respondents knew that we generally refer to the economic dislocation of the 1930s as the "Great Depression" down from 64 per cent who answered this question correctly back in 1997.
Moreover, these quizzes certainly point to larger problems with my students' skills of critical analysis. When asked, "What Canadian city was severely damaged by a massive explosion in its harbour in 1917?" more than one student has offered "Regina" as their reasoned response.
But if we look at the kinds of questions that these quizzes ask, we can start to get a sense of how ineffective and misdirected this form of pedagogy is.
For example, the 1997 quiz asked young people to "Name a Canadian who received the Nobel Prize for the discovery of insulin."
With all due respect to F.G. Banting and J.J.R. Macleod, I can think of questions about insulin that are a lot more relevant for young people and would probably give us a better grasp of their general knowledge. How does it help diabetics? How did diabetics cope before it was discovered? How did medicare affect the availability of insulin?
More recent quizzes have moved away from the focus on embarrassing young Canadians, but the questions remain problematic.
Last year's quiz was co-sponsored by the TD Bank Financial Group and focused on economic history or at least a very selective version of economic history.
Hence, the following question which just 41 per cent of respondents answered correctly: "What Toronto-based financial institution is celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2005?" The "correct" answer is the TD Bank Financial Group. Setting aside the blatant advertising here, the entire premise of this question is disingenuous and obscures as much economic history as it illuminates.
The TD Bank was the product of a 1955 merger between the Bank of Toronto (established in 1855) and the Dominion Bank (established in 1871). By the same fuzzy logic, my wife and I should have been celebrating our 36th anniversary last year because she was born in 1969.
And yet not one of our friends dropped by with bone china! Why this willingness to obliterate mergers (which are often messy and, in the short run anyway, result in job losses) from our economic history? Strikes me this is something Canadians might be interested in learning a great deal about.
For a more traditional example (and one that is fitting given that we're approaching Canada Day) we might look at Confederation.
Routinely these quizzes ask questions such as, "What year did Confederation occur?" The question presumes that you already know what Confederation is and why it's important and that the central piece of necessary historical knowledge here is when it happened.
Perhaps more problematic, it treats Confederation as a neat and tidy and (dare I say for most people) distant and boring event. As newspaper reports from July 1867 attest, Confederation was, indeed, an event. If you skim through the newspapers of the time you'll see that it was an event that some people celebrated, some people protested, and some people greeted with almost complete indifference.
A Saint John newspaper reported the following on July 1, 1867 regarding the creation of the new dominion: "We cannot say that there is any rejoicing, nor is there any lamentation. A remarkable dullness is the only characteristic worthy of mention."
It's hard to expect people today to get excited when some of the folks who experienced this event had trouble containing their indifference. But, of course, if somebody asked you what year Confederation occurred and you told them "1867," you would be right. It just doesn't lead to much of a conversation. And history should be about conversations, not sentence fragments.
One way to have a conversation about Confederation is to view it less as an event and more as a process.
Yes, Confederation occurred in 1867 because that was when the colonies of Canada (which would be divided into the provinces of Ontario and Quebec), New Brunswick and Nova Scotia came together to form a new dominion.
Seeing Confederation as a process, however, allows us to think less about the developments that occurred on that all-important date, July 1, 1867, and to think more broadly about the political, social, cultural, and economic dimensions of the campaign to create a new nation.
These dimensions include not just other events, but political and social tensions (periodic outbursts of regional alienation or French-Canadian nationalism, for example) and the roots of our contemporary society and ongoing tensions (constitutional fatigue, battles between provincial governments and Ottawa over jurisdiction and funding).
To think of Confederation solely as an event that occurred in July 1867 limits its potential to resonate in the minds of Canadians.
How hard it must be for the youth of western Canada to find some sort of connection to Confederation when they are forced to memorize that it was an important event in which four provinces (which many of them have never visited) were created out of three colonies.
Memorizing that Manitoba and B.C. "entered" Confederation in 1870 and 1871 respectively is useful for passing quizzes but it doesn't help people realize that the incorporation of the West into Canada was one of the key reasons Confederation occurred when it did and was a contributing factor to some of the ongoing controversies in contemporary public life (aboriginal land claims, sweet deals for some provinces but not others, political scandals, etc.).
If you see Confederation solely as an "event" that happened on July 1, 1867, you're really just left with the impression that parts of the West (and P.E.I., which joined in 1873) were simply a little late responding to the "dinner bell" of Confederation.
Confederation is so much more interesting if we see it as a tricky and complex process that to a certain extent was consolidated in the late 19th century but that set the stage for political tensions that continue to affect our daily lives.
Presenting Confederation in this way helps people to see that there is something at stake in understanding who supported Confederation, why it occurred, and how it was consolidated. Like the coming together of the Bank of Toronto and the Dominion Bank, This was a merger, one that benefited some people, but not others.
If we want Canadians to be more informed about their history, our aim should not be to turn them into encyclopedias, but to turn them toward books that explore the key issues that continue to affect their daily lives.
For all their sizzle, Canada Day quizzes simply don't help Canadians to see what's at stake when it comes to our history. And what's at stake is the emancipating and empowering possibility of self-awareness through a new-found ability to contextualize and evaluate contemporary issues.
Michael Dawson is a member of the history department at St. Thomas University. He is the author of Selling British Columbia: Tourism and Consumer Culture, 1890-1970 and The Mountie from Dime Novel to Disney.
2006 Pierre Berton Award Finalists
WINNIPEG, June 27 /CNW/ - Canada's National History today for the first time released the short list of finalists for the 2006 Pierre Berton Award for achievement in popularizing Canadian History.
The Pierre Berton Award was first established in 1994 and has grown to become the country's top honour to recognize exemplary efforts in popular media to bring Canada's storied past to life. Prior recipients include Peter C. Newman; Jacques Lacoursière; Mark Starowicz and the CBC for Canada: A People's History; Charlotte Gray; Jack Granatstein; and Will Ferguson.a According to History Society president and CEO, Deborah Morrison, the History Society decided to release the short list of finalists to further its stated mission to encourage greater popular interest in Canadian History. "Each year the Pierre Berton Award selection committee has a difficult challenge to choose one, amongst an incredible range of exceptional efforts," said Ms. Morrison. "By releasing the list of finalists we hope to bring more attention to the many different ways Canada's writers, playwrights, broadcasters, and community activists are ensuring the great Canadian story endures."
This year's short list annotated with some of the selection committee's comments includes: Ted Barris, "Ted Barris stands alone for his ability to bring you to the frontlines of Canada's military past with Juno:Canadians at D-Day; and Days of Victory; Behind the Glory." "Barris is impressive because of the extensive range of history subjects he has written about over the years including Canadian Music, Prairie Steamboats, Curling, Rodeo Riding, and the Edmonton Oilers."
Randy Boswell, Ottawa Citizen journalist Randy Boswell established the first ever "history beat" with CanWest national news service in 2002. "This is an impressive commitment for both the journal and the journalist which ought to be recognized, because Boswell has widened the audience for history." "Boswell has brought an incredible number of stories to the front pages of Canada's major daily newspapers, from the whereabouts of Wolfe's diaries to the origins of the mountie muskrat hat."
CBC Digital Archives, "One of the most comprehensive Canadian history collections freely available online, the CBC Digital archives features over 10,000 different multi-media entries and a completely integrated set of educational resources for classroom use." "Knowing that younger people are increasingly looking to the Internet for their sources and information, this marks an incredible investment for future generations of Canadians."
Ken McGoogan, author of Lady Franklin's Revenge, Fatal Passage, and Ancient Mariner "is one of Canada's most internationally acclaimed popular history writers today." "No one comes closer to recapturing the stories of adventure Pierre Berton was so fond of telling than Ken McGoogan."
Bill Waiser, University of Saskatchewan historian and former CBC-TV Saskatchewan host of Looking Back "is exceptional because he is so well regarded for the rigor of his research as well as his ability to tell a really good story." "His most recent book, Saskatchewan: A New History is without a doubt the new definitive reference to the province's history."
The Pierre Berton Award will be presented later this Fall, on October 21st, 2006 at the National History Conference to be held in Vancouver.
About the History Society
Canada's National History Society is a Winnipeg-based charitable organization devoted to popularizing Canadian history. In addition to the Pierre Berton Award, the Society is best known as publisher of The Beaver magazine and Kayak: Canada's History Magazine for Kids. The Society also coordinates the Governor General's Awards for Excellence in Teaching Canadian History, which honours innovative classroom teachers.
For further information: Canada's National History Society, info@historysociety.ca, 1-800-816-6777 ext. 22
Canadian Multiculturalism Day
Canadian Multiculturalism Day was proclaimed on November 13, 2002, to be held on June 27, every year, in the context of Celebrate Canada.
"Canada's population represents more than 200 ethno-cultural communities. Canadian multiculturalism is founded on the belief that diversity is synonymous with success, prosperity, and the future.
Canadian Multiculturalism Day gives us an opportunity to learn more about the contributions that various communities make to Canadian society and to celebrate our country's richness and diversity."
Royal Proclamation (Canada Gazette Part II, Vol. 136, No. 25, 2002-12-04)Keywords: Canadian History Canada Day Education
Writers Guild Backs Tommy Douglas Screenwriter
After the CBC pulled its two-part miniseries on Tommy Douglas, Prairie Giant, from circulation and halted DVD sales, screenwriter Bruce Smith complained to the Writers Guild of Canada. 
Brian Markinson, playing the Jimmy Gardiner character
"The CBC has not contacted me, the director, or my research colleague to find out how much research we did for the script, and to let us counter the accusations made by the Gardiner family," says Smith.
Bruce Smith says he worked full-time for two years on the Prairie Giant script with a doctoral-student researcher and expert on Tommy Douglas and Jimmy Gardiner.
He claims he spent hundreds of hours in archives and libraries researching the history of the period, read more than 30 books covering Douglas, Gardiner and numerous other political figures of the time, as well as a slew of newspaper articles, and conducted dozens of interviews with people who knew both men.
"I stand by my portrayal of Jimmy Gardiner without reservation," says Smith. "It is historically accurate and based on extensive research."
Smith found out from watching television that the CBC had hired an independent historian to assess his portrayal of Gardiner. The historian concluded that Smith hadn't done enough research - even though he never contacted Smith to actually find out what research was done.
The CBC's behaviour is inexcusable," says Maureen Parker, Executive Director of the Writers Guild of Canada. "We ask that they review the facts, and issue a public apology."
Besides damaging Smith's reputation, the CBC has set a dangerous precedent for all screenwriters who write scripts based on true-life events, Parker adds.
"Screenwriters must be given dramatic licence to take historical events and put them into television form," says Parker. "A professional, experienced screenwriter like Bruce knows where he has to condense events to tell a compelling and entertaining story, while still staying true to the facts."
After CBC announced it was pulling the plug on the miniseries, Smith finally had a chance to read the historian's assessment of his script. "I can counter every one of the arguments made against my script," says Smith.
"Gardiner was a controversial figure and we knew all along some people would complain. We were always ready to defend ourselves, but we never got the chance. This is outright censorship."
Contact: Barb Farwell Director of Communications Writers Guild of Canada (416) 979-7907, ext. 5234 b.farwell@wgc.ca
CBC Pulls Tommy Douglas Movie
CBC Reports:
CBC Television has agreed to pull the movie Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story from all scheduled broadcasts in response to criticisms it was historically inaccurate.
On Monday, members of the Gardiner family received an e-mail from CBC Television's executive vice-president Richard Stursberg. He said CBC hired a historian who concluded the character created for the film does not reflect the historical record.
"In response, we are pulling Prairie Giant from all scheduled broadcasts and we have halted both home and educational sales," Stursberg said in the e-mail.
The mini-series could return someday, Stursberg said. "Our hope is that we can find a solution that will address concerns regarding the characterization of Mr. Gardiner before resuming distribution."
http://www.macleans.ca/culture/news/shownews.jsp?content=e061253A
CBC pulls Tommy Douglas movie because of historical inaccuracy
TIM COOK
REGINA (CP) - The CBC has pulled a movie about the life of medicare founder Tommy Douglas from its broadcast schedule, citing historical inaccuracies in the portrayal of an adversary in the film.
The corporation has also halted both home and educational sales of Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story while it tries to resolve concerns raised about how former Saskatchewan premier James (Jimmie) Gardiner comes off in the eyes of viewers.
CBC executive vice-president Richard Stursberg informed Gardiner's family of the decision in an e-mail, which became public Monday.
"We engaged an outside, third-part historian with no ties to CBC, your family or the Douglas family to assess the way in which Mr. Gardiner was depicted," Stursberg wrote.
"I regret to say that his conclusion was that the character created for the film does not reflect the accepted historical record."
The movie was first broadcast in two parts on March 12 and 13. CBC spokesman Jeff Keay said it was scheduled to run again in late June.
The decision to abort that was welcomed by Gardiner's family, who had fought to set the record straight.
"I am so relieved," granddaughter Marg Gardiner said in an telephone interview from her Victoria home. "It was very shocking, very unsettling, to see this kind of a distortion."
Douglas, a New Democrat, and Gardiner, a Liberal, both enjoyed distinguished political careers in Saskatchewan and Ottawa.
As leader of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, Douglas was a five-term premier of the province before becoming the first federal leader of the NDP. He is best remembered as the father of publicly funded medicare.
Gardiner was elected twice as Saskatchewan premier, first in 1926 and again in 1934. Federally, he held the agriculture portfolio for a record 22 years. Saskatchewan's Gardiner Dam on Lake Diefenbaker is named after him.
Historians say Gardiner was a passionate voice for the West and for agriculture.
He was hard-nosed and not always easy to get along with, but when he was portrayed as boorish, self-centred and vindictive, several prominent provincial politicians, including former NDP premier Allan Blakeney, rushed to his defence.
Historians pointed out that Gardiner was shown drinking in the movie, but in real life was a teetotaller.
Marg Gardiner said she was most upset by the way the character in the film seemed to be anti-immigrant, given that her grandfather grew up in a town made up of recent immigrants and was instrumental in fighting the Ku Klux Klan, which once tried to gain a foothold in the province.
"That was the most disturbing thing in the movie," she said. "Here we have someone who is a pioneer in the recognition of multicultural Canada and it was a total role reversal."
When reached by phone at the Banff Television Festival, the film's producer Kevin DeWalt was reluctant to comment on what he called a CBC decision.
"Read the disclaimer - we were very clear from Day 1 that this was not a documentary," DeWalt said. "It was a fictionalization and dramatization and it stated that quite clearly in the disclaimer and we stand by that disclaimer."
Saskatchewan's NDP government contributed $614,400 to the production of the movie as part of the province's 2005 centennial celebrations.
Premier Lorne Calvert appeared agitated when faced with questions about the CBC's decision Monday.
"This was a great centennial project, it honoured the greatest of Canadians," Calvert said.
"It was drama and this government will never, on any occasion, interfere in the editorial decision-making around artistic production."
Keay said it was too early to say how the movie might be changed so it could air again.
"In the context of the historical record we came to the conclusion that the way that Mr. Gardiner was portrayed was not consistent with the historical record," Keay said.
"I think the point that I would make here is that we certainly regret any discomfort that the Gardiner family has with the characterization of the former premier."
Relative fights for accuracy
Randy Burton
The StarPhoenix
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
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The CBC was messing with the wrong people when it decided to butcher Jimmy Gardiner's legacy in order to spice up its version of the Tommy Douglas story.
Gardiner's family -- and his granddaughter, Marg, in particular -- is much more than an aggrieved third party that feels wronged by a national broadcast. Marg Gardiner is also a smart, determined organizer who understands networking and political pressure.
You might say she's a chip off the old block.
Monday's news that the CBC has succumbed to pressure to halt any further broadcast of Prairie Giant, along with educational sales, is a tribute to her determination to defend her family's name.
It is also proof that not only does history matter, but that Canadians are willing to fight to see that depictions of our national heritage come within shouting distance of the truth.
The Tommy Douglas story's depiction of Jimmy Gardiner did nothing of the kind, of course. It put him in positions he was never in and had him saying things he never said. Overall, the Minds Eye production portrayed Gardiner as a mean-spirited political hatchet man who would stop at nothing to score a cheap point or two against Douglas.
As it happens, the provincial government put $614,000 into the production and the CBC distributed copies of it to a number of prominent NDP politicians before it was broadcast. Coincidence?
Now, after months of stonewalling criticism from all sides, the Mother Corp. has finally conceded the point that it has made an egregious error.
After asking an unnamed historian for a professional opinion of Gardiner's portrayal, CBC executive vice-president Richard Stursberg has written to Marg Gardiner as follows:
"I regret to say that his conclusion was that the character created for the film does not reflect the accepted historical record -- and that as you well know, the characterization in the miniseries is significantly different from Mr. Gardiner's true personality and behaviour."
This is a striking admission in light of Stursberg's previous responses to this complaint. As recently as May 5, Stursberg devoted two pages of purple prose to a defence of the program, minimizing the CBC's responsibility for it and declaring that the broadcaster would continue to distribute it.
Here's what he told Marg Gardiner at the time:
"The decision to change some historical elements does not mean that the program was poorly or inadequately researched. Dramatic writing is not academic research, and while, as you pointed out, universities set out codes for academic writing, there are no such standards for dramatic writing. Historical dramas can range from accurate recreations to those loosely inspired by an event. There is a long tradition of works of fiction based on historical events but straying far from the historical record. Dare I mention such names as Shakespeare, Tolstoy, or, in our own day, E.L. Doctorow?"
At the time, Stursberg said he could understand Marg Gardiner's point of view, but "I believe our difference of opinion is a creative issue, and not a journalistic or factual one."
A mere five weeks later, Stursberg is calling Gardiner's portrayal a "mischaracterization."
So what happened?
People object to CBC programs all the time. How often does its senior management admit to making a serious mistake, let alone put the offending material on the shelf while repairs are made? About as often as the real Jimmy Gardiner took a drink, I would say.
What happened in this case was that Marg Gardiner took the CBC's arguments apart piece by piece. When it claimed that it had no intention of using the program as an educational tool, she pointed out that the corporation had already sold hundreds of copies through its educational sales office with a recommendation for Grade 7 and up.
When the corporation tried to slough off her complaints, she demanded the names of every organization the CBC provided copies to and told Stursberg that "you cannot fob me off, or Jimmy Gardiner off, with a personal apology and a general disclaimer."
Gardiner, 56, is a former federal civil servant who understands how the government works. She has also worked behind the scenes for political campaigns in each of the three main parties, including policy work for former provincial Liberal leader Lynda Haverstock.
When it became apparent to Gardiner what the CBC had done to her grandfather's name, she resolved to do something about it. She has worked on the issue every day since mid-March, sometimes two hours a day, sometimes 10.
Her object was to turn a Saskatchewan concern into a national issue and it didn't take her long. Shortly after the broadcast, Gardiner met former finance minister Ralph Goodale at the Brier in Regina where she explained her concerns. This resulted in a steaming letter from Goodale to CBC president Robert Rabinovitch and several questions in the House of Commons.
Among other prominent people, both former Saskatchewan premier Allan Blakeney and former federal NDP leader Ed Broadbent denounced Gardiner's portrayal, proving the issue was non-partisan.
Marg and her brother, Mike, have organized petitions and she lobbied the Canadian Historians' Association to take up the cudgel on her grandfather's behalf.
"I don't even know how many e-mails I sent out. It would be thousands," she said in an interview Monday. "I also sent out an awful lot of individual letters to people I thought should be concerned about this issue."
She contacted people who wrote letters to the editor on the topic and those people gave her other leads.
The CBC hardly needed a historian to tell them how far off the rails they were with the Gardiner character, but it provided them with the avenue they needed to beat a retreat.
However, the broadcaster is not entirely off the hook just yet. Gardiner still wants to know how the corporation is going to inform the 800,000 people who saw the original broadcast that her grandfather was "mischaracterized," and, further, what they're going to do about the hundreds or thousands of copies that are already in the schools.
Finally, there is the question of what to do about the film itself. At a minimum, it would appear Minds Eye Entertainment will have to change the credits and dub out Gardiner's name in the several instances it appears in the soundtrack.
In one of her letters to the CBC, Gardiner suggested that "if the film is a fiction, as you suggest, use a fictional name, such as Robert 'Bob' Stursberg."
I don't think that's going to happen, but it's safe to say the CBC brain trust won't soon forget Marg Gardiner.
"I would say the grandchildren have a really good dose of the grandfather, because Jimmy Gardiner was a very, very determined man, and I think it's rubbed off on the subsequent generations, and more power to them," Goodale says.
For her part, Marg Gardiner says she has no intention of taking her eye off the CBC, but she thinks her grandfather would be pleased with this victory.
"One of my friends said 'I think you got the scrappy gene,' " she says with a laugh.
"And, of course, everyone's throwing the word relentless around."
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2006
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