Quebec has developed the reputation of being superior in cuisine and culture, and more associated with European traditions than the rest of Canada. With the tradition of descendants of the 17th century French settlers, they have resisted pressure to assimilate into Anglo society. They have enacted laws to strengthen their cultural and language dominance. They want to be independent and "separate."
The sovereignty movement has been active for a long time. The 1995 referendum was won by the no side on the narrow margin of 50.6% to 49.4%.
Now in 2022 there is another sovereignist province: Alberta. This is the province that has always had the most prosperity with rich oil and gas reserves. It has the highest incomes in Canada, lowest taxes. The new premier Danielle Smith wants to challenge the relationship with the federal government with a 'sovereignty act'. She doesn't want to separate - she wants to dominate - officially. Probably Alberta has been dominate for decades.
The question is being asked: Is Canadian federalism unravelling? This is from the Montreal Gazette HERE.
In 1996 Juan J. Linz and Alfred Stepan published a seminal study on the conditions under which democracies become consolidated, or safe from reversal back to some form of autocratic or authoritarian rule. In their succinct formulation, democracy is consolidated when it is “the only game in town.” Ultimately, they argue, a broad psychological commitment to the rules of the democratic game is required, such that powerful political actors no longer see any benefit in seeking to overturn the regime. They instead commit to trying to achieve their goals within the existing political framework of democracy. Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt write in their book How Democracies Die about the importance of elite political actors maintaining certain key democratic norms as models of “good behaviour” from which the citizenry can take their cues. In particular, they discuss the importance of those in political office maintaining forbearance, i.e. resisting the urge to utilize certain powers that are technically at their disposal but would be corrosive to the wider political culture. Is this a foretelling of how Canada's democracy might die.
Here's Autumn on my street. | 
