Canadian history

Can Canada Contain Conflagration?

by Steve Pyne

Fire is a part of the long natural history of Canada, but this month's wildfires show the insufficiency of the nation's plans to live with fire at the opening of a Pyrocene era. 

Canada Day Festivities Spark Controversy over National History

The dispossession of indigenous peoples and the exclusion of Chinese immigrants are among the historical episodes that have complicated the celebration of Canadian nationhood in recent years. 

Canada's Hottest Tourist Attraction Could be the Government's Doomsday Bunker

Canada's Diefenbunker was decommissioned in 1994, and today is one of the few places where tourists can see the preparations made to preserve government in the event of the unthinkable. 

Institutional Histories of Canadian Slavery

by Melissa N. Shaw

McGill University’s institutional history dramatically changes when it accounts for the fact that its founder, James McGill, was an enslaver and trader of enslaved Black and Indigenous people.

A Brief History of the Vatican and Western Canadian Missions

by Roberto Perin

"Residential schools and the papal bulls justifying the fallacious doctrine of discovery call out for concrete acts of atonement and reparation on the part of the church."

Pope Francis Seeks Forgiveness from Indigenous Canadians over Residential School Abuses

"I am deeply sorry, sorry for the ways in which, regrettably, many Christians supported the colonizing mentality of the powers that oppressed the Indigenous peoples," Francis said.

A Guide from the Past for Travelers Seeking an Abortion

by Sarah Elvins

"Women traveling to procure abortions is nothing new. Before the 1973 Roe ruling, state-to-state travel existed, as did highly organized transnational networks to guide women across borders."

The Asian-Canadian Gay Pioneer Theorist of Sexuality

by Laurie Marhoefer

Li Shiu Tong, the partner of better-known German sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld, was an important theorist and activist whose once-lost writings anticipated today's politics of gay rights and liberation. 

What Does Pope Francis's Apology Mean to Indigenous Americans?

by Annie Selak

"Pope Francis apologized on April 1, 2022, to First Nations, Inuit and Métis delegations, acknowledging the harm done by residential schools in Canada and marking a crucial step in the church admitting its role in the abuse of Indigenous communities and children."

Ottawa Truck Protests are an Extension of Canada's Settler Colonial History

by Taylor Dysart

Today's Canadian protesters include many of the contemporary far right, but they all draw on a concept of freedom as individual entitlement to rule that has roots in the displacement of the nation's indigenous people. 

The Trouble with Truth, Reconciliation, Peace and Friendship Treaties: Indigenous Land and Resource Rights Among the Mi’kmaq  

by Rachel Herrington

Honoring the history of the treaties is not just about the past but also about the present and future of indigenous Canadians. 

Canada is Going through its Own History Wars

by Ian Rocksborough-Smith

"To what degree will well-established professional historians and scholars respond and engage with younger generations of activists, intellectuals and cultural workers adamant about centring the experiences of marginalized people?"

The Canadian Historical Association's Genocide Statement "Brazenly Unscholarly" (Opinion)

Columnist Barbara Kay supports Canadian historians who have dissented from the Canadian Historical Association's statement that Canadian treatment of First Nations peoples was genocidal. 

With Discovery of Unmarked Graves, Canada’s Indigenous Seek Reckoning

The discoveries of the remains of hundreds of First Nations children at the sites of boarding schools intended to separate them from indigenous language and culture are forcing Canadians to confront the brutality of the nation's history. 

Review: "The Third Man: Churchill, Roosevelt, Mackenzie King, and the Untold Friendships that Won WWII"

by Walter G. Moss

Canadian Prime Minister William Mackenzie King kept a voluminous diary that is an incredible source of insight into his role as a witness (and often an influencer) to the wartime and post-World War II leadership of Roosevelt and Churchill. A new book distills the 30,000 pages of the diary. 

A Polarizing Documentary Spurs Debate Over a Violent Time in Quebec

Canadians are debating whether a documentary released at the fiftieth anniversary of a campaign of political violence by Quebecois separatists valorizes terrorism and ignores peaceful progress toward a bicultural Canada; the filmmaker is the son of one of the convicted conspirators.

The Myth of North America, in One Painting

Explore an immersive, interactive page that shows how "The Death of General Wolfe" by Benjamin West created a heroic myth of the British defeat of the French near Quebec, which helped decide the Seven Years War.

Samuel L. Jackson's Enslaved and the Lost History of Canadian Slavery

Canadian historian Charmaine Nelson says that many Canadians are overly accepting of the narrative of their nation as the endpoint of the Underground Railroad and unaware of the history of slavery in Canada. A new documentary by the famed actor highlights the need to push past comfortable understandings.

‘Schitt’s Creek’ Star, and His Fans, Are Taking Indigenous Studies

“I’m learning a lot of this embarrassingly late in the game,” Mr. Levy said during the first discussion. “But ultimately these stories are crucial to the identity of our country.”

A Statue of Canada’s First Prime Minister Is Toppled, but Politicians Want It Restored

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau angered Canadian antiracism activists by condemning vandalism of a statue of the country's first Prime Minister. He angered other Canadians by not offering a stronger condemnation at a time when public acknowledgment of Candian oppression of indigenous people is becoming a hot issue.