Over the years, Yalden (law, U. of Ottawa, Canada) has served as Canada's official languages commissioner, chief commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, and a member of the United Nations Human Right Committee. Basing his discussion on that experience, he here reflects on developments in human and language rights in Canada. He explores how the development of rights norms and standards in Canada reflects Canadian history and character, considers the roles of the various commissions he has served on in promoting rights, and discusses the relationship between the international and Canadian levels in the development of human rights norms. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
Maxwell Yalden began his career in the Department of External Affairs; he was posted to Moscow and Paris, and later as ambassador to Belguim. As Canada's Language Commissioner from 1977-1984, he worked to reinforce the Official Languages Act, and language equality, encouraging Canadians to become more inclusive in their attitudes towards both official languages. Chief Commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission from 1987-1996, he also served for eight years as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Committee. Transforming Rights draws on Yalden's extensive experience in rights work to provide a personal assessment of how issues of human rights and language rights have evolved over the past forty years, both within Canada and internationally.
Transforming Rights contends that Canadian rights principles reflect a unique history and character and examines the interplay of historical and contemporary Canadian standards with comparable international norms. Yalden argues that Canada's rights achievements demonstrate that though it may not be possible to change beliefs and attitudes through policy and legislation, it is certainly possible to change behaviour - facilitating the expansion of rights. Authoritative and anecdotal, Yalden offers an informed insider's opinion on continuously evolving human rights norms and the impact they have had on the way that people live their lives.
Transforming Rights draws on Yalden's extensive experience in rights work to provide a personal assessment of how issues of human rights and language rights have evolved over the past forty years, both within Canada and internationally.
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"I have long admired Max Yalden's career of public service. His book Transforming Rights: Reflections from the Front Lines is an excellent, comprehensive and candid review of universal themes as they have evolved both in Canada and internationally." -- Honourable R. Roy McMurtry, Former Attorney General of Ontario, High Commissioner of the United Kingdom, and Chief Justice of Ontario
Preface
Acknowledgments
Part One: Introduction
1 Personal File
2 School, University, Graduate Studies
3 A Public Service Career
a) The Department of External Affairs
b) The Secretary of State's Department and the Department of Communications
c) Official Languages Commissioner
d) Canadian Ambassador to Belgium and Luxemburg
e) Human Rights Commissioner
f) Member, United Nations Human Rights Committee
Part Two: Language Rights
1 The Background to Language Reform
2 The Origins of the Royal Commission on Biligualism and Biculturalism
3 The Royal Commission Recommendations and Government Reactions
a) Preliminary Report
b) General Introduction
c) The Official Languages
d) Education
e) The Work World
f) Other Ethnic Groups
g) The Federal Capital
h) Voluntary Associations
4 Summary of Commission Proposals and Government Reactions
Part Three: Human Rights
1 Introduction
2 The Universality of Human Rights Norms
3 Perspectives on Human Rights
a) Narrow and Broad Approaches
b) Rights and Responsibilities
c) The Pendulum Effect and the Rights Industry
d) Rights and the Press
e) Conflicting Rights
4 The Canadian Experience
a) Policy Objectives
b) Implementation
c) The Charter, Legislation, and the Courts
d) Ombudsman Offices and Human Rights Commissions
5 Discrimination
a) Women's Rights and Sex Discrimination
b) Sexual Orientation
c) Age Discrimination
d) Disability
e) Race, Ethnic Origin, and Religion
6 Multiculturalism
a) Background
b) Quebec - The Bouchard-Taylor Commission
7 Employment Equity
8 Pay Equity
9 Aboriginal Rights
Part Four: Human Rights and International Relations
Terminology
1 International Human Rights Machinery
2 The High Commissioner for Human Rights
3 Regional Human Rights Machinery
4 The Human Rights Covenants and the Treaty Bodies
5 Canada and International Human Rights Machinery
6 Canada and Human Rights Violations
Part Five: Summing Up and Conclusions
1 Language Rights
2 Human Rights
Appendix
Notes
Select Bibliography
Index
Maxwell Yalden is a Companion of the Order of Canada and an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa.
