| Canada Day | |
|---|---|
.jpg) _(cropped).jpg) .jpg)  From top, left to right: Canada Day Fireworks display onParliament Hill, inOttawa; a young woman celebrates Canada Day inToronto; a Canada Day parade inMontreal; a member of Canada'sFirst Nations with anational flag andRoyal Union Flag at Canada Day celebrations inCalgary | |
| Also called | Fête du Canada Dominion Day (1879–1982) |
| Observed by | Canada |
| Type | Historical, cultural, national |
| Significance | Anniversary ofCanadian Confederation on July 1, 1867 |
| Celebrations | Fireworks, parades, barbecues, concerts, carnivals, fairs, picnics |
| Date | July 1st |
| Frequency | Annual |
| First time | July 1, 1867 (159 years ago) |
Canada Day[a] is thenational day ofCanada. Afederal statutory holiday, it celebrates the anniversary ofCanadian Confederation which occurred on July 1, 1867, when the three separate colonies of theUnited Canadas (Ontario andQuebec),Nova Scotia, andNew Brunswick were united into a singledominion within theBritish Empire called Canada.[1][2]
Originally calledDominion Day[b], the holiday was renamed in 1982, the same year that theCanadian constitution waspatriated by theCanada Act, 1982, which severed the vestiges of legal dependence on theParliament of the United Kingdom.[3] Canada Day celebrations take place throughout the country, as well as in various locations around the world attended byCanadians living abroad.[4]
Canada Day is often informally referred to as "Canada's birthday", particularly in the popular press.[8] However, the term "birthday" can be seen as anoversimplification, as Canada Day is the anniversary of only one important national milestone on the way to the country's full sovereignty, namely the joining on July 1, 1867, of theUnited Province of Canada (Canada West becameOntario whileCanada East becameQuebec),Nova Scotia, andNew Brunswick into a wider British federation of four provinces.[9] Canada became a "kingdom in its own right" within theBritish Empire, and was commonly known then as theDominion of Canada.[n 1][15]
Although a British dominion, Canada gained an increased level of political control and governance over its own affairs, theBritish parliament andcabinet maintaining political control over certain areas, such as foreign affairs, national defence, andconstitutional changes. Canada gradually gained increasing sovereignty over the years—notably with the passage of theStatute of Westminster in 1931—until finally becoming completely sovereign with the passing of theConstitution Act, 1982, which served to fullypatriate the Canadian constitution.[16]
Under the federalHolidays Act,[17] Canada Day is observed on July 1, unless that date falls on a Sunday, in which case July 2 is the statutory holiday. Celebratory events will generally still take place on July 1, even though it is not the legal holiday.[18] If it falls on a weekend, businesses normally closed that day will usually dedicate the following Monday as a day off.[19]
The enactment of theBritish North America Act, 1867 (today called theConstitution Act, 1867), whichconfederated Canada, was celebrated on July 1, 1867, with the ringing of the bells at theCathedral Church of St James in Toronto and "bonfires, fireworks, and illuminations, excursions, military displays, and musical and other entertainments", as described in contemporary accounts.[20] On June 20 of the following year,Governor Generalthe Viscount Monck issued a royalproclamation asking forCanadians to celebrate the anniversary of Confederation,[21] However, the holiday was not established statutorily until May 15, 1879,[22] when it was designated asDominion Day, alluding to the reference in the British North America Act to the country as adominion.[23] The holiday was initially not dominant in the national calendar; any celebrations were mounted by local communities and the governor general hosted a party atRideau Hall.[20] No larger celebrations were held until 1917, and then none again for a further decade—the gold and diamond anniversaries of Confederation, respectively.[24]
In 1946,Philéas Côté, a Quebec member of theHouse of Commons, introduced aprivate member's bill to rename Dominion Day asCanada Day.[25] The bill was passed quickly by the lower chamber but was stalled by theSenate, which returned it to the commons with the recommendation that the holiday be renamedThe National Holiday of Canada, an amendment that effectively killed the bill.[26]
The Canadian government began in 1958 to orchestrate Dominion Day celebrations. That year, then-Prime MinisterJohn Diefenbaker requested thatSecretary of StateEllen Fairclough organize appropriate events, with a budget of $14,000. Parliament was traditionally in session on July 1, but Fairclough persuaded Diefenbaker and the rest of thefederal cabinet to attend.[20] Official celebrations thereafter consisted usually oftrooping the colour ceremonies onParliament Hill in the afternoon and evening, followed by a mass band concert and fireworks display. Fairclough, who becameMinister of Citizenship and Immigration, later expanded the bills to include performing folk and ethnic groups. The day also became more casual and family oriented.[20]
Canada's centennial in 1967 is often seen as an important milestone in the history of Canadian nationalism and in Canada's maturing as a distinct, independent country, after which Dominion Day became more popular with average Canadians. Into the late 1960s, nationally televised, multi-cultural concerts held inOttawa were added and the fête became known asFestival Canada. After 1980, the Canadian government began to promote celebrating Dominion Day beyond the national capital, giving grants and aid to cities across the country to help fund local activities.[27]
Some Canadians were, by the early 1980s, informally referring to the holiday asCanada Day,[n 2] a practice that caused some controversy:[34] Proponents argued that the nameDominion Day was a holdover from the colonial era—an argument given some impetus by the patriation of theCanadian constitution in 1982—and others asserted that an alternative was needed as the term does not translate well into French.[28] Conversely, numerous politicians, journalists, and authors, such asRobertson Davies,[35] decried the change at the time and some continue to maintain that it was illegitimate and an unnecessary break with tradition.[28] Others claimeddominion was widely misunderstood and conservatively inclined commenters saw the change as part of a much larger attempt byLiberals to "re-brand" or re-define Canadian history.[28][35][36] ColumnistAndrew Cohen calledCanada Day a term of "crushing banality" and criticized it as "a renunciation of the past [and] a misreading of history, laden with political correctness and historical ignorance".[37]
The holiday was officially renamed as a result of a private member's bill that was passed through the House of Commons on July 9, 1982, two years after itsfirst reading.[20] Only 12 members of parliament were present when the bill was taken up again, 8 fewer than the necessaryquorum; however, according to parliamentary rules, the quorum is enforceable only at the start of a sitting or when a member calls attention to it.[38] The group passed the bill in five minutes, without debate,[34] inspiring "grumblings about the underhandedness of the process".[20] It met with stronger resistance in the Senate.Ernest Manning argued that the rationale for the change was based on a misperception of the name andGeorge McIlraith did not agree with the manner in which the bill was passed, urging the government to proceed in a more "dignified way". However, the Senate did eventually pass the bill, regardless.[28] With the granting ofroyal assent, the holiday's name was officially changed to Canada Day on October 27, 1982, and first celebrated under that name July 1, 1983.[39]
As the anniversary of Confederation, Dominion Day, and later Canada Day, was the date set for a number of important events, such as the first national radio network hookup by theCanadian National Railway (1927); the inauguration of theCanadian Broadcasting Corporation's cross-country television broadcast, with Governor GeneralVincent Massey's Dominion Day speech from Parliament Hill (1958);[20] the flooding of theSaint Lawrence Seaway (1958); the first colour television transmission in Canada (1966); the inauguration of theOrder of Canada (1967); and the establishment of "O Canada" as the country'snational anthem (1980). DuringCanada's sesquicentennial in 2017, theBank of Canada released acommemorative $10 banknote, which was expected to be broadly available by Canada Day.[40]
TheCOVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation in 2020 of all in-person Canada Day festivities nationwide, due tosocial distancing and restrictions on public gatherings. Some were converted tovirtual events.[44] The same cancellations occurred the following year; though, some alsofor political reasons.[49] In-person festivities in Ottawa returned in 2022, being re-located from Parliament Hill toLeBreton Flats due to construction associated with theParliament Hill Rehabilitation project.[50]
Other events fell on the same day coincidentally, such as thefirst day of the Battle of the Somme in 1916—shortly after whichNewfoundland recognized July 1 asMemorial Day to commemorate theNewfoundland Regiment's heavy losses during the battle[51][52]—and the enactment of theChinese Immigration Act in 1923, leadingChinese-Canadians to refer to July 1 asHumiliation Day (Chinese:僑恥日;pinyin:Qiáo Chǐ Rì) and boycott Dominion Day celebrations with shop closures, flying theCanadian flag onhalf-mast, or hangingwreaths in front of home and shop entrances until the act was repealed in 1947.[56] Canada Day also coincides with Quebec'sMoving Day, when many fixed-lease apartment rental terms expire. The bill changing the province's moving day from May 1 to July 1 was introduced by a federalist member of theQuebec National Assembly,Jérôme Choquette, in 1973,[57] in order not to affect children still in school in the month of May.[58]
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Most communities across the country host organized celebrations for Canada Day, typically outdoor public events, such as parades, carnivals, festivals, barbecues, air and maritime shows, fireworks, and free musical concerts,[59] as well ascitizenship ceremonies.[60][61] There is no standard mode of celebration for Canada Day;Jennifer Welsh, a professor of International Relations at theUniversity of Oxford, said about this: "Canada Day, like the country, is endlessly decentralized. There doesn't seem to be a central recipe for how to celebrate it—chalk it up to the nature of the federation."[62]
In the national capital of Ottawa, concerts and cultural displays are held on the front lawn of Parliament Hill, as organized byCanadian Heritage, which include the main "noon show" and an evening programme.[63][50] The event traditionally begins with the singing of the royal anthem "God Save the King" and the national anthem "O Canada" in English and French followed by a flyover by theSnowbirds. Typically the governor general andprime minister officiate, thoughthe monarch or another member of theroyal family may also attend or take the governor general's place.[n 3] Smaller events are mounted in other parks around the city and in neighbouringGatineau, Quebec.[69] In provincial capitals, official celebrations are often held at the provincial legislative building, usually in the presence of thelieutenant-governor orpremier of the province.
Canadianexpatriates will often organize Canada Day activities in their local area on or near the date of the holiday.[70] Examples includeCanada D'eh, an annual celebration that takes place on June 30 atLan Kwai Fong, in Hong Kong;[71]Canadian Forces' events on bases inAfghanistan;[75] atTrafalgar Square outsideCanada House inLondon, England;[76] in Mexico, at theRoyal Canadian Legion inChapala,[77] and at the Canadian Club inAjijic.[78] In China, Canada Day celebrations are held at theBund Beach by theCanadian Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai[79] and at theCanadian International School of Beijing, sponsored by theCanada China Business Council.[80]
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Celebrating Canada Day can create tension in Quebec, where it competes with the province'sSaint-Jean-Baptiste Day on June 24.[81] The federal government sponsors Canada Day events in Montreal, while the Saint-Jean-Baptiste celebration relies on grassroots support and struggles with funding from the federal government and private sponsors.[82][83]
SomeIndigenous people in Canada view Canada Day negatively, linking it to theinjustices they have faced from the Canadian government. This criticism intensified during Canada's 150th anniversary in 2017, as many felt that the celebrations ignored Indigenous contributions and current challenges.[84][85][86] Similar concerns arose after the discovery ofunmarked graves of Indigenous children at aresidential school in British Columbia in June 2021. Canada Day events were cancelled or altered in many areas,[87] and the Indigenous groupIdle No More planned peaceful protests in major cities.[88][89] Some politicians backed the cancellations, while others worried that these actions undermined the concept of Canada and hinderedreconciliation efforts.[89]
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