Canadian Studies Announcements

In this issue:

TOMORROW

Elections Matter: The Politics of Coronavirus in Canada and the United States

September 14 | 12:30 pm | Online | RSVP here

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have wide-ranging consequences on North American politics. The effect of the pandemicon Joe Biden’s 2020 win remains debated; meanwhile, Justin Trudeau hopes to use the belated success of his vaccine procurement strategy to win his party a parliamentary majority in the September 20 federal elections. How has COVID-19 shaped electoral politics in Canada and the United States as it relates to crucial recent and ongoing policy choices? Political scientist Daniel Béland will address this question while discussing the potential political and policy consequences of the upcoming Canadian elections.

Daniel Béland is James McGill Professor of Political Science at McGill University and director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada. His research focuses on public policy, political sociology, and federalism and territorial politics.

This event is cosponsored by the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada, the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, and the Berkeley Institute of International Studies.

UPCOMING EVENT

Book Talk: Making Middle-Class Multiculturalism: Immigration Bureaucrats and Policymaking in Postwar Canada

October 12 | 12:30 pm | Online | RSVP here

In the 1950s and 1960s, immigration bureaucrats played an important yet unacknowledged role in transforming Canada’s immigration policy. Their perceptions and judgements about the admissibility of individuals influenced the creation of formal admissions criteria for skilled workers and family immigrants that continue to shape immigration to Canada. Bureaucrats emphasized not just economic utility, but also middle-class traits and values such as wealth accumulation, educational attainment, entrepreneurial spirit, resourcefulness and a strong work ethic. By making “middle-class multiculturalism” a basis of nation-building in Canada, they created a much-admired approach to managing racial diversity that has nevertheless generated significant social inequalities. Migration expert Jennifer Elrick will discuss insights from her forthcoming book examining the topic.

Jennifer Elrick is an assistant professor of sociology at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. Her research interests lie in the area of state classifications (in censuses and immigration policy) and their relationship to social stratification along the lines of race, gender, and social class. Her work is multi-national in scope, focusing on Canada, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

This event is cosponsored by the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative, the Center for Race and Gender, and the Institute of International Studies.

EXTERNAL EVENTS

Inuit: The Arctic We Want

September 14 | 1 pm ET (11 am PT) | RSVP here

On July 16-19, 2018, delegates from Alaska, Greenland, Canada and Chukotka (Russia) came together for the 13th General Assembly of the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC). Under the theme “Inuit – The Arctic We Want,” delegates discussed policies and developed strategies for the 2018-2022 Alaskan Chairmanship of ICC. The event culminated in the adoption of the Utqiagvik Declaration, which serves as a guide for the ICC’s work over the 2018-2022 term and as a reflection of Inuit priorities across Alaska, Greenland, Canada and the Russian Federation. Please join the Wilson Center’s Polar Institute as we welcome ICC leaders to share their perspectives on the Utqiagvik Declaration’s priorities, reflections on their implementation since 2018, and goals for the final year of the Alaskan Chairmanship.

Exhibit: Collective Memories: Stonecuts from Cape Dorset

September 15 – December 12

St Mary’s College Museum of Art | Learn more

In the 1960s, graphic arts flourished in the newly formed Cape Dorset (Kinngnait) arts co-operative on Baffin Island in Nunavut. The co-operative sought to encourage art making and craft as an income source for local Inuit residents transitioning from seminomadic camps to permanent settlements. The residents experimented with materials and techniques at the co-operative, inventing their own adaptation of woodcut printmaking through direct stencil and relief carving on stone.

The selected works in Collective Memories speak to the collaborative nature, both in technique and meaning, of cultural practices at the co-operative. They reflect the traditional migratory lifestyle, a way of life undergoing rapid change as outside cultural influences impacted day-to-day lives. Depictions of mammals, birds, and marine life bring forth legends, shamanistic practices, and mythologies that had been memorized and told from one generation to the next.

An exhibit opening celebration will be held on September 16 from 4-8 p.m.

Canadian Studies Program

213 Moses Hall #2308

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