Two nations in Canada: the New Democratic Party, the Waffle movement and nationalism in Quebec

Abstract

Following the election of the separatist Parti Quebecois (PQ) to a minority government in September 2012, the federal New Democratic Party (NDP), which had used a large number of first-time victories in Quebec to help propel them to a record number of seats and the status of Official Opposition in the federal election the previous year, was forced by the media to clarify its position on Quebec sovereignty. The official policy had been drafted in 2005 under then-leader Jack Layton in what became known as the Sherbrooke Declaration; it stated that the party would support Quebec's claim to independence if a majority of voters, or 50 per cent plus one, voted in favour in a referendum. The media, however, claimed that this position seemed to 'run counter to the federal Act, which was passed into law in 2000. It says negotiations leading to the secession of Quebec from Canada could take place only after a referendum result with a majority, as determined by the House of Commons' (Galloway 2012). Federal NDP leader Thomas Mulcair, referencing the Act rather than the Sherbrooke Declaration, later admitted that a 50 per cent plus one vote would require the federal government to negotiate but not necessarily accept independence (Macpherson 2012). Yet in January 2013, the NDP tabled a private member's bill in the House of Commons that attempted to put 'clarity back into the Clarity Act' (Pfeffer 2013); the so-called Unity Bill 'would see the federal government enter into negotiations after a simple majority vote on a clear question' (Macfarlane 2013). While these attempts to clarify the NDP's position and establish a process by which to negotiate sovereignty perhaps did not satisfy anyone, they nevertheless highlight the struggle the NDP has had addressing nationalist sentiment in Quebec.As a social democratic party that takes seriously government intervention and involvement as a way to improve the lives of Canadians, and as an explicitly federalist political party that has historically viewed the unity of the country as imperative to progress, nationalist sentiment remains a difficult issue. Yet in the late 1960s and early 1970s, as separatism gained support within Quebec, one group within the NDP sought to acknowledge these ideas while at the same time promoting a different Canadian nationalism. This group, which came to be known as the Waffle, recognised the 'existence of two nations within Canada, each with its own language, culture and aspiration', and insisted that '[a]n English Canada concerned with its own national survival would create common aspirations that would help tie the two nations together once more'. Concerned with the increasing dominance and influence of the United States over Canada, they argued that the country could maintain unity if it adopted socialism and acknowledged that Canada was comprised of two nations ('For an Independent Socialist Canada' 1969). Yet members of the Waffle also recognised Quebec's right to self-determination; they insisted that all people, including Quebeckers, should have the right to make their own decisions free from external force or influence. These positions proved to be enormously controversial and divisive at the time. Nevertheless, the Waffle played an important role in the ongoing struggles within the NDP to develop a position regarding Quebec sovereignty and self-determination.Time for reassessment: literature on the NDP and QuebecShockingly little scholarly attention has been paid to the history and development of the New Democratic Party. Monographs by Desmond Morton (1974, 1986), Ivan Avakumovic (1978), Norman Penner (1992), and Alan Whitehorn (1992) chronicle the existence of socialism in Canada, the emergence of the NDP, and the evolution of the party. As well, there are biographies and autobiographies of varying quality on many of the major players in the NDP that provide further insight into the evolution of social democracy in Canada (see Lewis 1981; MacDonald 1998; Shackleton 1975; Smith 1989; and Stewart 2003). …