Who We Are A Citizen's Manifesto

by Griffiths, Rudyard

• ISBN13: 9781553651246
• ISBN10: 1553651243
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-02-15
• Publisher: Douglas & McIntyre

Summary

A passionate call for Canadians to take stock and reengage with our country and its values before we falter as a nation. Canadians have come to embrace their country as a "postmodern state"-a nation that downplays its history and makes few demands on its citizens, allowing them to find their allegiances where they may -- in their region, their ethnic heritage or the language they speak. The notion of a national identity, with shared responsibilities and a common purpose, is considered out of date, even a disadvantage in a borderless world of transnational economies, resurgent regions and global immigration. In this timely and provocative book, Rudyard Griffithsargues that this vision of Canada is an intellectual and practical dead end. Without a strong national identity and robust civic values, the country will be hard pressed to meet the daunting challenges that lie ahead: the social costs of an aging population, the unavoidable effects of global warming and the fallout of a dysfunctional immigration system. What's needed is a rediscovery of the founding principles that made Canada the nation it is today, core values that can form a civic creed for our own times. In a passionate call to revitalize our shared citizenship, Griffiths reminds us of who we are, what we've accomplished and why a loyalty beyond the local and personal is essential for our nation's survival.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
Nation or Notion?	p. 1
The Unencumbered Country	p. 27
Future Shocks	p. 51
Passage to Canada	p. 74
First Principles	p. 96
Canada Found-and Lost	p. 121
Our Third Imagining	p. 148
A Confession and a Proposal	p. 175
Acknowledgements	p. 152
Notes	p. 184
Selected Bibliography	p. 197
Index	p. 202
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