The Affects of Post-Materialism on Canada

Since the post war era, the political culture of the majority of the world has been witness to the erosion of materialism of the conflict ridden war era and the emergence of post-materialism that is common with spreading socioeconomic safety. With this change in political culture that permeates all levels of life, from economic to political; the public’s priorities have changed accordingly. More and more people are becoming concerned with self expression and life style rather than personal security and economic survival. This change in public priority can then accordingly transfer to a change in government policy and administration (In a liberal democracy the government consists of representatives of the public). Canada being a liberal democracy and being one of the top ten countries for the prevalence of post-materialism , should be expected to reflect these new post-materialistic values both in public focus and government policy. However some claim that this is not the case in Canada, that despite the rise of post-materialism, and Canadian’s new found focus on civil liberties and group based rights, their interests are not being represented by what is becoming an increasingly undemocratic government . I will attempt to demonstrate that in this modern post-material era, were Canadians are increasingly stressing civil liberties and group rights, government is showing disturbingly undemocratic tendencies and elites are being desensitized to public interest by focusing primarily on party lines and ideology, resultantly there are great political consequences taking place due to electorate reaction to the issue. Understanding this question, its validity and consequences are crucial to today’s political climate and to the future of Canada’s traditions and its future as a nation-state. Are we living in a in a friendly dictatorship, disconnected from the voice of the people and the ideals of our founding principles?
To demonstrate that there is a recent interest in Canadian society regarding civil liberties and group based rights that are being neglected by those in power in favour of party lines, one must first explain this interest and illustrate its existence in Canada. The fact that Canadians are increasingly concerned with civil liberties and group based identity rights can be seen firstly (and this could be called the catalyst of this change in public focus) by the change from materialism to post materialism and the ideological change in the public this has caused. Post-materialism can be defined as the shift of public focus away from economic and physical security (Materialism) and more towards self expression and self fulfilment, while also becoming less inclined to leave politics (on a civil and social level mostly) in the hands of politicians and accepting pragmatic compromises . Materialism began to decline in the post war era, after many western and some European states were beginning to enjoy a relatively safe socioeconomic environment . Due to this, their priorities began to change and lifestyle acquired a renewed importance in public life. This phenomenon has also been clearly documented by The Inglehart-Welzel map, in which Canada’s current position is clearly stated as being of the top ten countries for the prevalence of Post-materialism(World values surveys)Secondly, the issue of Quebec separatism that emerged in the 1960’s has acted as a major exponent of group based and civil right politics in Canada by moving attention away from individual rights to group right (French Canadians in this case).this can be clearly demonstrated when Kallen states “Throughout the 1980’s constitutional debates, amendments designed to further entrench the special and dominant status of Canada’s two founding peoples –English/Protestants and French/Catholic “charter groups – have assumed top priority. Accordingly, the collective (Linguistic, religious and broader cultural) rights of this countries groups have consistently taken precedence over the corresponding rights of Canada’s ethnic minorities”( (Kallen, 1988)) This is a clear indicator that the entire national debate about Quebec turned into a national debate about group based rights. This is yet another reason why the current Canadian public is so concerned with civil liberties and group rights. The Quebec debate ultimately culminated in the Meech Lake and Charlottetown Accords, which thought it, focused primarily on French Canadian independence, also brought to the forefront native rights and stressed group rights as a whole. Lastly it will be demonstrated how the creation of the bill of rights and freedoms and the implementation of the judiciary gave citizens a channel to vent or manifest their concerns regarding the state (though we shall explain that this in fact also contributes to undemocratic nature of the system). In 1982, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms became part of the Canadian constitution. Since then the judiciary has become a major policy maker with the power to strike down the laws that, in their opinion, were inconsistent with the Charter .How has this aided Canada’s present obsession with civil rights and identity based rights? This becomes apparent when Martin States “In a similar vein, the Charter has given a great boost to interest group politics. Indeed, an active judicial role and interest group politics seem to be made for each other” (Martin, 164) An active judiciary enables people to take their grievances regarding civil liberty or group rights to a courts, where (should it reach the supreme court) it can be addressed with the possibility of gaining jurisprudential advantages. One can plainly see how all of these events together have fostered a growing focus on self expression, civil liberties and group rights that are becoming more and more prevalent in this Post-material era, and how this current trend in public thought is being overlooked by what seems to be an increasingly undemocratic government.

It has been evidenced that there is a clear growing focus in the Canadian public with regards to civil liberty and group based rights and freedoms, therefore one could assume that these are being reflected within the current administration. However as will be demonstrated this is not the case. It seems that the Canadian government is becoming gradually undemocratic and being run by elites that are blunted to public focus due to rigid party lines and part ideology. Primarily one can witness the large scale influence of the Prime Minister commands over the government, and how deeply his personal party colours stain the institutions and administration of the state. The office of Prime minister is meant to symbolize the concept of “Primus Inter Pares” meaning first among equals . However it is readily obvious that he exercises a far greater power than the remainder of his cabinet and that he does not encounter a sufficient number of checks on that power, especially when he controls a majority government. The subject of Prime ministerial power is best encapsulated by Savoie stating “Should a minister or a parliamentary secretary disagree with a government policy, he or she has two choices-keep quiet and bear it or resign from the post. History suggests that the overwhelming majority prefer the first option”(187) This is an indicator that the prime minister enjoys far too much influence in the government and legislature of a Canada and that his views, rather than those of the public represented through the government, will permeate all the levels of administration under his influence. This inability of other ministers and parliament to counter the Prime ministers opinion, especially in a majority government is disturbing. Some have ventured to say that this concept of Canada being a “Prime Ministerial” government is false citing agreements such as the notion that the provinces themselves are checks for the PM’s power and gives examples of times when the PM was resisted by his Cabinet . However recent research has shown that party cleavages are not that great between provinces , and secondly all of the examples cited are from the Chretien government, which could have simply constituted an anomaly. A second matter that causes concern is the influence of Americanization of Canadian politics and that side effects this has had, that many view as negative and ultimately anti-democratic. Canada’s southern neighbour it seems, due to it proximity and super power status, cannot but play a role in the political process and ideology of Canada itself. Many have argued that this American influence on Canadian politics has resulted in a major shift towards individualism and American fiscal policies that are negatively impacting Canadian civil life and are not focusing on the publics previously stated penchant for civil liberty and group rights. The full extent of Americanization within Canada is best described by Nesbitt-Larking who says “ For two decades, Canada’s principle political parties and political leaders have been actively promoting economic policies of Americanized possessive individualism”(126) Larking also goes onto say later how these policies have increased unemployment, caused a decline in the public sector and bruised social benefits and middle class incomes . It is clear that the Americanization of Canada through the media and other channels have resulted in a painful change for the state and has desensitized its political leaders and public from what the consensus is about what is important in favour for what they personally consider best. It is sadly clear that elites are ignoring the voice of the very people that elected them, and are harming them and potentially Canadian cultural identity. Further more Larking suggests that the elite’s obsession with personal affluence and their own personal interest has caused them to further allow the integration of Canada into the US . According to Larking, behind political parties have been the most important interest groups. Many prominent corporate organizations such as the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, The Canadian Federation of Independent Business and the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, have actively promoted integration into the United States as well as policies designed to cut the public sector and reduce taxes on the corporate elite (127). Lastly there is the issue how judiciary is able to take an already flawed system (Not effectively representing the will of the people) and change legislature from parliament if it is deemed unconstitutional. The undemocratic nature of the Judiciary stems from the fact, according to Martin, “judges can overturn deliberate policy decisions made by the elected representatives of the people where those decisions do not accord with the way the judges interpret the charter” (163) This act negates the idea of institutional democracy as once again the voice of the public is being twisted by an entity within the government itself. Also it becomes evident that these judges are not constricted by the constitution they claim to defend, this is seen the Author states “To become a senior judge in Canada you must be a lawyer and have been one for ten years. You are appointed until age seventy five through a closed process that a former chief justice of Canada described as “mysterious”, and you are made constitutionally independent, directly accountable to no one . It has been demonstrated how all of these entities within the government have in some way contributed to the growing undemocratic nature of the government and the focus of the elites on issues that do not interest the Canadian public.

Finally it is in order to demonstrate that all of there occurrences are not transpiring without any repercussions or consequences for the Canadian government from the body being neglected, in this case, the electorate of Canada. The Disillusionment of Canadians is apparent and its malcontent evident through certain factors and reactions. First of these is decreased voter turn out during elections, as Larking states “Confidence in governmental institutions is declining while non-traditional forms of political participation are increasing. In political matters, people are becoming less deferential, less complaint, more inclined to speak out”(128) This loss of deference and confidence has been accompanied by a sharp decline in voter turnout at elections in recent years as people are less and less convinced that government will represent them at all. However this kind of protest aids no one and only serves to further retard the democratic process which requires an equal representation of the public to vote. Furthermore voter loyal has been steadily declining as well, this is documented in Absent Mandate, when Clark says that during the 1980’s and 1990’s there were strong declines in partisan loyalty and attachment over these decades, in conjunction with growing disaffection, detachment, and negativity concerning politicians and parties . It has become clear that due to politicians and elites becoming progressively more concerned with party ideology and succumbing to the influences of Americanization, the people are losing touch with politics and are instead pursuing other avenues in order to become involved and regain their grip on their own society. There take the form of interest groups and appeals to the Supreme Court. However these avenues are in themselves undemocratic and instead citizens should instead become civilly engaged once more in order to command more clout in politics of their own state. Lastly this weariness of the government by most citizens if displayed most distinctly when Nesbit Larking says” The problem for Canada is that the refined and noble politics of cultural pluralism and mutual respect has been promoted through anachronistic and elitist political practices from which most citizens have felt excluded. This is why Michael Adams and others have detected a growing wariness on the part of Canadians regarding traditional authorities . Through all of these processes and government elites acting in ignorance or disregard for the public or its thinking it is evident as to how the disillusion of the Canadian public is connected to the mentioned consequences.

It has been explained that Canadians have experienced a shift in their priorities, one from security and financial stability towards a more life style orientated; self expressive focus that has, as was shown, resulted from numerous factors. The most important of these was the rise of Post-materialism, the emergence of Quebec separatism and finally the implementation of the judiciary. With all of these factors aligned it fostered an environment where civil rights and group based rights were at the center of focus. However as has also been demonstrated, paradoxically during this time the government has moved along a path leading to the loss of institutional democracy, and even more elitist and blunted politicians. However due to the prevalence of such behaviour within the political sphere, the electorate began to react and soon, there were serious political consequences for those in power. With the decrease of voter turnout and loyalty the future of Canadian politics is uncertain as a whole. Also there is the issue of misrepresentation in parliament and the fact that civic engagement should be increased in order to avoid such excessive use of the judiciary and interest groups, factions that only contribute to the anti-democratic fashion in which the government has been steered until now. If society allows for this kind of behaviour to continue without their intervention and active participation in the democratic system, Canada’s government could become a twisted malformed shadow of what it once was. This is a major question to Canadian citizens as it concerns the very future of their political and cultural traditions as well as their roots, and one can only hope that these issues will soon be addressed.

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Savoie, D. (2006). Primus: There is No Longer any Inter or Pares. Crosscurrents: Contemporary Political Issues, 5th ed. , 180-123.
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Cited: al, S. e. (2000). The theory of democratic elitism revisted: a response to Vengroff and Morton. Canadian Journal or Political Science . Barker, P. (2006). Limits on the Power of the Prime Minister. M. Charlton & P. Barker, eds; Crosscurrents: Contemporary Political Issues, 5th ed. , 180-213. Inglehart, R. (2006). Inglehart-Welzel: Cultural Map of the World. Kallen, E. (1988). The Meech Lake Accord: Entrenching a Pecking Order of Minority Rights. Canadian Journal of Political Science , 107-120. Larking, P. (2006). Canadian Political Culture. Crosscurrents: Contemporary Political Issues, 5th ed. , 2-37. Martin, R. (2006). The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms is Antidemocratic and Un-Canadian. Crosscurrents: Contemporary Political Issues, 5th ed. , 86-99. Phillips, S. (2006). The Political Executive and Bureaucracy: On Top and on Tap in Rand Dyck, ed. Toronto: Thompson Nelson. Savoie, D. (2006). Primus: There is No Longer any Inter or Pares. Crosscurrents: Contemporary Political Issues, 5th ed. , 180-123. Stevenson, H. M. (1987). Ideology and the unstable party identification in Canada: Limited retionality in a brokerage party system. Canadian Journal of Political Science . Thomas, D. a. (2006). An Introduction to Government and Politics. Toronto: Thompson Nelson.