Canada since 1945: the Modern Canada story

The Modern Canada chapter of Discover Canada can look like a list of dates with no link between them: 1947, 1948, 1960, 1965, 1969, 1982. In fact, these dates tell one story. After the Second World War, Canada became richer. It used that wealth to protect people in hard times. It gave the vote to groups that had been left out. Quebec changed fast, and Canada made English and French equal in federal government. Newcomers from many countries made society more diverse. Then, in 1982, Canadians wrote their rights into the Constitution. This guide tells that story in order and shows what each change meant for ordinary people. If you want the whole of Canadian history in one read, start with Canadian history in 15 minutes.

The timeline at a glance

1. A richer country after the war

When the Second World War ended in 1945, Canada began a long period of growth. Between 1945 and 1970, its economy was one of the strongest in the industrialized world. Freer trade with other countries helped. It replaced the closed trade policies of the Great Depression.

One discovery stands out. In 1947, oil was found in Alberta. This was the start of Canada’s modern energy industry. By 1951, most Canadians could, for the first time, pay for enough food, a home and clothing. The country also grew: Newfoundland joined Canada in 1949. In the same years, Canada took a bigger place in the world through the United Nations, NATO and peacekeeping, and our guide Canada in the world tells that part of the story.

2. A safety net for hard times

A richer country could afford to help people when life went wrong. Over several decades, governments built what Canadians call a social safety net. Some parts are older than the post-war boom, so watch the years carefully.

Two points often come up on the test. First, unemployment insurance has a new name: it is now Employment Insurance. It is the same program, not a second one. Second, schools are run by the provinces and territories.

The test only asks about the history of these programs, not how much they pay. If you want to know what Employment Insurance could pay you today, MyEI.ca has a free calculator based on the official tables.

3. The vote for more people

For a long time, many Canadians could not vote. Women won the vote first. Manitoba was the first province to give it, in 1916. Most women gained the federal vote in 1918, and women in Quebec won the provincial vote in 1940. After the war, the vote reached the last groups that had been left out.

• 1948: Japanese Canadians gained the vote. Canadians of Asian descent had been denied it for many years, and Japanese Canadians were the last of them to receive it.
• 1960: Aboriginal people gained the vote.
• Today: every Canadian citizen aged 18 or older may vote. Voting is a right of citizens. Permanent residents cannot vote.

4. Quebec and the Quiet Revolution

In the 1960s, Quebec went through the Quiet Revolution. In a short time, the province changed and modernized very quickly. The name can confuse learners. It was not a war. Here, “revolution” simply means a period of fast, deep change. During these years, some Quebecers began to call for Quebec to separate from Canada.

Quebec later held two referendums on sovereignty, in 1980 and 1995. Both were defeated, so Quebec is still part of Canada. In 2006, the House of Commons recognized that Quebecers form a nation within a united Canada. This was a recognition, not independence. For the full story of French Canada, from New France to today, read French Canada, Quebec and the Acadians.

5. Two official languages: the 1969 Act

In the same decade, federal leaders looked at how English-speaking and French-speaking Canadians could share the country. In 1963, Parliament set up the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism. Then, in 1969, Parliament passed the Official Languages Act. It guarantees that people across Canada can get services from the federal government in English or in French.

The Act is about the federal government, not about each person. It does not mean that every Canadian must speak both languages. It does not make every province bilingual either. In 1970, Canada also helped found La Francophonie, an international association of French-speaking countries.

6. A changing society: newcomers and multiculturalism

After the war, people came to Canada from many more countries. By the 1960s, about one-third of Canadians had roots that were neither British nor French. Canada also opened its doors to refugees:

• 1956: about 37,000 Hungarians who fled Soviet rule.
• After 1975: more than 50,000 Vietnamese refugees, after the Communist victory in Vietnam.
• Since the 1970s: most immigrants have come from Asian countries. Earlier waves came mostly from Europe.

From this mix grew the idea of multiculturalism. Discover Canada describes it as a basic part of Canada’s heritage and identity. Newcomers do not have to give up their culture. At the same time, everyone lives under the same laws and shares the same values, such as the rule of law and the equality of women and men.

7. 1982: rights written into the Constitution

In 1982, Canada amended its Constitution to entrench the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. To entrench means to build something into the highest law, so an ordinary law cannot simply override it. The Charter is the first part of the Constitution Act, 1982. Quebec did not agree to this change, which links the Charter back to the Quebec story above.

The Charter also brings the other threads together. It protects official language rights and minority language education rights, and it treats multiculturalism as part of Canada’s heritage. To learn what each group of rights means, read The Charter of Rights and Freedoms explained.

What changed for ordinary people

Dates are easier to remember when you picture a real family. Here is what these changes meant in daily life.

For a new citizen, this table is a short picture of the country you are joining.

Common mix-ups

• 1969 vs 1982: the Official Languages Act came first. The Charter came 13 years later. Both deal with language rights, but they are different laws.
• 1948 vs 1960: Japanese Canadians gained the vote in 1948; Aboriginal people gained it in 1960.
• 1980 vs 1995 vs 2006: the two Quebec referendums (both defeated), then the recognition of Quebecers as a nation within a united Canada.
• 1927, 1940, 1965: Old Age Security devised, unemployment insurance introduced, Canada and Quebec Pension Plans created. Unemployment insurance began during the war, not after it.
• Employment Insurance is the modern name of unemployment insurance, not a new, separate program.
• Who runs schools? The provinces and territories, not the federal government.
• Quiet Revolution vs Great Upheaval: the Quiet Revolution was Quebec’s rapid change in the 1960s. The Great Upheaval was the deportation of the Acadians, much earlier, in the 1700s.
• Official bilingualism means federal services in both languages. It does not mean every Canadian must be bilingual.
• 1947 vs 1951: oil found in Alberta vs most Canadians able to afford food, shelter and clothing.

Now test yourself: answer the practice questions in the Modern Canada chapter.