Many attempts had been made to characterize Canadians. People from within and outside this country do not agree in their descriptions. It can probably be said that Canada is a young nation compared to other great countries of the world. Its population is comparatively small, considering that in area, it is the second largest in the world.
Up to the early 1860’s, Canada was still seven separate British Colonies and a large area owned by the Hudson’s Bay company. Each of the colonies had its own government but all were subjects to the laws of Britain (Canada, Growth of a Nation, Fitzhenry & Whitehead Ltd. Toronto 1981 p 192). Canada became a new country on July 1, 1867 when the British Parliament agreed to the confederation of four provinces; Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Other provinces joined later to make the ten provinces and three territories that make up the present confederation.
Two cultures predominate Canada: British and French. The cultures of the native people were overcome by these groups for a long time, although in recent years a revival and recognition of First Nations cultures have reemerged.
After the Second World War people from different parts of the world have come to live in Canada. At present, Canada is recognized as one of the most multicultural countries of the world wherein more than one hundred languages are spoken, although two, English and French are recognized as the official languages.
Canadian laws have been most tolerant in the respect of one another’s cultures of its people. Diversity of traditions and practices is celebrated and recognized. This is in line with the observance of equal rights of its entire people and the goal of eliminating discrimination.
The changes in the population of Canada have even made the characterization of what a Canadian is, more difficult. The cultures of the different groups of people that now call Canada their home have remained intact and are celebrated among themselves. During summer, large gatherings of ethnocultural groups are held featuring their dances, songs and food. We hear invitations to a Taste of China, Taste of India, Mabuhay Festival and similar festivities that are usually attended mostly by the people of the same ethnicity being celebrated. Said gatherings have not really united the country’s people.
In the early part of 2009, promotions for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver started in full blast. Ads appeared in newspapers and on television about these upcoming events. The public took these announcements just like the anticipation for a new movie; tepid and nonchalantly. And then, promotional materials started to appear like the red maple mittens and T-shirts emblazoned with the Canadian Olympics motto: I Believe. The enthusiasm for the great sporting events started to warm up.
But the great excitement really started in October when the Olympic torch was ignited in Greece and brought to Canada. The arrival of the flame was greeted with pomp and circumstance in Vancouver with people from First Nations in the forefront, in their colourful costumes and canoes with the sound of their native instruments and their joyful dancing. From that point, the flame traveled all over Canada for 45,000 kilometers through its mountains, valleys, plains, prairies, lakes and rivers, through about 1,000 communities, urban and rural through highways, cobbled streets and snow covered trails, by all means of transportation – by foot, by car, truck or van, snowboard, canoes, kayaks, skateboard, dogsled, snowshoes and boats, trams, dragon boats, wheelchairs, streetcar, bobsled, mine clearing vehicle, bobsleigh, fire truck, horse-back and every imaginable form of transportation in Canada. It was carried by about 12,000 torchbearers of all races, religions, sexes, ages, celebrities and unknown, folk heroes and disabled. It had been to sparsely populated villages to busy crowded cities. It entered hospitals, military installations, churches and the Canadian Parliament. As John Furlong, CEO of the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Winter Olympics said, “Let every Canadian be a part.”
The Olympic flame has galvanized the people of Canada to express a nationalism never seen before. It has made people of this country feel how lucky they are to live in Canada. As they sang “O Canada” they were all Canadians who belong to one nation. Never before has such feeling of oneness been aroused among Canadians. The glow and wonder of the flame as it traveled from one part of this country to another has brought its people together with an outpouring of nationalistic sentiments.
The advance in the development of technology may have contributed to the magnitude of the positive impact that the Olympic torch has brought to the people of Canada. The follow-up in television of the route that the tour took it is 106 days of travel has made spectators aware of its whereabouts each day and the unbelievable excitement it had aroused in the hearts of all the people who made some contact with it.
It is hoped that this great national experience would remain in the hearts of all Canadians and bring its people together regardless of differences in traditions, religions, level of education, colour and race. Each culture can contribute to the Canadian heritage. We can celebrate our own ethnocultural heritage and at the same time share it with other Canadians. Let us also appreciate what other groups have to offer. Let not our own beliefs be barriers in enjoying what others have to share. Let the Olympic flame remain kindled in our hearts.