Canadian Republic Research List – Summer 2011

(1) June 1, 2011 … The Queen will keep a close eye on William and Catherine’s Canadian tour … Unlike Australia, Canada has no major republican movement … however, Canadians are divided on the future of the monarchy after Elizabeth’s reign ends : http://tiny.cc/0yksf .

[Yet re “no major republican movement,” note the Ottawa Citizen, July 2, 2011: “despite the excitement about the royal wedding and now the royal visit, polls have told a different story about Canadians’ views toward the monarchy. Polls show a nagging indifference toward the royal tour among many Canadians. And opinion surveys have long uncovered a strong republican streak among Canadians, the majority of whom, according to some polls, would like to see the monarchy abolished and replaced with an elected head of state.”] : http://tiny.cc/aaysx.

(2) June 2, 2011 … Prince William and Kate Middleton called “parasites” by Canadian politician … Iranian-born member of the left-leaning Quebec Solidaire party, Amir Khadir, said the monarchy is “a parasitic system  that was inherited from ancient times.” He added, “A nation worthy of the 21st Century has no need for a monarchy or people with a bloodline” : http://tiny.cc/gp8jc .

(3) June 14, 2011 … Lawrence Martin … Now that Canada’s Tory blue, Stephen Harper’s rekindling old alliances … With the sparkling newlyweds, the monarchy could well be undergoing a repopularization in Canada and elsewhere. This will play well to the sentiments of the Prime Minister, who will undoubtedly be giving the Duke and Duchess a resplendent welcome on their eight-city tour, which will be watched by the international media : http://tiny.cc/ac8mx .

(4) June 18, 2011 … Loving the Royals, to a point … By Janice Kennedy, Ottawa Citizen … As truly Canadian national symbols evolved, as a sense of identity developed, as massive demographic and cultural shifts occurred, as constitutional repatriation took place, along with a maturing sense of democracy, something happened. It was called Canada (at least for everyone who sees this place as an independent, diverse, evolving democracy), and, as a nation, we began to realize how different it was from our childhood version. The notion of British royalty as Canadian icons suddenly seemed jarring, even ludicrous … That is how most Canadians rightly feel today, impending Royal visits notwithstanding. Look at almost any poll on the subject from recent years, and the pro-monarchy crowd are in the decided minority — even accounting for those spiking little blips created by groundswells of affection for William and Kate : http://tiny.cc/qxpll

(5) June 22, 2011 …  William and Catherine’s tour aims to secure the Canadian Monarchy — Daryl Bruce … Toronto Political Buzz | Examiner.com …  The Government is keen to stress that this tour is more than just a celebrity couple visiting, it’s about the securing the future of the monarchy … Though it’s often overlooked by the Canadian media, and indeed many Canadians, the Duke and Duchess are visiting not in their capacity as British royal, but rather as the future King and Queen of Canada … “This tour could go a long way to cementing the monarchy in Canada for a new generation in the same way the 1939 tour of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth secured the monarchy for that generation,” a source in the Prime Minister’s Office told the Canadian media : http://tiny.cc/x6806 .

(6) June 22, 2011 … William and Kate’s visit causing a royal ruckus in some circles : http://tiny.cc/n41xx .

(7) June 24, 2011 …   Poll: Youth have little interest in royal visit to Canada …  Excalibur poll on royal wedding and visit to Canada : http://tiny.cc/f5s8f .

(8) June 24, 2011 … Royal couple face protests on Canada tour … The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge face anti-monarchist demonstrations when they embark on their first official tour abroad, to Canada, in a few days : http://tiny.cc/w6ejz .

(9) June 27, 2011 … Will and Kate on way, but royal influence everywhere in Canada already : http://tiny.cc/avvl2 .

(10) June 27, 2011 … Group brings muscle to Will and Kate protest … A fringe Quebec pro-independence group is tasking dozens of its burliest members to act as security guards for a protest planned for Prince William and Kate’s upcoming visit to the province : http://tiny.cc/27ys5 .

(11) June 27, 2011 … When will Canada grow up? … Allan Fotheringham … When is Canada going to grow up? … we are into a new century and within days yet another royal visit, Prince William and the beautiful new bride Kate Middleton. And it’s destined to be a zoo act. When the Queen and Prince Philip came last year, they were accompanied by 18 Fleet Street reporters. This time? Some 85 journalists have applied for press credentials … With all their European problems, the Brits currently have little time anymore for far-off Canada. Canadians only lack one political leader with the courage to cut the irrelevant ties to Mother England … When will this immature, silly country eventually grow up? Not for a while : http://tiny.cc/ium2z .

(12) June 28, 2011 … Royal visit puts Canada’s sense of self to a test … By ROB GILLIES, Associated Press … Royalty seems to be making a comeback of sorts in Canada … Part of it is simply the afterglow of the sumptuous wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton two months ago. But something deeper is afoot than mere stargazing: Prime Minister Stephen Harper is the most pro-monarchy Canadian leader since the 1950s, and his ambition is to foster a national identity that is more conservative and more aware of its historical roots. He has just come out of a general election greatly strengthened, and now he gets to bask in the aura of William and Kate on their first official overseas trip as a married couple … “He thinks that emphasizing Canada’s monarchical traditions is key to refashioning Canadians’ self-image,” said Robert Bothwell, a professor at the University of Toronto … Overall, the antiroyal movement in Canada is minuscule, meaning that William, now 29, will almost certainly be king of Canada one day. One reason is that abolishing the monarchy would mean changing the constitution. That’s an inherently risky undertaking, given how delicately it is engineered to unite a nation of 34 million that embraces English-speakers, French-speakers, indigenous tribes and a constant flow of new immigrants … Gerry Nicholls, who worked under Harper at a conservative think tank, said Harper previously wasn’t a staunch monarchist, but that he values it as a conservative symbol … “It plays into a larger strategy of creating this conservative ethos for Canada. But we’re never going to go back to ‘God Save the Queen,’ the Union Jack or those kind of things,” Nicholls told the AP : http://tiny.cc/9oqwp .

(13) June 28, 2011 … Prince William For King: Poll Finds Canadians Prefer Will Over Charles, But Still Split On Monarchy … William may be the country’s first choice for King, but Canadians are divided when asked if they support Canada continuing to have the British monarch as its head of state. The wedding of William and Kate has done nothing to improve those numbers … Thirty-nine per cent of Canadians oppose continuing the monarchical tradition; 34 per cent support it. The remaining 26 per cent have no strong opinion either way … In total, 60 per cent of Canadians are indifferent or in support of the monarchy, suggesting that there is little impetus for Canada’s political leaders to divide the country over such a contentious issue … Still, opposition to the monarchy has increased by six percentage points and support has dropped slightly from the end of April, when Abacus asked the same question of Canadians the day before and of the royal wedding … “The royal wedding in April and the excitement about Kate and William’s trip to Canada have not changed attitudes towards the monarchy in this country,” said Coletto … “Canada is no longer the monarch-loving nation of the early 1900s. If a debate about the future of the monarchy was started, it would likely divide the country” … At  37 per cent, support for the monarchy is highest among women. Only 31 per cent oppose the monarchy, whereas 49 per cent of men said they would rather not have a British king or queen as head of state … But the real split is between Quebecers and the rest of the country. Fully 63 per cent of people in Quebec oppose the monarchy, compared to just 13 per cent in support of it. In the rest of Canada, support stands at 41 per cent, well ahead of the 32 per cent of Canadians outside of Quebec who are opposed to the monarchy :http://tiny.cc/ky87m .

(14) June 29, 2011 … Canada unveils flag for Prince William : http://tiny.cc/qficx .

(15) June 29, 2011 … Angus Reid : Royal Family Image Improves as Visit to Canada Approaches … Despite increase in popularity, Canadians continue to be divided on future of Monarchy in Canada :http://tiny.cc/g22uh .

[Note Angus Reid 2007: Over Half Think Canada should end its formal ties to the British monarchy : http://tiny.cc/fxjwi .]

(16) June 29, 2011 … Dissent over citizenship oath: Immigrants spurn swearing allegiance to Queen … Among Friday’s demonstrators will be a Caribbean man who has longed to become a Canadian citizen for 56 years, but won’t for as long as he has to swear allegiance to the Royal Family … Charles Roach refuses to deliver a pledge to a throne he says carved a legacy of oppression, imperialism and racism … “The institution itself is offensive to me,” said Roach, a lawyer and civil-rights activist from Toronto who has been fighting in the courts since the 1990s to remove the royal reference from the oath …  Roach is leading his second court challenge against the oath, arguing it violates the conscience guarantees under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms … He wants the wording to change so that prospective Canadians would instead pledge allegiance to Canada, instead of the Queen … His goal is for Canada to follow Australia, a Commonwealth country that amended its citizenship oath in the 1990s by replacing its promise to the monarchy with a pledge of loyalty to “Australia and its people.” … Roach’s first suit was unsuccessful, but he said he will be back in the courtroom this fall to resume his latest case, which began in 2005 … In the suit, Roach represents himself and three other oath resisters — immigrants from the United States, India and Ireland : http://tiny.cc/3n3lq .

(17) June 30, 2011 … William and Kate head to Canada ready to rebrand the monarchy : http://tiny.cc/nbcyx .

(18) June 30, 2011 … Who Should Become the First King (or Queen) of Canada? [by Andrew Cohen, who has served as chief legal analyst and legal editor for CBS News, in the US magazine, the Atlantic] … The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, otherwise known as William and Kate, otherwise known as the hottest couple on the planet, will be visiting what is by far the coolest of the remaining nations of the Commonwealth. The visit, in turn, evidently has caused an uptick in chatter about a Canadian monarchy or, more precisely, why there isn’t one. And that, in turn, led to the suggestion that the Duke of Cambridge’s brother, Harry, would be a fine choice to serve as the King of Canada (technically, of course, the job’s already taken by Harry’s grandmother) … I think those dogged Canadian monarchists have it all wrong. The next Canadian royal ought to be the first Canadian royal. If Canada really wants to go down this road, it’s time to pick a real Canadian to be King or Queen. My father had to sing “God Save the King” (in honor of George V, Edward III, and George VI) when he went to school in Montreal in the 1930s. I learned to recite “God Save the Queen” (in honor of Elizabeth II) when I went to school there 40 years later. So I feel like I’ve earned the right to suggest we vote for candidates far better suited than Harry to be Canada’s first on-its-own Queen or King … You can make your selections from the suggestions below — and you can also offer your alternatives. (Be nice! And be careful. For example, if you suggest Celine Dion, your computer will automatically implode. And if you select famous Canadian actress Pamela Anderson, who was born on July 1, 1967, exactly one hundred years after Canada was born, that dude from the video will visit your home.) You can vote for Queen and King or just for one candidate. On the eve of another Dominion Day (that’s what they called it when I lived there), here are my first ten prospects to bring the monarchy back to North America. [Of various choices offered — from Margaret Atwood to Other — William Shatner won the most votes, at 23.35%. Next was Leonard Cohen at 12.64%, followed by Ken Dryden (who in fact believes the monarchy in Canada should be abolished!) at 12.09%] : http://tiny.cc/qhwra .

By Randall White