What is Citizenship??

What does citizenship mean?

Becoming a Canadian Citizen Until the Canadian Citizenship Act was passed in 1947, Canadians were British subjects, not Canadian citizens. The act granted citizenship to all people who were born in Canada. – Children born in a foreign land and who had a Canadian father were Canadian citizens. – If the children had a Canadian mother and a non- Canadian father, they were not citizens. This continued until there was a new act passes in 1977.

The new Canadian Citizenship Act Passed in 1977 The basic principal is that all people are entitled to equal and fair treatment by the government of Canada. People are now considered Canadian if they were born in Canada, or if either parent is Canadian.

People who are not citizens by birth can follow the legal process of naturalization, by which they can become Canadian Citizens. Naturalization – the process of becoming the citizen of a country other than the one in which you were born.

Canadian Citizen To become a Canadian citizen: – Be 18 years of age or older – Be a permanent resident of Canada who came legally – Have lived in Canada for 3 of the 4 years prior to applying for citizenship – Speak either French or English – Know Canada’s geography and history – Understand Canada’s system of government and the rights and responsibilities of citizenship Applicants have to pass a test to show they are eligible

Citizenship Sample Questions What province was the last to join Confederation? In what year did Nunavut become a territory? Which province is the only officially bilingual province? What is the major river in Quebec? Canada has 3 territories and how many provinces?

Rights Canada and other countries resolve to improve the conditions in the world by passing legislation to guarantee human rights. The Canadian Bill of Rights was passed in 1960.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights The original was written by John Humphrey in It was the first time the term “human rights” was used on a global scale. It was signed by all the member-states of the United Nations.

Human Rights It’s only effective if countries live by it’s principles. The United Nations established committees to determine if countries are following the resolutions and to report any violations to the public in hopes that international pressure will force countries to comply with the resolutions.

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom Canada became an independent country in 1931 but Canada lacked independence in being able to amend its own constitution because the BNA Act of 1867 was an act of British Parliament. Therefore, only the British Parliament could change it.

In 1982, Canada’s government patriated, or brought home, the Constitution. It was renamed the Constitution Act of The Canadian government could now create or change laws without seeking approval of the British Parliament. The Constitution Act was a milestone for Canada’s self-rule, or sovereignty. The Charter of Rights and Freedom, which is a part of the Constitution Act, was a hallmark for the rights of Canadian citizens.

The Charter of Rights and Freedom Cannot easily be changed Since the rights of Canadians are guaranteed by law, the courts make the decisions when there are issues that involve those rights.

Some of the rights and freedoms outlined in the Charter: Fundamental Freedoms: freedom of religion, thought, belief, opinion and expression. Democratic Rights: the right to vote Mobility Rights: the right to travel and work in any province.

Legal Rights: the right not to be detained or imprisoned without good cause (innocent until proven guilty). Equality Rights: protection from discrimination on the basis of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, age, sex or mental or physical disability.

Charter rights are not absolute rights. They are subject to “reasonable limits prescribed by law” that a “free and democratic society” might set. Also, the Charter guarantees the official languages of Canada and respects minority language rights. It also contains an official override clause that allows provincial and federal governments to make exceptions in certain cases…known as the notwithstanding clause or clause 33.

Responsibilities In the past, people might have had many responsibilities but few rights or privileges. Today, however, there is a better balance between rights and responsibilities for most of the world’s people.

In some countries the government believes that the collective rights of individuals are more important than the rights of the individuals. (rights that exist for the common good of all citizens) In other countries the stress is on the individual rights. - Democratic countries like Canada struggle to find a balance between individual rights and collective rights.

Court Cases Look at page in your text book. Read the court cases and decide whether the ruling was for individual rights or the collective rights of citizens. Do you agree or disagree with the ruling? Be prepared to explain your choice in each case.

Active Citizenship Active citizenship requires you to become knowledgeable about current issues and to debate or challenge possible solutions. Today, students are expected to learn about citizenship before they graduate from high school.

Citizenship in a Democratic Society A democratic civil society is based on the belief that democracy extends to everyone in the society. It is not enough that the government is democratic. It is the duty of all individuals, groups, communities or organizations to uphold democratic principles. This means that citizens must act to see that their own rights are maintained and they have a responsibility to protect the rights of citizens.

Open and accountable government Civil and political rights Free and fair elections Democratic Society The democratic pyramid shows the different parts of a democratic society. No one component stands alone – each is a necessary part of the whole.

Consider your role as a responsible citizen as you read the quotations on pages 199 & 200. Rate each statement using the following scale: – 1. Strongly disagree – 2. Somewhat disagree – 3. Somewhat agree – 4. Strongly agree

Taking Action Countries need to be judged on the well-being of their citizens. Being an active citizen means that you constantly access how well leaders and people in power are addressing issues at the local, national and global levels. You should take action to influence these leaders to bring about change, don’t leave it in the hands of others.

The first step is to identify the issue that is most important to you. If you are passionate about an issue, you will be motivated and inspired to take action. It could be social, economic, environmental or another issue. It may be something in your own community, such as students without lunches, or globally, might be people who are starving. What does not seem fair or just to you?

Take Action In a small group decide on something that is not fair, in your opinion, that you are all passionate about. Design a plan of what you can do as a group to help your cause. There are examples on page in your text book.