Canada and the Ethics of Constitutionalism: Identity, Destiny, and Constitutional Faith

by Samuel V. Laselva

Overview

Canada is caught between two empires and between two constitutional systems. However, neither the British model of a "single sovereign" nor the American people's "sacred fire of liberty" matched the pluralistic identity of Canada, so Canadians engaged in constitutional experimentation. In Canada and the Ethics of Constitutionalism Samuel LaSelva argues that, in order to understand the old Canada of Confederation and the new one that followed the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, it is necessary to see how distinctive Canadian constitutionalism is and how that distinctiveness does not depend on borrowings from the British or American constitutional models. LaSelva supports his argument by exploring different aspects of Canada's contribution to the ethics of constitutionalism including the limits of free expression, the Charter's notwithstanding clause, the origins and functions of judicial review, the Quebec secession debate, Aboriginal self-government, and the conception of Canada as a multicultural and multinational mosaic. Through a careful consideration of how Canadian constitutional pluralism with its focus on the rights of others differs from American and British ideas, Canada and the Ethics of Constitutionalism provides engaging answers to contested questions about how Canada was founded and what it has become.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780773555600
Publisher:	McGill-Queens University Press
Publication date:	12/30/2018
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	780 KB

About the Author

Samuel V. LaSelva is professor of political science at the University of British Columbia.

Table of Contents

Preface ix

1 The New Canada, the Old Canada, and The Spirit of Haida Gwaii: Three Images of the Canadian Constitutional Faith 3

2 The Charter of Rights, the British Connection, and the Americanization Thesis: Toward a Montesquieuean Analysis of Rights and Their Protection 23

3 The Notwithstanding Clause and the American Rights Model: Federalism and Legislative Power in Canada and the United States 43

4 British Judges, Charter Dialogue, and America's "Celebrated Footnote": Judicial Review and Fundamental Values 61

5 Free Speech for the Thought That We Hate? Canadian Constitutionalism, British Pluralism, and First Amendment Exceptionalism 88

6 Mosaic and Melting Pot: The Dialectic of Pluralism and Constitutional Faith in Canada and the United States 114

7 Secession and Identity: Canada, the United States, and Contemporary Britain as Divided Houses 136

8 The Spirit in the Land and the Spirit of the Constitution: Aboriginal Self-Government in Canada and the United States 163

9 The Arduous Destiny of the Peaceable Kingdom: George Grant, Alan Cairns, and the Meaning of the Canadian Constitutional Crisis 188

10 Constitutional Faiths: The Canadian Identity, American Freedom, and the Remaking of the British Constitution 208

Notes 237

Bibliography 271

Index 305

Editorial Reviews

"This is an important and well-written book about the distinctive character of Canada's constitutional experience. It invites Canadians to think about the 'spirit' of their constitution and how it differs from the underlying principles of the British and American constitutions that have had such a strong influence on Canada's constitutional development." Peter H. Russell, University of Toronto


"LaSelva demonstrates that Canada has charted its own constitutional course, based on a distinctiveness that differentiates it from the US and the UK. Highly recommended." Choice

From the Publisher