Nationalism, activism, and the canadian sociology and anthropology community, 1967–1985

Abstract

Debates have again resurfaced in Canada over the hiring of foreign academics to work in Canadian universities. Many are predicting a shortage of qualified Canadian graduates able to cope with the expected influx of echo generation students. In the face of such a crisis, some are calling for the elimination of the Canadians First policy now in place to limit the number of foreign academics taking jobs in Canada. This situation is not new. This article looks past traditional discussions of the Canadianization movement of the 1960s and 1970s, which tend to focus on epistemological issues, and examines it as a social movement. From this perspective, Canadian sociologists and anthropologists contributed significantly to the movement to Canadianization sociology and anthropology in Canada, as well as other disciplines. The hope here is that a proper historical understanding of the Canadianization movement, and its successes, will help us in evaluating possible solutions to the coming crisis.