The Official
Languages Act of 1969 sparked a great deal of controversy in
Canada. In the West, many ethnic groups were outraged that French
was made an official language despite the fact that French-speakers in the region were
greatly outnumbered by other linguistic groups. The situation was
further agitated in 1970 by the recommendations of the Royal
Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism. Although one quarter
of Canadians could now trace their origins to some place other
than Britain or France, the commission upheld the concept of
continued cultural development based on the British and French
"charter" cultures.
In Alberta, the Ukrainian and
German communities were
particularly vocal regarding their objection to biculturalism and
pushed strongly for a multicultural policy. In 1971, with
considerable opposition to biculturalism, the Trudeau government
retained the policy of bilingualism but also adopted a policy of
multiculturalism. Under multiculturalism every ethnic group was
provided with the means to fully participate in Canadian society
and maintain their own culture and values.
With multiculturalism achieved at the national level, several members
of the Ukrainian Canadian Professional and Business Federation
worked with other ethnic groups to expand bilingual instruction in
Alberta schools. As a result, in addition to French, Alberta
students were offered and retain the option of taking classes and immersion
programs in languages such as Ukrainian, German, Cree, Mandarin,
Cantonese, Japanese, Spanish and Arabic. The provincial government
also developed further multicultural legislation and activities
including an annual Heritage Day holiday in August.
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This digital collection was
produced with financial assistance from Canada's Digital
Collections initiative, Industry Canada.
Heritage Community Foundation Presents
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