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This presidential address on Canada and the study of territorial politics makes four main arguments. The first is that territory is a central component of politics, especially of Canadian politics, and that it should remain a focal point of specialists of Canadian and comparative politics. The second is that territory matters in contemporary politics because it serves as grounding for political communities, their claims, and their politics. The third is that not "identifying" parts of Canadian politics as "territorial politics" risks overlooking the importance of territory in the theorizing of federalism, nationalism and regionalism. The fourth is that, through the case of Canada, political scientists have made significant contributions to the study of comparative territorial politics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of social imaginaries occupies a marginal place in the historiography dedicated to Cameroonian nationalism. This article deals with them as both modalities of invention and transformation of the Nation-State since the late nineteenth century. The study argues that at the heart of the multiple caesuras in the history of Cameroon, social imaginaries appeared as a resource from which actors have drawn to produce utopias that have taken on a performative dimension in various contexts. This article makes three main contributions: first, it shows that the idea of Cameroon as an indivisible territorial entity has its origins in the German colonial period. It reveals that beyond its structural causes, the Anglophone question in Cameroon objectifies the idea of a conflict of imaginaries between Francophones and Anglophones. The analysis of the diasporic question finally highlights the influence of the media in the production of social imaginaries in the Anglophone crisis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the evolution of issue coverage by the press during election campaigns in Quebec from 1994 to 2018. Two observations emerge from this study. First, we witness the diversification of the media agenda, explained in particular by a decline of the national question in the media in favor of issues such as the environment and immigration. The reframing of the national question, now much more focused on the identity dimension than on the question of the political status of Quebec, is striking. These changes seem to indicate the rise of a liberal-authoritarian political axis in the province, and the emergence of a multiparty system opens the door to a lasting political realignment. These observations tend to confirm the view that the agenda during a campaign results from the interaction between the media, the parties, and the voters and that it thus offers an appropriate reflection of the evolution of political dynamics in a given society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article focuses on the ideological debate that interculturalism has aroused in Quebec's intellectual field since the 2000s. While it has long served as a point of convergence between neonationalist intellectuals seeking to combine pluralism and nationalism, the interculturalist model has not, however, prevented the resurgence of calls for tighter control over migrants and minority cultural practices. The thesis advanced is that this trend confirms the eclipse of the attempt to reconcile nationalism and pluralism within interculturalism. To support this thesis, our article documents the weakness of Quebec interculturalism in the face of the ideological blocs formed by federal multiculturalism, conservative nationalism, and the rise of anti-racist and decolonial criticisms in Quebec. Vis-à-vis these competing positions, the contradictions of interculturalism regarding the alleged privilege of the majority over minorities have come to light in the course of the controversies that the article examines over a period of twenty years. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While the Yes-No cleavage over Quebec independence is in decline, it would be wrong to assume that this phenomenon is characteristic of Quebec nationalism in general. Quebec nationalism is still a driving aspect of political debates in the National Assembly. For a majority of respondents, the Quebec state continues to play an important role in matters related to identity. Hence, nationalism remains relevant and necessary. It is also closely associated with the francophone character of Quebec. Nevertheless, this nationalism has taken a new form. Mobilizing original polling data, this paper provides a better understanding of the evolution of contemporary Quebec nationalism, as supported by the Coalition avenir Québec and its autonomist political ideology and dynamic. The findings allow us to observe certain divisions on the linguistic and partisan levels. These fault lines may contribute to explain the difficulties the Quebec Liberal Party is now facing in its attempt to reconnect with the francophone electorate without disappointing its anglophone electoral base. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has shown that the public tends to see some groups as less deserving of social rights. Our focus in this article is whether they are also seen as less entitled to engage in political claims-making. Recent theorists of inclusive nationalism argue that whether minorities are seen as having the right to codetermine the future may depend on whether the majority believes minorities are morally committed to the nation. Drawing on a unique survey experiment, we test this intuition by analyzing how majority perceptions of a minority's commitment to the larger society influence support for claims-making by immigrants and national minorities. We show that immigrants, French-speaking Quebeckers, and Indigenous peoples are judged more harshly about their right to make claims and that this is in part explained by the majority's views that these groups are not, in fact, committed members of the larger political community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Résumé: Cet article a pour point de départ la querelle épistémologique survenue entre Anthony D. Smith et Jon E. Fox et Cynthia Miller-Idriss concernant les différentes approches du champ d'études du nationalisme. Alors que Fox et Miller-Idriss rejettent la pertinence d'une approche sociohistorique dans l'étude ethnographique du nationalisme, Smith considère l'ethnographie comme une pratique descriptiviste dénuée d'intérêt scientifique qui, de surcroit, fait abstraction des recherches sur la nation conduite au cours des dernières décennies. Afin de dénouer cette impasse, nous proposons une démarche méthodologique visant à concilier ces deux approches par l'entremise du concept de lieu de mémoire. À partir d'une étude de cas, la bataille des Éperons d'or et sa résonance dans les pratiques discursives, nous illustrons comment l'historicité du fait national peut s'avérer essentielle pour comprendre le fonctionnement de la nation au quotidien et nous éclairer sur la manière dont les Flamands se construisent en tant que sujets nationaux. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes homonationalist discourses in a context that has received little attention so far: a minority nation (Quebec) within a multinational state (Canada). To the extent that nationalism is often constructed in opposition to an "Other," we attempt to identify who this "Other" is in Quebec's homonationalism. In particular, we explore whether this "Other" can also take the form of the majority nation through an analysis of articles published between 1990 and 2017 in various Quebec newspapers (La Presse, Le Devoir and Le Journal de Montréal). Our results show that if it is "English Canada" that was more likely in the first half of the 2000s to be the "Other" of Quebec's sexual nationalism, since the end of the 2000s, it is more often Muslims (here and elsewhere) and immigrants who are the object of an alteration in homonationalist discourses in Quebec. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

How has English-speaking Canadian political science conceived of the relationship between Quebec and Canada? Why has an issue that has been considered central for more than three decades become less attractive, if not marginal, within the discipline? The aim is to examine, from this example, the overlapping relationship between science and politics. The intent is also to show that Canadian political science has examined the Quebec/Canada relationship from four different angles: 1) its interest in Quebec politics was part of the urgency of the moment, based on a crisis that challenged the foundations of the political system; 2) it questioned the legitimacy of the sources of the dispute, namely the compatibility between the new expressions of Quebec nationalism with the presumed principles on which the Canadian political community had been founded; 3) Quebec nationalism also encouraged a reflection on the existence (or not) of "English Canada" as a sociological and political reality; 4) the combination of the first three factors caused the prescriptions for getting out of, or resolving, the crisis to evolve over time, to the point of rendering research on this issue obsolete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: The recent trade disputes and negotiations between the U.S. and Canada must be construed in light of a century-and-a-half-long evolution of trade relations between the two countries, profoundly marked by the mutations of American economic nationalism. In fact, Canada was for a long time more protectionist than the U.S. The main objective of this article is therefore that of contextualization: to paint a picture of the evolution of Canada-U.S. trade policies and the relationships that brings "economic nationalism" back. The main argument is that these relationships have been characterized by a constant tension between liberalization and protection, to which Canadian governments have contributed in many ways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Résumé: Les nations minoritaires dans les États multinationaux évoluent dans un contexte parfois incertain et inhospitalier de leur particularité sociétale, politique et culturelle. Si leur situation minoritaire n'est en rien un frein à leur existence comme nation, elle peut néanmoins s'accompagner d'un certain sentiment de fragilité nationale et même d'une peur de disparaître. Ces nations minoritaires, quand l'État auquel elles appartiennent refuse de reconnaître leur particularisme et de leur permettre de le défendre, peuvent alors rapidement devenir des nations fragiles. Il est l'objet du présent article de définir et de préciser le concept de nation fragile, à l'aide d'une discussion théorique, conceptuelle et normative. Minority nations within multinational States often evolve within a context of great uncertainty when it comes to the protection of their distinctive political and cultural characteristics. While their minority condition in no way limits their existence as nations, it can nevertheless come with a certain feeling of national fragility and even a fear of disappearing. These minority nations, when the State to which they belong refuses to recognize their particularism and to allow them the necessary tools to defend it, can then quickly become fragile nations. In this article, we discuss, define and specify the meaning of the concept of fragile nations, putting the emphasis on its theoretical and normative dimensions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Gérin-Lajoie doctrine, which has founded Quebec's international activity since the 1960s, is conventionally understood as the external extension of Quebec's provincial jurisdictions. How then can it be explained that Quebec's elected representatives regularly take a stand on international conflicts, which clearly falls within the authority of the federal government? This article provides a first glimpse at the motivations of Quebec officials for taking positions on military issues. Three hypotheses are put forward and compared to every public statement expressed by Quebec's elected representatives since September 11, 2001, with regard to military interventions. Firstly, Quebec's paradiplomacy may be marked by nationalism, acting as a tool for affirmation and national differentiation beyond provincial jurisdiction. Secondly, Quebec's assertion on issues of federal jurisdiction may be the manifestation of protodiplomacy, with the aim of strengthening the quest for full sovereignty. Thirdly, Quebec's elected officials may venture into military affairs for electoral gains. In short, the article seeks to assess whether Quebec's positions on international security issues are the result of identity, secessionist, or electoral motivations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous research has argued that while economic voting is quite consistently found to be an important mechanism in the rest of Canada, it is rather weak in Quebec. Guérin and Nadeau (1998) have demonstrated that whether or not citizens in Quebec vote economically depends on the party system. Following their lead, we expect that the presence of a dominant regionalist party in Quebec after 1993 (the Bloc Québécois) inhibited Quebeckers from voting economically. However, our results do not offer evidence for this hypothesis. Furthermore, we find only weak evidence of economic voting being moderated by voters' attitudes towards Quebec independence. Our study hence suggests that the impact of economic accountability in Canada is not hindered by a strong regional party or by the salience of the issue of Quebec independence. The economic vote, it seems, is more stable and general than it is regularly argued to be. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last several decades, nationalist movements in liberal democracies have challenged their community's relationship with the state. One such case that has drawn relatively little attention is Puerto Rico. A peculiar feature of Puerto Rican politics is that powerful nationalism coexists with several distinct status options: a reform of the current Commonwealth, statehood (becoming an American state), free association and independence. This article examines the various sources for Puerto Rican nationalism and discusses the relationship between nationalism and each of the status options. It also explains why none of the options has succeeded in gathering majority support amongst Puerto Ricans and why, therefore, the constitutional status quo has so far remained on the island. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

There is an oft-heard democratic paradox: while people who do not live under democracy strive for it, where it exists democracy is under criticism. This does not mean that citizens in democratic systems want to get rid of it, but that their trust in the functioning of democracy is considerably eroded. This article analyses democratic support by questioning the way it is measured, based on a representative sample of the Walloon population in Belgium. To do so, it compares two methods for classifying citizens: the a priori method, usually used in the literature, and the inductive method, inspired from social psychology. Three profiles, whose contours partially differ between methods, emerge –“non-democrats,” “satisfied democrats,” and “dissatisfied democrats”– and are analysed in light of four theoretical approaches: resources, modernization, ideology and national identification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reviews several studies on Québec politics by Québécois political specialists. Research cited includes the article "Le nationalisme et la gauche au Québec" by Daniel Béland and André Lecours in the periodical "Globe: revue internationale d'études québécoises," 14 (1), and the books "Pratique de l'État au Québec" by Gérard Bergeron and "Miser sur l'égalité" edited by Alain Noël and Miriam Fahmy.

This article endeavours to explain why English Canadians and Quebeckers differ in their opinions about private healthcare options. Data indicates that respondents in the nine predominantly English-speaking provinces are more likely to oppose private hospitals than Quebeckers. No one province or region in “English Canada” drives these results: aversion to private hospitals is consistent across the nine provinces. Research on welfare states slots Canada into the “liberal” category, which is indicative of a preference for market solutions to welfare problems, which makes this finding perplexing. The argument presented here is that universal healthcare has become bound up with the national identity of English Canada, resulting in a general aversion to private healthcare initiatives outside of Quebec. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The development of federalism in the context of the neoliberal era in the 2000s has partly created the conditions for a more stable co-operation between the federal and Quebec governments, contributing to the trend of separatism being sidelined in Quebec. In the context of neoliberalism, federal–provincial agreements have created conditions for just enough asymmetry in the relationship between the federal government and Quebec, something that Quebec has historically demanded, for separatism to remain off the agenda. What separates this relationship from past ones is a significant change in the context whereby the neoliberal orientation is becoming the common currency for co-operation. If Canadian federalism continues its present course under neoliberalism without any major mishaps, for the first time since the divisive period of the 1990s and early 2000s, federal–Quebec relations likely will be stable without national unity crises of the kind that culminated in the 1980 and 1995 Quebec referenda on sovereignty. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper examines the role of national identity in sustaining public support for the welfare state. Liberal nationalist theorists argue that social justice will always be easier to achieve in states with strong national identities, which, they contend, can both mitigate opposition to redistribution among high-income earners and reduce any corroding effects of ethnic diversity resulting from immigration. We test these propositions with Canadian data from the Equality, Security and Community survey. We conclude that national identity does increase support for the welfare state among the affluent majority of Canadians and that it helps to protect the welfare state from toxic effects of cultural suspicion. However, we also find that identity plays a narrower role than existing theories of liberal nationalism suggest and that the mechanisms through which it works are different. This leads us to suggest an alternative theory of the relationship between national identity and the welfare state, one that suggests that the relationship is highly contingent, reflecting distinctive features of the history and national narratives of each country. National identity may not have any general tendency to strengthen support for redistribution, but it may do so for those aspects of the welfare state seen as having played a particularly important role in building the nation or in enabling it to overcome particular challenges or crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes how the remembrance of historical events contributes to, and is shaped by, nationalism in Ireland and Quebec. Remembered historical events contribute to the growth of nationalism if they serve at least one of five purposes: defining the conceptual boundaries of the nation, reinforcing a sense of pride in the nation's achievements, evoking feelings of pity and indignation at the losses suffered by the nation, legitimizing the actions or principles of present-day leaders, or inspiring a belief that the nation will eventually triumph. Eight remembered events, four in Ireland and four in Quebec, are discussed in relation to these five purposes. The article concludes that historical remembrance has been a more powerful influence on nationalism in Ireland than in Quebec. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a test of the argument that vulnerability to economic dislocation, primarily as it is represented by economic homogeneity in communities, exercises a constraint on levels of support for Quebec nationalism. The guiding hypothesis is that residents of economically vulnerable ridings will be reluctant to accept the risks attached with political moves toward independence. The authors employ data on the level of support for the Bloc Québécois in the federal elections of 1993 and 1997, and the proportion voting "Yes" in the 1995 sovereignty referendum in Quebec, in the province's 75 federal electoral districts as their measures of support for sovereignty. Results suggest that there is a relationship between the geographies of potential economic vulnerability and the level of nationalist support, particularly evident in the 1995 referendum voting and the 1997 election. Calculations involving perceived economic vulnerability and risk remain as powerful defenders of the political status quo in Quebec. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the effect of modern media and communications tech- nology on ethnic nationalist resurgence, using the Kurds as a case example. Television, satellite communications, the Internet and easy access to publishing technology now facilitate ethnic nationalist challenges to state hegemony and monopoly of information. Additionally, modern media and communications technology can turn a humiliating defeat into a catalyst for a more unified, stronger, ethnic nationalist movement. Globally broadcast images of such a defeat arouse the passions and indignation of even those people who only nominally identify themselves with the ethnic group in question. At the same time, communications technology such as telephones, faxes and e-mail facilitate the channeling of such indignation into immediate group protest and action which, in turn, strengthens the ethnic identification of action participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along with the nations created by states, there are "internal nations" within states. Several such nations exist within the Canadian state, representing close to one quarter of the population. In recent years, Canadian political scientists have been actively theorizing this multinationalism and showing how it might be accommodated. Yet, the political realm has become highly resistant to such notions. Dualism, the primary historical accommodation of the francophone "internal nation," has been displaced by a state nationalism which, in turn, has entrenched a purely territorial rationale for federalism and has made multiculturalism the only legitimate basis for accommodating cultural diversity. Moreover, the nationalisms of the two predominant "internal nations," Quebec and "First Nations," have been mobilized in direct opposition to each other. In the end, rather than constituting a new form of "post-modern state" which transcends nationalism, Canada is in fact caught in the contradiction between the nationalism of the Canadian state and the nationalisms of its "internal nations." [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent work in the field of liberal political philosophy has focused on the value of cultural communities for the individual. The claim that liberal theory can give explicit recognition to the fact that individuals are rooted in a social context has produced an important debate about the preservation of minority cultures and a liberal defence of nationalism. This literature should be of interest to scholars of nationalism because liberal theorists have used concepts related to the nation, such as self-determination, in ways that go against conventional usage, and liberal theorists have made claims about the relationship of the right and the good with which some students of nationalism would disagree. This article presents a nationalist response to the liberal conception of community by developing one possible nationalist argument for the priority of the good over the right by claiming that the nation is a communal good. The author illustrates this argument with examples of the political projects of nationalists-in-government in the developed West. Liberals need not be concerned with this reality since democratic institutions will set some limits on nationalist projects by ensuring that they are the outcome of democratic processes. On this view, the importance of self-determination is that it provides the context for the creation of institutions for a debate about the relationship of the right and the good. Self-determination does not, as some liberal nationalists argue, constitute an automatic right to cultural preservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Political Science / Revue Canadienne de Science Politique is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Canadian Journal of Political Science / Revue Canadienne de Science Politique is the property of Cambridge University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)