Canada: The Dawn of a New Family

The Dawn of a New Family

Bleary-eyed but triumphant at 5:40 a.m., Canada's ten provincial premiers and Brian Mulroney, the Federal Prime Minister, emerged from a 20-hour negotiating session last week and proclaimed that their country was finally one. Back in 1982, after 115 years of British stewardship, Canada's constitution had been given over to Ottawa's direct control. But the French-speaking province of Quebec refused to sign the charter, charging that then Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau was using the document to dilute French Canada. In April of this year, Mulroney and the provinces hammered out a delicate agreement recognizing Quebec as a "distinct society" and permitting it...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!