Charter Of Rights And Freedoms Essay

Words: 470
Pages: 2

Before the Charter was introduced, rights and freedoms were protected in Canada by a variety of laws, including the 1960 Bill of Rights.
-“The bill of rights lacked the supremacy and permanence of the Charter.” The Bill of Rights also only applied to federal, rather than provincial laws.
- The Charter of Rights and Freedoms was enacted in 1982 and was penned by Pierre Elliot Trudeau.
- The Charter limited the powers of police and increased the powers of the courts and judges.
-It played an integral role in the acceptance and legalization of abortion, and birth control. (Refer to the 1988 Morgentaler case.)
- “Gave Francophones the rights to speak their language outside of Quebec.”
-It also strengthened the rights of aboriginal people in Canada.
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However, majority of the provinces agreed to the passing of the Charter as long as it contained a clause “allowing Parliament or any provincial legislature to exempt their laws from certain sections in the Charter (on fundamental rights, equality rights and legal rights), for a period of five years. The "notwithstanding clause," as Section 33 of the Charter is known, has been used only a handful of times by various provinces to violate Charter rights, most notably by Quebec to create laws limiting the use of English signage, and by Alberta against the issue of same-sex marriage. Although the clause is available to governments, its use is politically difficult and therefore rare.”
-“The Charter protects Canadians against the state, and protects minorities against parliamentary majorities. It applies to anyone in Canada, citizen or newcomer, although some of its rights apply only to citizens, including the right to vote and the right to enter and leave the country. Its language is more general than specific, which is one reason why critics fear it gives too much interpretive power to