17 ACTIVITY Reporting on the Charter As mentioned above, before the Charter was created Canada had a variety of laws and bills designed to protect the rights of its citizens. However, these laws were not always in place, and they did not always protect everyone living in Canada. As a class, name any laws, bills, or practices that you’ve learned about from Canadian history which would not be legal today. Imagine that you are a local journalist in 1982, reporting on the new Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Write an article explaining the legal change to your readers, and why it is (or is not) important. 1. Begin by conducting research on the topic. Use the TCE articles on the Canadian Bill of Rights, the Canadian Human Rights Act, your own province’s human rights act, and any other legal documents that might help you. Further research may be helpful. 2. Consider the following questions in your article: What does this Charter do? How does it differ from previous (still-existing or otherwise) legal documents? In what way does this impact Canadians? Are you or your community now protected in ways that you previously were not? What issues or problems can you foresee? Are Canadians happy or angry about this change? Extension Activity: Now imagine you are a regular citizen at this time. Write a letter to the editor of a national or local newspaper of the time about the Charter. Are you for, or against it (remember, you can agree with the principle but disagree with parts!)? What rights and freedoms do you believe should be included but haven’t been? (Consider different aspects of life in Canada: the environment, non-human animals, employment, access to necessities, etc.) Make three arguments to support your cause. End with a call to action, outlining what you would hope to see going forward. Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Library and Archives Canada, R11274-148)
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