New book: Whose Canada?

A new edited volume, Whose Canada?: Continental Integration, Fortress North America, and the Corporate Agenda, by Ricardo Grinspun and Yasmine Shamsie, has just come out, featuring many of your favourite left-wing writers. The full book is out from McGill-Queen’s University Press, and can also be purchased through the CCPA. The table of contents can be viewed here. The synopsis follows:

Questions and concerns regarding the scope and depth of Canada’s relationship with the United States loom larger than ever since 9/11. In Whose Canada?, contributors provide a comprehensive analysis of the legacy of free trade and examine the challenges that deepening bilateral integration – including its latest incarnation in the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP) – presents for Canadian sovereignty and public policy autonomy.

They focus on trade and economics, politics, public policy, social policy, labour, health care, education, local government, minority rights, military and security, foreign policy, culture, law, Quebec, environment, energy, and civil society.

The authors share their scepticism regarding corporate Canada’s continental agenda and Ottawa’s deepening linkages with Washington. In response to the question “Whose Canada?” they forcefully argue that Canada’s future must be shaped by the whole of its citizenry rather than a determined elite. To this end, they advance a practical vision for revitalizing democracy and upholding the public good.

Contributors include Sharryn Aiken (Queen’s), Maude Barlow (Council of Canadians), Dorval Brunelle (UQAM), Duncan Cameron (Simon Fraser University), Bruce Campbell (Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, CCPA), Tony Clarke (Polaris Institute), Stephen Clarkson (Toronto), Marjorie Griffin Cohen (Simon Fraser University), Kathy Corrigan (Canadian Union of Public Employees), Murray Dobbin (CCPA), Jim Grieshaber-Otto (CCPA), Andrew Jackson (Canadian Labour Congress), Marc Lee (CCPA), Benoît Lévesque (UQAM), Elizabeth May (Green Party), Garry Neil (International Network for Cultural Diversity), Larry Pratt (Alberta), David Robinson (Canadian Association for University Teachers), Mario Seccareccia (Ottawa), Steven Shrybman (Sack, Goldblatt, & Mitchell), Scott Sinclair (CCPA), Steven Staples (Ceasefire.ca), and Michelle Swenarchuk (Canadian Environmental Law Association).

“This book addresses the most pressing issue facing Canadians today – our nation’s future in Fortress North America. In Whose Canada? you will find the views and concerns of the most engaged thinkers and activists in our country. The issues dealt with in this remarkable book, beautifully crafted, are the core questions of our era. For Canadians, in essence, what is at stake is the kind of society in which we live, the legacy we will leave for our children, and Canada’s role within a troubled world.” Maude Barlow, author of Too Close For Comfort: Canada’s Future Within Fortress North America.

I think Lawrence Martin deserves a free copy.