Nationalism can be a deeply destructive force, used to pit nations against one another, or at least to revel in another’s failures. There was a strong element of nationalism in Canada’s response to the recent American election, and, while I am no supporter of Bush, I was not impressed with the nationalistic ballyhoo that was emanating from so many of my fellow Canadians.
Nonetheless, nationalism can be a deeply inspiring force, when used healthily, and this is why I feel that telling Canadian stories should play a role in the classroom. Unlike the somewhat paranoid sounding works of those who espouse the traditionalist view (Hirsch, Bibby, Bissoondath), it is my belief that Canadian stories can help serve the tenets of a truly multi-cultural society, and educational process. There is no authentic national history of Canada that does not include multiculturalism, there is no uniform standard of literacy, and there is not singular national identity for us all to embrace. The vast cultural richness of the past 500 years of Canada’s history (both the positive and negative elements) makes it impossible to teach Canada without teaching about different cultures. There is no U.S. style “melting pot” here, immigrants do not come to Canada and become assimilated to Canadian standards of lifestyle, but, typically, they can come and preserve their traditions, the lifestyle, and their unique points of view, adding to the rich cultural mosaic that is Canada.
This is the Canada that should be taught to students. Not simply a Canada of people who came from Europe, but people who came from everywhere, and brought their old stories with them, and made great new stories here as well.
