Basic HTML Version
(From Left to Right)
Vietnamese Canadian
parade
F-86 Sabre, Royal
Canadian Air Force
Cirque du Soleil
25
Discover Canada
A Changing Society
As social values changed over more than
50 years, Canada became a more flexible and
open society. Many took advantage of expanding
secondary and postsecondary educational
opportunities and a growing number of women
entered the professional work force.
Most Canadians of Asian descent had in the past
been denied the vote in federal and provincial
elections. In 1948 the last of these, the Japanese-
Canadians, gained the right to vote. Aboriginal
people were granted the vote in 1960. Today
every citizen over the age of 18 may vote.
Canada welcomed thousands of refugees from
Communist oppression, including about 37,000
who escaped Soviet tyranny in Hungary in 1956.
With the Communist victory in the Vietnam War
in 1975, many Vietnamese fled, including over
50,000 who sought refuge in Canada.
The idea of multiculturalism, as a result of
19th- and 20th-century immigration, gained a new
impetus. By the 1960s, one-third of Canadians
had origins that were neither British nor French,
and took pride in preserving their distinct culture
in the Canadian fabric. Today, diversity enriches
Canadians’ lives, particularly in our cities.
Arts and culture in Canada
Canadian artists have a long history of
achievement in which Canadians take pride.
Artists from all regions reflect and define our
culture and forms of creative expression and
have achieved greatness both at home and
abroad.
Canadians have made significant contributions
to literature in English and in French. Novelists,
poets, historians, educators and musicians have
had a significant cultural impact. Men and women
of letters includedStephen Leacock, LouisHémon,
Sir Charles G.D. Roberts, Pauline Johnson, Émile
Nelligan, Robertson Davies, Margaret Laurence
and Mordecai Richler. Musicians such as
Sir Ernest MacMillan and Healey Willan won
renown in Canada and abroad. Writers such as
Joy Kogawa, Michael Ondaatje and Rohinton
Mistry have diversified Canada’s literary
experience.
In the visual arts, Canada is historically perhaps
best known for the Group of Seven, founded
in 1920, who developed a style of painting to
capture the rugged wilderness landscapes.
Emily Carr painted the forests and Aboriginal
artifacts of the West Coast.
Les Automatistes
of
Quebec were pioneers of modern abstract art
in the 1950s, most notably Jean-Paul Riopelle.
Quebec’s Louis-Philippe Hébert was a celebrated
sculptor of historical figures. Kenojuak Ashevak
pioneered modern Inuit art with etchings, prints
and soapstone sculptures.
Canada has a long and respected performing arts
history, with a network of regional theatres and
world-renowned performing arts companies.
The films of Denys Arcand have been popular in
Quebec and across the country, and have won
international awards. Other noteworthy Canadian
filmmakers include Norman Jewison and Atom
Egoyan. Canadian television has had a popular
following.
The Jack Pine, Tom Thomson