23 May Canada’s 150th (1867-2017) – Strong. Proud. Free
Canada’s 150th (1867-2017) – Strong. Proud. Free
In 2017 Canadians across the country will celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Canadian Confederation.
Canadians will rediscover the important events that have punctuated the history of our country. In the light of the pride that country’s citizenry feels for what Canada stands for, the theme that was adopted as part of the celebrations is highly representative: Strong. Proud. Free.
Canada will celebrate many historical events across the country with much pomp and circumstance in anticipation of the confederation’s 150th anniversary.
Letting Quebec City Shine
Some of the key celebrations will take place in Quebec City. The local citizenry will take part in the events planned and organized by the mayor of Quebec City, Régis Labeaume, who is also planning a tour that is to include a dozen French-speaking cities across North America, including Quebec City, in a move to discover the continent’s culture with French roots – a culture that has long been a draw for both Canadian and international tourists visiting the region.
Forty North American cities that have French linguistic roots have expressed an interest in this project initiated by the city of Quebec.
Some of the collaborative efforts in organizing several of the events are due in part to the involvement of the International Association of Francophone Mayors (AIMF), an organization which brings together mayors and locally elected officials in the 48 countries around the world where French is one of the officially spoken languages, including several cities and regions in North America. Some cities have already announced their intention to participate in the organizing of events, including Moncton in the province of New Brunswick and Lafayette in the US state of Louisiana.
Of note is that the president of the AIMF is the current mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo and that the mayor of Québec City is one of the organisation’s vice presidents.
“Nine million French speakers in North America is clearly something we need to publicize” – Régis Labaume, Mayor of Québec City
Plans are also under consideration to organise events with Francophiles in New York and Los Angeles.
The main event scheduled in Quebec City during 2017
During the 2017 celebrations of Canada’s 150th, the most awaited event is undoubtedly the return of the Tall Ships to the Old Port of Quebec.
Reminder of the evolution of the Canadian Confederation
Canada became a country on the first of July 1867. The initial confederation was made up of only four provinces. Below is the timeline of the entry of the various provinces and territories into the Confederation that led to the 10 provinces and 3 territories that now form Canada.
1867 Québec, Ontario, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick
1870 Manitoba and the Northwest Territories
1871 British Columbia
1873 Prince Edward Island
1898 Yukon
1905 Alberta and Saskatchewan
1949 Newfoundland
1999 Nunavut
