The Trudeau Foundation Papers volume iv, 1 • 2012 A Canadian institution with a national purpose, the Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation is an independent and non-partisan charity. It was established in 2001 as a living memorial to the former prime minister by his family, friends, and colleagues. In 2002, the Government of Canada endowed the Foundation with a donation of $125 million with the unanimous support of the House of Commons. In addition, the Foundation benefits from private sector donations in support of specific initiatives. Through its scholarship, fellowship, mentorship, and public interaction programs, the Foundation supports outstanding individuals who make meaningful contributions to critical public issues. Human Rights and Dignity | Responsible Citizenship Canada in the World | People and Their Natural Environment president Pierre-Gerlier Forest directors Michel Bastarache, Ottawa, Ontario John H. McCall MacBain, Geneva, Switzerland William G. Davis, Toronto, Ontario L. Jacques Ménard, Montreal, Quebec Roy L. Heenan, Montreal, Quebec Heather Munroe-Blum, Montréal, Québec Alexander Himelfarb, Ottawa, Ontario Patrick Pichette, Mountain View, California Chaviva Hošek, Toronto, Ontario Marc Renaud, Montreal, Quebec Edward Johnson, Montreal, Quebec Sean E. Riley, Antigonish, Nova Scotia Marc Lalonde, Montreal, Quebec Emőke J. E. Szathmáry, Winnipeg, Manitoba Paule Leduc, Montreal, Quebec Alexandre Trudeau, Montreal, Quebec The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation 1514 Docteur-Penfield Ave. Montreal QC Canada h3g 1b9 trudeaufoundation.ca The Trudeau Foundation Papers, Volume 4, 1 • 2012 isbn 978-2-9812034-7-2 (print version) isbn 978-2-9812034-8-9 (pdf) Legal Deposit—Bibliothèque et Archives nationales du Québec, 2012 Legal Deposit—Library and Archives Canada, 2012 Table of Contents Preface Roy L. Heenan Chairman, The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation 5 In Theory, in Practice Pierre-Gerlier Forest President, The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation 7 Trudeau Lectures Steven Loft 2010 Visiting Trudeau Fellow Ryerson University “Reflections on 20 Years of Aboriginal Art” biography / abstract / lecture 12 Jocelyn Létourneau 2006 Trudeau Fellow Université Laval “History and Social Hope” biography / abstract / lecture 34 Alain-G. Gagnon 2010 Trudeau Fellow Université du Québec à Montréal “Empowerment Through Different Means: Regionalism, Nationalism, and Federalism” biography / abstract / lecture 56 Sujit Choudhry 2010 Trudeau Fellow New York University “The Globalization of the Canadian Constitution” biography / abstract / lecture 88 Janine Brodie 2010 Trudeau Fellow University of Alberta “Social Literacy and Social Justice in Times of Crisis” biography / abstract / lecture 114 Preface When the Trudeau Foundation first began its work some twelve years ago, its program consisted of the selection and appointment of scholars, fellows, and mentors in the humanities. It soon became apparent that we needed another element—the sharing of the research, scholarship, and ideas with the public at large. So began the Foundation’s Public Interaction Program, of which this volume is but the latest example. Referring to the conferences and lectures organized by the Foundation, we have chosen for publication five papers written by our fellows, to share with a wider audience. Year after year, the Foundation supports fine thinkers and renowned experts on global issues, enabling Trudeau fellows to undertake independent research in search of answers to pressing challenges. The fellows focus on four topics that preoccupied Pierre Trudeau and which continue to demand our attention—human rights and dignity, responsible citizenship, people and their natural environment, and Canada in the world—offering fresh perspectives and pioneering approaches to some of the most contentious issues confronting humanity. While their areas of specialty are diverse, these scholars in the humanities and social sciences share a capacity to not only conceive 6 the trudeau foundation papers new ideas but also to share these ideas widely to help resolve major contemporary challenges. One of the Foundation’s goals is to foster long-term relationships with the larger community in order to translate great ideas into even greater societal results. Fellows are encouraged to give back to society by transferring the key ideas from their research through public lectures, thus contributing to the greater public good. Pierre Elliott Trudeau reminded us that “Each of us must do all in our power to extend to all persons an equal measure of human dignity—to ensure through our efforts that hope and faith in the future are not reserved for a minority of the world’s population, but are available to all.” As this fourth edition of The Trudeau Foundation Papers underscores, five fellows have embraced Trudeau’s call and carried on in his footsteps, offering their visions for a more equit- able society and invaluable guidance on how these visions might be achieved. Since launching the Fellowship Program in 2002, the Foundation has named 46 Trudeau fellows and has held 20 Trudeau Lectures from coast to coast. Collectively, the fellows have breathed life into the Foundation’s mission to “foster a fruitful dialogue between scholars and policymakers in the arts community, business, government, the professions, and the voluntary sector.” They have brought to fruition the Foundation’s vision to invest in two key areas of strategic importance to Canada’s growth and well-being: bright and caring people committed to providing inspired leadership, and the world of creativity and ideas shaping positive change. It is an honour and privilege for me to be a part of this critical process, and I hope that these papers will inspire further scholarship and dialogue. Roy L. Heenan, oc Chairman, The Pierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation October 2012 In Theory, in Practice “The struggle for democracy and the ongoing development of its political and social content was not solely a twentieth-century problem… it will continue to be one for the century to come, whatever concrete forms it adopts.” Jorge Semprún, L’expérience du totalitarisme (1996) When it comes down to it, all of the conversations at the Trudeau Foundation are about democracy. We mix disciplines, languages, and bases for knowledge; we celebrate their dialogue and we encourage them to intermarry. But our purpose is always to work together in the service of a certain promise of emancipation—an emancipation at once political, social, and cultural. This is the promise of which Pierre Elliott Trudeau wrote in 1958 that it “encourages each citizen and each group of citizens to protest against the defects of society to demand justice.” Those who have read previous editions of The Trudeau Foundation Papers know that the Foundation fears neither theory nor abstraction. We know and accept that to call people and things, however different, by their true names, to investigate and uncover the relationships between them, sometimes requires us to depart from what is commonly held to be true. At times, this means risking not 8 the trudeau foundation papers being immediately understood. In this new century— enamoured of the transparent and the immediate, valuing intuition over reason, and wary of knowledge that cannot be monetized—it has become audacious to celebrate erudition, to value the long, hard work of thinking about difficult issues, to invest the time necessary for sound research. Which is really the heart of the matter. It is evident that this precludes moving quickly to reap the fruits of what we sow. In any event, democracy, to paraphrase Jorge Semprún, is in a permanent state of development. It requires con- stant attention, a continually renewed supply of ideas and images, and it ridicules definitive solutions and final answers. No matter how much circumstances change, the challenges remain: freedom, justice, law, solidarity, human dignity. Our true usefulness is there- fore a function of our capacity to confront these crucial issues and, above all, to continue adhering to a demanding program despite rebuffs and roadblocks. Of course, this poses a predictable problem: is speaking or writing enough to further democracy in Canada and abroad? If the Foundation is so attached to this ideal, why does it not fund more tangible projects, more direct initiatives, more concrete actions? Why waste time with studies and endless discussion when you could leap into the fray? The truth is that the Foundation does this too. It would be absurd to cloister oneself in the realm of words with- out ever descending into that of action. The authority conferred by knowledge – an authority for which the Foundation has the greatest respect – is not marred by the authority that comes from experience and commitment. Au contraire: it is only right that ideas are embod- ied and that the surfacing of new facts and realities topples standing convictions, no matter how entrenched. But this line of reasoning is too abstract still. The fact is that the researchers and creators whom we invite to join the Trudeau com- munity have already proven their ability to move freely and fluidly In Theory, in Practice 9 between the world of ideas and that of practice. Their engagement and their intellectual work are as it were two sides of the same coin, not necessarily because these people defend a cause in particular— although this is sometimes the case—but because they simply have no time to linger over less important things. They are weighed down by persistent inequality, the degradation of nature, the violent attack on the rights and dignity of their fellows, the foolish risks taken by states in their quest for power. The reader should look, for example, to Sujit Choudry’s rigorous essay on constitutional law. It is the work of a lawyer, and we are not surprised to discern the author’s propensity for principles, norms, and models. But Choudhry also reveals how working with coun- tries in reconstruction, he has discovered at the heart of Canadian values an aspiration common to all peoples: the desire for “peace, order and good government,” as in the famous preamble to Canada’s Constitution Act of 1867.