Hennessy’s Index: A number is never just a number
Hennessy’s Index is a monthly listing of numbers, written by the CCPA’s Trish Hennessy, about Canada and its place in the world. Scroll down for a PDF version. For other months, visit: http://policyalternatives.ca/index
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Early-1900s
The women’s suffragette movement exercised quiet persistence, securing Canadian women’s right to vote in federal elections in 1918. Provinces and territories eventually followed suit. (Source)
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1919
The Winnipeg General Strike paralyzed the city for days. Citizens joined the unions in a mass strike in a bid for better working conditions. Collective bargaining was recognized as a right 20 years later. (Source)
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1935
Strikes, marches and protests erupted as a growing number of Canadians hopped railway freight cars to Ottawa demanding federal government aid in the middle of the Great Depression. It set the tone for social and welfare reforms in the post-war era. (Source)
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1945
The 99-day strike by Ford workers in Windsor led to the Rand Formula, putting into contract terms the concept of union security. (Source)
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1960s
The Quiet Revolution, a period of intense change in Quebec that resulted in secularization, the creation of a welfare state and a realignment of federalist-separatist politics. (Source)
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1967-70s
A second wave of feminism arose out of civil rights and anti-war movements, highlighting issues such as equal pay, women’s right to choose, and violence against women. (Source)
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2000
The protest of the Third Summit of the Americas in Quebec City followed on the heels of the “Battle of Seattle” and sparked a series of similar anti-corporate globalization protests in Canada over the past decade. (Source)
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2010
The Toronto G20 protest led to mass arrests, investigations into police brutality still ongoing. (Source)
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October 2011
Occupy Wall Street reframes income inequality – we are the 99% – and spills over into Canada, with Occupy movements in cities throughout the country. (Source)
