When it comes to tying the knot, Canadian couples have a lot of decisions to make. When is the big day? Where will it take place? Who’s going to be in the wedding party? Engaged couples can find inspiration for their nuptials in many places, including friends and family, popular films, cultural customs, and more. Why not Canada? Have you considered showing your country some love during the ultimate celebration of love? Here are some wedding décor ideas inspired by the Great White North.
Coloring Your Day With The Canadian Colors
One of the most iconic symbols of Canada is its distinctive red and white flag with a single red maple leaf. What better way to celebrate your homeland than with a red and white color scheme? White is a symbol of purity and newness, and it’s usually the color of choice for a bridal gown, a grand cake, florals, and sometimes a groom’s tuxedo. Red is widely associated with love, passion, and valentines, especially for hearts and roses. Consider the following ways to work red and white into your wedding celebration:
Attire: Bridesmaids can wear red dresses, while groomsmen go with red neckwear, pocket squares, vests, or cummerbunds.
Flowers: You and your spouse can be the king, queen, or highnesses of hearts with red and white bouquets and floral displays.
“Something old, something new, something borrowed, something red”: Put a Canadian spin on a classic wedding tradition by requesting a gift of something red instead of blue.
Other décor: Play with red and white for your reception, including balloons, table settings, wedding cakes, etc.
Leafing It Up All The Way
Red and white may not be your preferred motif, but you can still be inspired by the Canadian flag. The iconic maple leaf can be the inspiration for your marriage ceremony or reception. Use maple leaves in your bouquets and other floral displays, such as an arch or arbor at the altar. You can also feature a maple leaf in your wedding invitations, programs, and placards. Imagine turning heads with maple leaf–inspired accessories such as cufflinks, pocket squares, and jewelry. Red maple leaves are a fun way to show some national pride on your special day.
Dressing Down To Dress Up
What’s a Canadian marriage ceremony without that classic Canadian sense of humor or irony? One way to acknowledge your country is by having members of the wedding party wear Canadian tuxedoes. The Canadian tuxedo look involves wearing a denim jacket or shirt with matching pants. Supposedly the term originated in the 1950s when American entertainer Bing Crosby was denied entry to a Vancouver hotel for wearing a denim top with bottoms. Jeans maker Levi Strauss & Co fashioned a tuxedo out of denim for Crosby as a publicity stunt. Similarly, wedding apparel made of flannel and plaid can be a fun, tongue-in-cheek nod to Canada.
Topping Things Off In A Canadian Way
If red maple leaves in your cake design are too on the nose, consider topping your cake with figurines dressed up as hockey players from Canada’s biggest teams, such as the Montreal Canadiens, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Vancouver Canucks, the Winnipeg Jets, or the Ottawa Senators. If you’re not a hockey fan, consider figurines dressed up as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Also called “Mounties,” the RCMP are easily recognized by their uniform of a red tunic, brown hat, blue breeches, and riding boots.
Planning a wedding is part of the excitement of getting married. As soon-to-be-spouses, you and your partner get to decide what you’d like to see on your big day. While you can pull inspiration from almost anything, you can also show some patriotism by choosing Canada as your source for décor, apparel, and more.
Over the last few years, there have been a number of moves made throughout Canadian provinces to reduce the presence of religion in public places. One of the more notable actions was a 2019 decision in Quebec to enforce a law prohibiting public employees from donning any type of religious symbols while in an official workplace. Though there has been pushback on the law, it has brought forth a number of conversations in relation to modern religious beliefs throughout Canada. Though the country was largely composed of those identifying as Christian for many decades, this has shifted in recent times.
A handful of Pew studies conducted in recent years highlight the exact changes that have occurred when it comes to the average Canadian’s feelings about religion. Take a look at these data-driven points to get a better idea of what these changes are.
Fewer Canadians Are Identifying as Christians
A poll conducted in 1971 across Canada revealed that only about 4% of the population identified as unaffiliated with any one particular religion. During this same survey, the most popular religion was Christianity, with about 47% of the respondents identifying with this belief system. In 2018, however, the same survey was conducted, with dramatically different results. In the roughly 50-year span between the polls, the percentage of people identifying as Christian rose slightly to about 55%. However, the number of unaffiliated individuals also spiked from 4% to 16%.
There have also been a number of changes in the religions that Canadians belong to. Though this accounts for only about 8% of the population, it is a much larger number than in decades past. Since the survey in the 1970s, there have been increases in individuals who are affiliated with Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and many other belief systems.
Daily Practices Are Not a Part of Canadian Life
Belief is only a small part of the picture when it comes to religion in Canada. Rituals like attending weekend worship or praying each day also factor into the equation. Though 55% of the population identified as Christian, very few actually committed to any kind of regular practice. In fact, only one out of every five Canadians surveyed said that they prayed on any kind of daily basis. What’s more, about 25% of those who identified as some form of Christian did not go to any kind of weekly worship or services.
What is interesting about this is that there is a slight disparity between belief and practice. A survey conducted in 2013 highlighted that almost 30% of Canadians believed that religion was very important to their daily lives. However, this doesn’t match with the percentage of individuals who commit to any kind of daily practice. This is an intriguing example of how people can believe one thing and yet act in an entirely different way.
Religion and Morality Are Not Linked
Throughout history, there has often been a prominent argument stating that good morals are born of a religious mindset. While there has been little to prove this point, the belief is actually not that popular with modern Canadians. In fact, a series of studies conducted between 2003 and 2011 showed that a consistent 67% of the population believed that a person could have good morals and be an upstanding citizen without having any kind of religious belief whatsoever. Still, a very small percentage of Canadians have a strict rule that a person must believe in God to be truly good.
Religious beliefs are constantly changing. While it can be difficult to track, data does an invaluable job of pointing out exactly how these major shifts have come about. Though banning religious symbols in Quebec was a controversial move, looking at the research can highlight exactly why these decisions have been made and what public opinions are shaping the course of history.
There are quite the unique Canadian foods and you may some if not all of them. Whether you’re a foodie or not, one of the most fun and sometimes stressful parts of wedding planning is coming up with a menu. From the rehearsal dinner to the reception, the options are nearly endless for cuisine. When you’re celebrating upcoming nuptials in the Great White North, you may want to display some national pride when deciding what to eat. If so, here are some Canadian dishes for your consideration.
Canadian Go With a Poutine Routine
When it comes to Canadian cuisine, poutine reigns supreme. This classic comfort food dish combines crisp French fries, cheese curds and a rich savory gravy for a meal or snack that feels like home. This casual meal offers versatility for wedding-day eats. It can be served in classic form for a less formal, more homey celebration, or it can be jazzed up for a special occasion. Consider alternative toppings such as pulled pork, bacon or other types of grilled or smoked meat. French fries are available in various form factors, making poutine a dish that’s easy to rework for your menu.
Serve a Tourtière Premiere
When it comes to soul-affirming eats, you can’t go wrong with tourtière. This classic Canadian meat pie dish originates from Quebec. Traditionally, it’s filled with minced pork, veal or beef and potatoes. It’s a popular dish for the holidays up north. It can be a featured menu item at your rehearsal dinner or wedding reception. Although a classic tourtière is hard to beat, you can modify this dish with other proteins, including salmon and wild game. Individual pies make for a heartwarming second or third course, while pre-cut slices are easily retrieved from a buffet or family-style service.
Offer Donair With Flair
Doner, as in doner kebab, is a staple of various Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines. This meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie has several descendants, including Arabic shawarma, Mexican al pastor, Greek gyros and Canadian donair. Since the early 1970s, donair has been a staple as street food in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A combination of spiced ground beef and sweet sauce served in Lebanese flatbread, this cousin of the gyro sandwich can be scaled down as a small bite for wedding eats. Guests can add their own toppings to suit their particular tastes with this ultra-casual snack.
Turn Tables With Bagels
While many people associate bagels with New York City, Canadians know that Montreal-style bagels are the culinary champs, especially when served as part of a post-wedding brunch or a wedding breakfast meal. These bagels are generally sweeter, denser and thinner than their New York cousins, but they are just as delicious with your favorite bagel toppings, including salmon, lox, cream cheese, capers, compound butters and fruit spreads. A food station that lets guests create the perfectly topped bagel is a great move.
Canadian bacon Take Stake in Bacon
“Canadian bacon” is an American term for a certain style of smoked bacon and has no origins here in the Great White North. Peameal bacon, on the other hand, is a type of unsmoked back bacon that originates in Southern Ontario. It is made from trimmed center-cut pork loin that is cured in a wet salt and sugar brine and rolled in cornmeal. Closer to fresh ham in taste than traditional bacon, peameal bacon has a mild salty and sweet flavor. This protein can be served any time of the day as individual slices in a charcuterie board or as part of a cooked dish.
Choosing the food for your big day or associated events should be part of the fun in getting married. Just as with other aspects of your wedding, it’s up to you and your partner to decide what everyone will eat. These classic Canadian dishes are comforting and can be worked into just about any menu in any format for fun, memorable eats.
The rituals surrounding weddings can change faster than many people can track. If you’ve always pictured having a classic affair that includes many Canadian traditions, you might find it difficult to know which are worth your time. From tea parties to sliding around the dance floor in socks, there are some fun ideas to consider incorporating into your own festivities. Review these suggestions and get a better feel for the customs that have made weddings across Canada special for generations.
The Canadian Tea Party
To keep a guest list from growing out of control, couples have to make cuts. Unfortunately, sometimes the people excluded from the event are good friends and associates. One tradition that has been slowly fading is the “trousseau tea party.” This is a small luncheon held by the couple before the wedding and attended by those who didn’t make the official guest list. Initially, this event was arranged by the mother of the bride. Nowadays, couples who decide to partake in a trousseau tea party will put together the gatherings themselves.
The Canadian Toast
Wedding toasts are one of the more commonplace rituals. Nowadays, it has become custom for the toasts to be given by members of the wedding party or immediate relatives of the couple. However, there has been another popular way to go about toasting in Canada that might be worth considering for your event. Instead of having people talk about you, this toast tradition involves the couple getting up and toasting to the couples who have inspired them.
This tradition is one that can be fun to incorporate because it is unexpected and sweet. Most guests at a wedding get a little bored during the toasts, especially when the person speaking isn’t engaging. When the couple decides to speak, however, everyone in the room listens. This is your day, and toasting to the couples who have shown you perfect examples of love and commitment can be a great way to bring good energy into your union.
The Socks
There is a famous scene in the film “Risky Business” when actor Tom Cruise slides across a wood floor in his socks while dancing and singing. Though this scene didn’t inspire the next tradition, the general idea is the same. The sock dance ritual popular at many Canadian weddings is one that is usually conducted by the siblings of the happy couple. The brothers and sisters will hit the dance floor wearing their socks and commit to sliding and dancing as a way of entertaining the rest of the guests.
The dances can be as serious or silly as the siblings wish, whatever will get the rest of the guests up and engaged. Traditionally, the guests would throw money at the dancers as a way of encouraging them. When the dances are done, the money would be collected from around the floor, stuffed in a sock, and given to the couple as a gift. This is a fun way to get your siblings to act foolish at your behest and make a few bucks along the way.
The Emcee
Hiring an emcee for a wedding is one trend that seems to be rising in popularity in recent years. Essentially, the emcee acts as part entertainer and part coordinator. He or she will announce important moments like the first dance, the cutting of the cake, and the speakers giving toasts. The emcee can also try to hype the crowd when energy is low or interact with the guests in a lively way. You can hire someone for this job or ask a good friend with an energetic personality to take the role.
A wedding can include whatever traditions you wish. Whether you go with classic Canadian rituals or customs from elsewhere, you should always opt for what has the most meaning to you.
A Croquembouche can be a unique wedding cake option.
With the number of French contributions to our culture, you probably won’t be surprised to find a croquembouche at a Canadian wedding. However, you might not be familiar with the history, details and preparation behind these fascinating pastry desserts. Whether you’ve adopted a French theme for your festivities or just want a different type of wedding cake for your reception, this delightful tower of goodness might be just right for your crowd.
Origins in 19th Century France
While much of Canada was still under British rule, a young Parisian baker began crafting a pastry creation that would become his enduring legacy. In January 2017, the U.S. media network National Public Radio website published a piece on legendary French chef Marie-Antoine Carême, the famed inventor of the croquembouche. Born to an impoverished family around 1783 or 1784, he was presumably orphaned by social turmoil resulting from the French revolution. Carême began working in a Paris kitchen at the age of eight, and by the time he was 15 years old, he’d landed a position as an apprentice to top-rated pastry chef Sylvain Bailly.
As Carême honed his craft during his late teen years, Bailly regularly displayed Carême’s stunningly elaborate pastries in his bakery shop window. By the late 1700s, this young sensation had fashioned a tower of small, round cream puffs called “choux” festooned with spun sugar. A recipe for this dessert, which he called a croquembouche, was published in his 1815 cookbook “Le Pâtissier royal parisien.” Meanwhile, Carême continued to rise to culinary stardom, designing lavish, beautiful sweets for the likes of Napoleon, Russia’s Czar Alexander I and prince regent George IV of England.
The Croquembouche in the Modern World
While there are many modern variations on this delicious pastry, they still follow the same basic format: a tall mountain of cream puffs covered in spun sugar and other wonderful edibles. You’ll probably have no difficulty finding bakers in any province to supply one for your special day, and it’s an appropriate wedding cake for many types of wedding themes. Wedding Bells Magazine showcased a French vintage matrimonial affair in a 2012 piece on its website, adding that the couple chose a croquembouche to add a delicate grandeur to their festivities.
If you think that such a spectacular wedding cake should get its own entrance and fanfare, you’re absolutely right. In fact, contributor Kim Petyt on The Good Life France blog revealed that a croquembouche is usually not presented until dessert time. With the lights dimmed and celebratory music playing, guests typically begin chanting “Le gateau! Le gateau!” as the star of the hour is brought out to the dining hall while decorated in small, sizzling fireworks. Once the display is over, the staff serves each guest three or four of the sweet, creamy choux to enjoy.
Flavorful Possibilities Abound
In both exterior decorative touches and inner fillings, the croquembouche presents a wide variety of lovely flavors. Traditionally, each choux contains vanilla-bourbon crème in the center. Nevertheless, bakeries offer several popular filling choices which can include favorites such as caramel and chocolate, or less common tastes like rose, pistachio or orange blossom. Besides spun sugar or pastel-tinted icing, a croquembouche wedding cake can be decked out in sugared almonds, chocolate, candied ribbons or even edible flowers.
A Delicious Wedding Cake Idea for Your Nuptial Affair
The croquembouche is a distinctive and delightful wedding cake that offers a complex combination of aesthetics, French culture and flavor. Its name appropriately translates to “crunch in the mouth,” and your guests will enjoy the taste and texture of this now-classic sweet treat. Add to that the customary celebratory fanfare with which it’s presented during your festivities, and your croquembouche will certainly be a memorable part of your wedding day.
Examples of longstanding wedding customs would be the throwing of the bouquet, the throwing of the garter belt, and the couple slicing the first piece of cake.
It is no small surprise that Canadians love their country and all of its expansive beauty. Though Canada shares a lot of its culture with countries in Europe and America, there are many wedding customs that exist within the nation that are unique. If you are planning on getting married in the near future, you may be wondering how your fellow citizens go about the process. Recent studies have shown some interesting facts about how modern couples get married.
Long Standing Wedding Customs: The Month of December
Popping the question to your significant other is a big part of the wedding process. Without taking this initial step, you really can’t move forward with a marriage. Engagements are different depending on the culture. This is especially true of when people decide to pop the question to their partners. A study surveying a large number of Canadian men points out an interesting trend in this regard. A vast majority of men have proposed or are planning to propose in the month of December.
Age Is a Number
Wedding customs marriage change as much as the times do. Statistics show that the average age for a woman to get married in Canada in 1950 was 25. This number fluctuated a bit in the subsequent decades, dropping to an average of 23 from the 1970s until more recently. This trend in Canada reflects a larger movement happening among women of all backgrounds. Though this primarily is a shift in Western cultures, women are adopting more professional roles in greater numbers.
Under Pressure
The idea of a wedding has grown a little bit out of control in recent decades. Once, a wedding was simply a union between two people who loved each other. Polls taken of young brides approaching their wedding have shown that a large number of women feel pressured to spend more than they can afford. While you may want to spend a good amount on your wedding, it is important to be sensible with your budget and keep enough cash around to start your life with your partner after the big day.
Making It Your Own
Paying attention to wedding customs and trends can help with planning a wedding that meets your own specific needs. It is important for you to follow your own path. Couples should not caught up in what everyone else is doing.
While you may want to explore popular trends to see what is interesting to you, making your decisions based on what you personally enjoy will help result in the best celebration of your love. Find a way to make your special day a unique experience. This will make it easy to remember fondly for many years to come.
One of the most common wedding traditions practiced to this day is the catching of the bride’s bouquet.
The idea of getting married is nothing new. In fact, weddings are some of the oldest ceremonies to have been documented across all civilizations. There are a lot of traditions that have persisted through the years even if the mentality behind a wedding has changed. In Canada, for example, there are plenty of unique ways of going about the process of marrying your partner.
Common Wedding Traditions
Planning for a wedding requires time and research. Here are a few wedding practices that appear often in Canadian rituals in the current day and age, as well as in other cultures across the world.
Catch the Bouquet
One common tradition found in many weddings is the tossing of the bouquet. Traditionally, this is an act by the bride, who tosses the flowers backwards over her shoulder toward a crowd of single friends and relatives. It is customary for this part of the ceremony to only include women, but shifting attitudes have shown that single men can also get in on the fun if the married couple so wishes. The history behind this act is a bit more interesting than might be first believed.
In older cultures, it was common for single women to tear away a piece of the bride’s dress. This was meant as a gesture of good luck for the women holding the strip of garment. As wedding dresses became more expensive, brides found that it was a bit much to have their families and friends tearing away at their beautiful gowns. The bouquet toss was a custom introduced to ward away women who wanted a piece of luck and provide them with a competitive chance for their wishes.
Eternal Love
Some traditions are so ingrained in the cultural sphere that it’s hard to imagine another way of going about the process. Rings, for example, are the cornerstone of an engagement and subsequent wedding. There have been many different approaches to the exchanging of rings over the years. Essentially, experts have traced the tradition of the ring back to Egypt in its earliest days of civilization.
The Egyptians would trade rings as a sign of eternal love and commitment. Eventually, due to the conquests of the Greeks and Romans, the tradition was adopted. As civilization expanded through Europe, the custom became more widespread until it reached the height that it exists at now. The custom of wearing a wedding ring on a specific finger can also be traced back to the Egyptians. They believed that the third finger on the left hand was the one most closely connected to the human heart.
White Wedding
A common practice in the modern age is for a woman to wear white on her wedding day. This is actually not as old of a tradition as many might believe. In Western culture, the custom of wearing white began as a way of symbolizing the purity of the bride. This started during the Victorian Era in England and has persisted to the modern day in many countries. What’s more fascinating is that brides across the world wore a multitude of colors on their wedding day before this practice began.
White was a rare color to be seen during a ceremony in earlier traditions. It has lively and vibrant colors being more closely associated with the passion and beauty of shared love. Though it seems that most brides wear white in the current age, the trend is being pushed against. More women are wearing dresses that match their personal tastes rather than taking part in a tradition that holds no meaning for them.
As you plan your wedding, consider the meaning behind current customs. You may want to break from tradition or go with the flow – the choice is yours.
Recent incarceration statistics have shown a dramatic increase in Amerinds and Black Canadians.
In 2014, The New Observer reported concerns about the rising population rates of Amerinds and blacks in Canadian federal prisons. According to incarceration statistics, both races were highly over-represented in the prison system when you look at the overall population in the country. Two-and-a-half years later, The Torontoist reports, “There are 70 per cent [sic] more Black Canadians in federal prison than there were 10 years ago…” In addition, Howard Sapers, Correctional Investigator, released his annual report of the status of the prisons. He found that from 2005 to 2015 the overall population in the correction system in Canada grew by 10 percent. The Aboriginal inmate population grew by more than 50 percent. This phenomenon was evident in both male and female populations.
Who Is Howard Sapers?
Why should you listen to Sapers? He was appointed to his position as Correctional Investigator of Canada in 2004. This is his 11th annual report. He is not tied to any political climate, as he has served under two Prime Ministers and under five different Ministers of Public Safety. During his tenure in his position, his team has responded to over 200,000 complaints and calls. Sapers has provided testimony to many different Parliamentary Committees and responded to criminal justice reforms handed down by the government. He believes in human dignity and decency even for those who are deprived of their liberty. Sapers is an advocate for a fair and rational criminal justice system.
In his message of his annual report, he breaks down the incarceration statistics even further, offering some interesting statistics:
Twenty-five percent of the prison population is now 50 or older.
Only about 40 percent of inmates have a formal education of grade eight or higher.
Sixty percent of inmates have not graduated high school.
Sixty percent of female inmates require prescription medications to manage their mental health needs.
Seventy percent of female inmates report histories of sexual abuse.
Eighty-six percent of women in the prison system report physical abuse at some point in their lives.
Eighty percent of the male inmates have experienced addiction and substance abuse.
Is Racism the Problem?
The Torontoist reports that the high rate of blacks in prison is due to racism and over-policing. In Canada, blacks make up about three percent of the general population but 10 percent of the prison population. Indigenous Canadians make up 24.4 percent of the federal prison population but only 4.3 percent of the general population. This is not a problem just in Canada. In the United States, the numbers aren’t quite as pronounced, but African-Americans make up 13 percent of the general population and account for 37 percent of the prison population.
One local lawyer is calling for an initiative similar to the 1991 Aboriginal Justice Strategy that was created to address the growing population of Indigenous Canadians in the prisons. It offered restorative justice and diversion programs and alternative sentencing. In 2011, a report was issued that outlined the success of the AJS. It had this to say:
“Evidence that the long-term outcome of the AJS of ‘reduced crime and incarceration rates in communities with funded programs’ is being achieved is evident through the results of the recidivism study, which found a significant difference between rates of re-offending of AJS-funded program participants and a comparison group.”
Unfortunately, these same outcomes are not being seen in the prisons.
Are There Solutions?
Some might say that criminals get what they deserve. They do have to pay for their crime, but when you look at some of Sapers’ findings, one has to wonder if the solution starts with ensuring people have an education and that their mental health needs are taken care of. Women who are abused need help to improve their self-confidence and outcomes. Things won’t change overnight, but these statistics should concern everyone.
Simply by signing up to be an organ donor, one can help give the gift of life to someone in need.
The world’s first single and double lung transplants were performed in Ontario in 1983 and 1986 respectively. Canada is a leader in the field of transplantation when it comes to medicine and technology, but when it comes to the number of organ donors, we’re lagging behind the rest of the world, including the United States.
In the last 10 years, the number of deceased organ donors has increased in Canada, but the number of people needing transplants has also increased. In 2014, there were more than 4,500 people waiting for organ transplants. Doctors performed 2,356 organ transplants, and 278 people died waiting for an organ. Kidney transplants account for 77 percent of the need.
Surprisingly, 90 percent of Canadian citizens support organ and tissue donation. It’s something practically everyone agrees on, but according to the Canadian Transplant Society, only about 20 percent of the population has actually made plans to donate.
Qualifications for Organ Donors
Don’t discount your health, age or other factors when determining whether you should be a donor. Your health today doesn’t determine whether your organs qualify to be donated. There are many different organs that can be donated. Your organ donation could save up to eight lives. Tissue donations could improve the quality of life in up to 75 different people. Also consider the improvement in life quality for the families and friends of those individuals who are helped.
There are many myths about organ donations. Some people worry that the hospital staff won’t work as hard to save your life if they know you’re an organ donor. This is simply a myth perpetuated by the tabloids, urban legends and television. Doctors have to focus on your life, not the life of another person.
Another myth that is perpetuated by the tabloids is that you may not really be dead. Doctors perform even more tests on organ donors to determine that they are really dead than they might on someone who hasn’t agreed to organ donation.
If you’re concerned about your religion’s position on organ donation, check with your clergy. Most major religions support organ donation, but you should discuss your theological concerns with someone who is knowledgeable about the tenets of your faith.
Legally, children cannot decide to be an organ donor, but children do die every day, and other children are waiting for organs from smaller people. Parents and legal guardians can give permission for children to be organ donors. There’s no denying that it is a difficult decision. Thinking about your position on organ donation before something happens is one way to have peace about it if it ever happens that you do need to make the choice.
How to Register
Registering to be an organ donor is the most effective method of identification. You may lose a wallet card, or it might be unavailable when it is needed. Telling one family member is recommended, but again, in the stress of the moment, your decision may be forgotten. Registration is quick and easy.
It actually takes very little time to register as an organ donor. In Ontario, the website is beadonor.ca. You’ll need your health card number and some basic information about yourself. If you’re in another province or territory, the Government of Canada’s website, under health, diseases and conditions, has links to instructions for your place of residence.
Loved ones are asked about your wishes at your death, which is why it’s important to talk to them about your decision. The Canadian Transplant Society has some resources to help you talk to your family, and it offers an End of Life Wishes form for download. Make a difference in people’s lives after your death by choosing to be an organ donor. Get informed.
Not everyone has the money to go to some exotic overseas location on their honeymoon. There’s plenty of great places right here in Canada that don’t require a passport or long flights across the country. Spend your time exploring this beautiful country instead of traveling to some remote destination where you have to spend the first day recovering from jet leg. Here are some ideas you may not have thought about for your post-wedding vacation.
Whitehorse, Yukon
Come see the Northern Lights and enjoy the most romantic view on the planet when you visit this capital city. With a population of less than 30,000, you’ll have plenty of privacy for romantic walks along the historic sites or at the outdoor attractions. There are a number of trails available for both motorized and non-motorized travel. For a peaceful honeymoon in the great outdoors, Whitehorse is a great place.
Montreal, Quebec
The second largest city in Canada, Montreal is the ninth largest in North America. It’s home to all types of music, but is probably best known for producing jazz musicians. There’s plenty of art museums and architecture if you want to get some culture on your honeymoon. Montreal is also home to a number of sports teams. Depending on the season, you’ll have lots of options for great outings to make exciting memories.
Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick
Home to the highest tidal range in the world, Bay of Fundy is a romantic getaway for brides and grooms everywhere. Take a walk along the beach or kayak down one of the many rivers when the tide is high. Visit a winery for a special bottle to take home, or enjoy whale watching during the right season. Bikes are available for rental to enjoy the rustic villages and trails during the day. Small communities offer unique restaurants and local artisan work for souvenirs.
Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver is the eighth largest city in Canada, but named as one of the top five cities worldwide for livability. You’ll have indoor and outdoor options, with luxurious accommodations developed when Vancouver hosted the Winter Olympics. Art, music, and shopping are close at hand if you want to experience an urban getaway, while skiing and other outdoor sports complexes are within driving range for an active day of fun. You can explore the beach or the forest, both in the same day if you like.
Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia
For a natural vacation near glacial formations, the fishing village of Peggy’s Cove offers fresh seafood, lighthouses, and ocean walks. Stay at one of the inns or cottages along the beach to wake up to a sunrise over the bay or enjoy the sunset right from your own dock. There’s plenty to do and see, or you could just pack a picnic and enjoy the peace and quiet of nature.
Quebec City, Quebec
As one of the oldest cities in North America, Quebec City is one of the prettiest with a number of historical landmarks. Enjoy the Parc Aquarium du Quebec on one of your dates. Come see hundreds of animals unique to North America and learn about the conservation efforts to protect the environment. For a more urban getaway, go shopping or enjoy the numerous nightclubs. If you enjoy sports, you’ll find professional teams of all kinds. There’s so much to see and do to make memories in Quebec City when you’re on your honeymoon.
Banff, Alberta
As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Banff, Alberta is a small town in the Alberta Rockies. It sits 1,400 meters above sea level, making it the community with the second highest elevation in Alberta. Come for the hot springs or the outdoor sports. It’s a resort town with plenty to keep the two of you busy. There are a number of hotels and cottages offering accommodations all year long.
When it comes to tying the knot, Canadian couples have a lot of decisions to make. When is the big day? Where will it take place? Who’s going to be in the wedding party? Engaged couples can find inspiration for their nuptials in many places, including friends and family, popular films, cultural customs, and more. Why not Canada? Have you considered showing your country some love during the ultimate celebration of love? Here are some wedding décor ideas inspired by the Great White North.
Coloring Your Day With The Canadian Colors
One of the most iconic symbols of Canada is its distinctive red and white flag with a single red maple leaf. What better way to celebrate your homeland than with a red and white color scheme? White is a symbol of purity and newness, and it’s usually the color of choice for a bridal gown, a grand cake, florals, and sometimes a groom’s tuxedo. Red is widely associated with love, passion, and valentines, especially for hearts and roses. Consider the following ways to work red and white into your wedding celebration:
Attire: Bridesmaids can wear red dresses, while groomsmen go with red neckwear, pocket squares, vests, or cummerbunds.
Flowers: You and your spouse can be the king, queen, or highnesses of hearts with red and white bouquets and floral displays.
“Something old, something new, something borrowed, something red”: Put a Canadian spin on a classic wedding tradition by requesting a gift of something red instead of blue.
Other décor: Play with red and white for your reception, including balloons, table settings, wedding cakes, etc.
Leafing It Up All The Way
Red and white may not be your preferred motif, but you can still be inspired by the Canadian flag. The iconic maple leaf can be the inspiration for your marriage ceremony or reception. Use maple leaves in your bouquets and other floral displays, such as an arch or arbor at the altar. You can also feature a maple leaf in your wedding invitations, programs, and placards. Imagine turning heads with maple leaf–inspired accessories such as cufflinks, pocket squares, and jewelry. Red maple leaves are a fun way to show some national pride on your special day.
Dressing Down To Dress Up
What’s a Canadian marriage ceremony without that classic Canadian sense of humor or irony? One way to acknowledge your country is by having members of the wedding party wear Canadian tuxedoes. The Canadian tuxedo look involves wearing a denim jacket or shirt with matching pants. Supposedly the term originated in the 1950s when American entertainer Bing Crosby was denied entry to a Vancouver hotel for wearing a denim top with bottoms. Jeans maker Levi Strauss & Co fashioned a tuxedo out of denim for Crosby as a publicity stunt. Similarly, wedding apparel made of flannel and plaid can be a fun, tongue-in-cheek nod to Canada.
Topping Things Off In A Canadian Way
If red maple leaves in your cake design are too on the nose, consider topping your cake with figurines dressed up as hockey players from Canada’s biggest teams, such as the Montreal Canadiens, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Vancouver Canucks, the Winnipeg Jets, or the Ottawa Senators. If you’re not a hockey fan, consider figurines dressed up as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Also called “Mounties,” the RCMP are easily recognized by their uniform of a red tunic, brown hat, blue breeches, and riding boots.
Planning a wedding is part of the excitement of getting married. As soon-to-be-spouses, you and your partner get to decide what you’d like to see on your big day. While you can pull inspiration from almost anything, you can also show some patriotism by choosing Canada as your source for décor, apparel, and more.
Over the last few years, there have been a number of moves made throughout Canadian provinces to reduce the presence of religion in public places. One of the more notable actions was a 2019 decision in Quebec to enforce a law prohibiting public employees from donning any type of religious symbols while in an official workplace. Though there has been pushback on the law, it has brought forth a number of conversations in relation to modern religious beliefs throughout Canada. Though the country was largely composed of those identifying as Christian for many decades, this has shifted in recent times.
A handful of Pew studies conducted in recent years highlight the exact changes that have occurred when it comes to the average Canadian’s feelings about religion. Take a look at these data-driven points to get a better idea of what these changes are.
Fewer Canadians Are Identifying as Christians
A poll conducted in 1971 across Canada revealed that only about 4% of the population identified as unaffiliated with any one particular religion. During this same survey, the most popular religion was Christianity, with about 47% of the respondents identifying with this belief system. In 2018, however, the same survey was conducted, with dramatically different results. In the roughly 50-year span between the polls, the percentage of people identifying as Christian rose slightly to about 55%. However, the number of unaffiliated individuals also spiked from 4% to 16%.
There have also been a number of changes in the religions that Canadians belong to. Though this accounts for only about 8% of the population, it is a much larger number than in decades past. Since the survey in the 1970s, there have been increases in individuals who are affiliated with Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and many other belief systems.
Daily Practices Are Not a Part of Canadian Life
Belief is only a small part of the picture when it comes to religion in Canada. Rituals like attending weekend worship or praying each day also factor into the equation. Though 55% of the population identified as Christian, very few actually committed to any kind of regular practice. In fact, only one out of every five Canadians surveyed said that they prayed on any kind of daily basis. What’s more, about 25% of those who identified as some form of Christian did not go to any kind of weekly worship or services.
What is interesting about this is that there is a slight disparity between belief and practice. A survey conducted in 2013 highlighted that almost 30% of Canadians believed that religion was very important to their daily lives. However, this doesn’t match with the percentage of individuals who commit to any kind of daily practice. This is an intriguing example of how people can believe one thing and yet act in an entirely different way.
Religion and Morality Are Not Linked
Throughout history, there has often been a prominent argument stating that good morals are born of a religious mindset. While there has been little to prove this point, the belief is actually not that popular with modern Canadians. In fact, a series of studies conducted between 2003 and 2011 showed that a consistent 67% of the population believed that a person could have good morals and be an upstanding citizen without having any kind of religious belief whatsoever. Still, a very small percentage of Canadians have a strict rule that a person must believe in God to be truly good.
Religious beliefs are constantly changing. While it can be difficult to track, data does an invaluable job of pointing out exactly how these major shifts have come about. Though banning religious symbols in Quebec was a controversial move, looking at the research can highlight exactly why these decisions have been made and what public opinions are shaping the course of history.
There are quite the unique Canadian foods and you may some if not all of them. Whether you’re a foodie or not, one of the most fun and sometimes stressful parts of wedding planning is coming up with a menu. From the rehearsal dinner to the reception, the options are nearly endless for cuisine. When you’re celebrating upcoming nuptials in the Great White North, you may want to display some national pride when deciding what to eat. If so, here are some Canadian dishes for your consideration.
Canadian Go With a Poutine Routine
When it comes to Canadian cuisine, poutine reigns supreme. This classic comfort food dish combines crisp French fries, cheese curds and a rich savory gravy for a meal or snack that feels like home. This casual meal offers versatility for wedding-day eats. It can be served in classic form for a less formal, more homey celebration, or it can be jazzed up for a special occasion. Consider alternative toppings such as pulled pork, bacon or other types of grilled or smoked meat. French fries are available in various form factors, making poutine a dish that’s easy to rework for your menu.
Serve a Tourtière Premiere
When it comes to soul-affirming eats, you can’t go wrong with tourtière. This classic Canadian meat pie dish originates from Quebec. Traditionally, it’s filled with minced pork, veal or beef and potatoes. It’s a popular dish for the holidays up north. It can be a featured menu item at your rehearsal dinner or wedding reception. Although a classic tourtière is hard to beat, you can modify this dish with other proteins, including salmon and wild game. Individual pies make for a heartwarming second or third course, while pre-cut slices are easily retrieved from a buffet or family-style service.
Offer Donair With Flair
Doner, as in doner kebab, is a staple of various Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cuisines. This meat cooked on a vertical rotisserie has several descendants, including Arabic shawarma, Mexican al pastor, Greek gyros and Canadian donair. Since the early 1970s, donair has been a staple as street food in Halifax, Nova Scotia. A combination of spiced ground beef and sweet sauce served in Lebanese flatbread, this cousin of the gyro sandwich can be scaled down as a small bite for wedding eats. Guests can add their own toppings to suit their particular tastes with this ultra-casual snack.
Turn Tables With Bagels
While many people associate bagels with New York City, Canadians know that Montreal-style bagels are the culinary champs, especially when served as part of a post-wedding brunch or a wedding breakfast meal. These bagels are generally sweeter, denser and thinner than their New York cousins, but they are just as delicious with your favorite bagel toppings, including salmon, lox, cream cheese, capers, compound butters and fruit spreads. A food station that lets guests create the perfectly topped bagel is a great move.
Canadian bacon Take Stake in Bacon
“Canadian bacon” is an American term for a certain style of smoked bacon and has no origins here in the Great White North. Peameal bacon, on the other hand, is a type of unsmoked back bacon that originates in Southern Ontario. It is made from trimmed center-cut pork loin that is cured in a wet salt and sugar brine and rolled in cornmeal. Closer to fresh ham in taste than traditional bacon, peameal bacon has a mild salty and sweet flavor. This protein can be served any time of the day as individual slices in a charcuterie board or as part of a cooked dish.
Choosing the food for your big day or associated events should be part of the fun in getting married. Just as with other aspects of your wedding, it’s up to you and your partner to decide what everyone will eat. These classic Canadian dishes are comforting and can be worked into just about any menu in any format for fun, memorable eats.
The rituals surrounding weddings can change faster than many people can track. If you’ve always pictured having a classic affair that includes many Canadian traditions, you might find it difficult to know which are worth your time. From tea parties to sliding around the dance floor in socks, there are some fun ideas to consider incorporating into your own festivities. Review these suggestions and get a better feel for the customs that have made weddings across Canada special for generations.
The Canadian Tea Party
To keep a guest list from growing out of control, couples have to make cuts. Unfortunately, sometimes the people excluded from the event are good friends and associates. One tradition that has been slowly fading is the “trousseau tea party.” This is a small luncheon held by the couple before the wedding and attended by those who didn’t make the official guest list. Initially, this event was arranged by the mother of the bride. Nowadays, couples who decide to partake in a trousseau tea party will put together the gatherings themselves.
The Canadian Toast
Wedding toasts are one of the more commonplace rituals. Nowadays, it has become custom for the toasts to be given by members of the wedding party or immediate relatives of the couple. However, there has been another popular way to go about toasting in Canada that might be worth considering for your event. Instead of having people talk about you, this toast tradition involves the couple getting up and toasting to the couples who have inspired them.
This tradition is one that can be fun to incorporate because it is unexpected and sweet. Most guests at a wedding get a little bored during the toasts, especially when the person speaking isn’t engaging. When the couple decides to speak, however, everyone in the room listens. This is your day, and toasting to the couples who have shown you perfect examples of love and commitment can be a great way to bring good energy into your union.
The Socks
There is a famous scene in the film “Risky Business” when actor Tom Cruise slides across a wood floor in his socks while dancing and singing. Though this scene didn’t inspire the next tradition, the general idea is the same. The sock dance ritual popular at many Canadian weddings is one that is usually conducted by the siblings of the happy couple. The brothers and sisters will hit the dance floor wearing their socks and commit to sliding and dancing as a way of entertaining the rest of the guests.
The dances can be as serious or silly as the siblings wish, whatever will get the rest of the guests up and engaged. Traditionally, the guests would throw money at the dancers as a way of encouraging them. When the dances are done, the money would be collected from around the floor, stuffed in a sock, and given to the couple as a gift. This is a fun way to get your siblings to act foolish at your behest and make a few bucks along the way.
The Emcee
Hiring an emcee for a wedding is one trend that seems to be rising in popularity in recent years. Essentially, the emcee acts as part entertainer and part coordinator. He or she will announce important moments like the first dance, the cutting of the cake, and the speakers giving toasts. The emcee can also try to hype the crowd when energy is low or interact with the guests in a lively way. You can hire someone for this job or ask a good friend with an energetic personality to take the role.
A wedding can include whatever traditions you wish. Whether you go with classic Canadian rituals or customs from elsewhere, you should always opt for what has the most meaning to you.
A Croquembouche can be a unique wedding cake option.
With the number of French contributions to our culture, you probably won’t be surprised to find a croquembouche at a Canadian wedding. However, you might not be familiar with the history, details and preparation behind these fascinating pastry desserts. Whether you’ve adopted a French theme for your festivities or just want a different type of wedding cake for your reception, this delightful tower of goodness might be just right for your crowd.
Origins in 19th Century France
While much of Canada was still under British rule, a young Parisian baker began crafting a pastry creation that would become his enduring legacy. In January 2017, the U.S. media network National Public Radio website published a piece on legendary French chef Marie-Antoine Carême, the famed inventor of the croquembouche. Born to an impoverished family around 1783 or 1784, he was presumably orphaned by social turmoil resulting from the French revolution. Carême began working in a Paris kitchen at the age of eight, and by the time he was 15 years old, he’d landed a position as an apprentice to top-rated pastry chef Sylvain Bailly.
As Carême honed his craft during his late teen years, Bailly regularly displayed Carême’s stunningly elaborate pastries in his bakery shop window. By the late 1700s, this young sensation had fashioned a tower of small, round cream puffs called “choux” festooned with spun sugar. A recipe for this dessert, which he called a croquembouche, was published in his 1815 cookbook “Le Pâtissier royal parisien.” Meanwhile, Carême continued to rise to culinary stardom, designing lavish, beautiful sweets for the likes of Napoleon, Russia’s Czar Alexander I and prince regent George IV of England.
The Croquembouche in the Modern World
While there are many modern variations on this delicious pastry, they still follow the same basic format: a tall mountain of cream puffs covered in spun sugar and other wonderful edibles. You’ll probably have no difficulty finding bakers in any province to supply one for your special day, and it’s an appropriate wedding cake for many types of wedding themes. Wedding Bells Magazine showcased a French vintage matrimonial affair in a 2012 piece on its website, adding that the couple chose a croquembouche to add a delicate grandeur to their festivities.
If you think that such a spectacular wedding cake should get its own entrance and fanfare, you’re absolutely right. In fact, contributor Kim Petyt on The Good Life France blog revealed that a croquembouche is usually not presented until dessert time. With the lights dimmed and celebratory music playing, guests typically begin chanting “Le gateau! Le gateau!” as the star of the hour is brought out to the dining hall while decorated in small, sizzling fireworks. Once the display is over, the staff serves each guest three or four of the sweet, creamy choux to enjoy.
Flavorful Possibilities Abound
In both exterior decorative touches and inner fillings, the croquembouche presents a wide variety of lovely flavors. Traditionally, each choux contains vanilla-bourbon crème in the center. Nevertheless, bakeries offer several popular filling choices which can include favorites such as caramel and chocolate, or less common tastes like rose, pistachio or orange blossom. Besides spun sugar or pastel-tinted icing, a croquembouche wedding cake can be decked out in sugared almonds, chocolate, candied ribbons or even edible flowers.
A Delicious Wedding Cake Idea for Your Nuptial Affair
The croquembouche is a distinctive and delightful wedding cake that offers a complex combination of aesthetics, French culture and flavor. Its name appropriately translates to “crunch in the mouth,” and your guests will enjoy the taste and texture of this now-classic sweet treat. Add to that the customary celebratory fanfare with which it’s presented during your festivities, and your croquembouche will certainly be a memorable part of your wedding day.
Examples of longstanding wedding customs would be the throwing of the bouquet, the throwing of the garter belt, and the couple slicing the first piece of cake.
It is no small surprise that Canadians love their country and all of its expansive beauty. Though Canada shares a lot of its culture with countries in Europe and America, there are many wedding customs that exist within the nation that are unique. If you are planning on getting married in the near future, you may be wondering how your fellow citizens go about the process. Recent studies have shown some interesting facts about how modern couples get married.
Long Standing Wedding Customs: The Month of December
Popping the question to your significant other is a big part of the wedding process. Without taking this initial step, you really can’t move forward with a marriage. Engagements are different depending on the culture. This is especially true of when people decide to pop the question to their partners. A study surveying a large number of Canadian men points out an interesting trend in this regard. A vast majority of men have proposed or are planning to propose in the month of December.
Age Is a Number
Wedding customs marriage change as much as the times do. Statistics show that the average age for a woman to get married in Canada in 1950 was 25. This number fluctuated a bit in the subsequent decades, dropping to an average of 23 from the 1970s until more recently. This trend in Canada reflects a larger movement happening among women of all backgrounds. Though this primarily is a shift in Western cultures, women are adopting more professional roles in greater numbers.
Under Pressure
The idea of a wedding has grown a little bit out of control in recent decades. Once, a wedding was simply a union between two people who loved each other. Polls taken of young brides approaching their wedding have shown that a large number of women feel pressured to spend more than they can afford. While you may want to spend a good amount on your wedding, it is important to be sensible with your budget and keep enough cash around to start your life with your partner after the big day.
Making It Your Own
Paying attention to wedding customs and trends can help with planning a wedding that meets your own specific needs. It is important for you to follow your own path. Couples should not caught up in what everyone else is doing.
While you may want to explore popular trends to see what is interesting to you, making your decisions based on what you personally enjoy will help result in the best celebration of your love. Find a way to make your special day a unique experience. This will make it easy to remember fondly for many years to come.
One of the most common wedding traditions practiced to this day is the catching of the bride’s bouquet.
The idea of getting married is nothing new. In fact, weddings are some of the oldest ceremonies to have been documented across all civilizations. There are a lot of traditions that have persisted through the years even if the mentality behind a wedding has changed. In Canada, for example, there are plenty of unique ways of going about the process of marrying your partner.
Common Wedding Traditions
Planning for a wedding requires time and research. Here are a few wedding practices that appear often in Canadian rituals in the current day and age, as well as in other cultures across the world.
Catch the Bouquet
One common tradition found in many weddings is the tossing of the bouquet. Traditionally, this is an act by the bride, who tosses the flowers backwards over her shoulder toward a crowd of single friends and relatives. It is customary for this part of the ceremony to only include women, but shifting attitudes have shown that single men can also get in on the fun if the married couple so wishes. The history behind this act is a bit more interesting than might be first believed.
In older cultures, it was common for single women to tear away a piece of the bride’s dress. This was meant as a gesture of good luck for the women holding the strip of garment. As wedding dresses became more expensive, brides found that it was a bit much to have their families and friends tearing away at their beautiful gowns. The bouquet toss was a custom introduced to ward away women who wanted a piece of luck and provide them with a competitive chance for their wishes.
Eternal Love
Some traditions are so ingrained in the cultural sphere that it’s hard to imagine another way of going about the process. Rings, for example, are the cornerstone of an engagement and subsequent wedding. There have been many different approaches to the exchanging of rings over the years. Essentially, experts have traced the tradition of the ring back to Egypt in its earliest days of civilization.
The Egyptians would trade rings as a sign of eternal love and commitment. Eventually, due to the conquests of the Greeks and Romans, the tradition was adopted. As civilization expanded through Europe, the custom became more widespread until it reached the height that it exists at now. The custom of wearing a wedding ring on a specific finger can also be traced back to the Egyptians. They believed that the third finger on the left hand was the one most closely connected to the human heart.
White Wedding
A common practice in the modern age is for a woman to wear white on her wedding day. This is actually not as old of a tradition as many might believe. In Western culture, the custom of wearing white began as a way of symbolizing the purity of the bride. This started during the Victorian Era in England and has persisted to the modern day in many countries. What’s more fascinating is that brides across the world wore a multitude of colors on their wedding day before this practice began.
White was a rare color to be seen during a ceremony in earlier traditions. It has lively and vibrant colors being more closely associated with the passion and beauty of shared love. Though it seems that most brides wear white in the current age, the trend is being pushed against. More women are wearing dresses that match their personal tastes rather than taking part in a tradition that holds no meaning for them.
As you plan your wedding, consider the meaning behind current customs. You may want to break from tradition or go with the flow – the choice is yours.
Recent incarceration statistics have shown a dramatic increase in Amerinds and Black Canadians.
In 2014, The New Observer reported concerns about the rising population rates of Amerinds and blacks in Canadian federal prisons. According to incarceration statistics, both races were highly over-represented in the prison system when you look at the overall population in the country. Two-and-a-half years later, The Torontoist reports, “There are 70 per cent [sic] more Black Canadians in federal prison than there were 10 years ago…” In addition, Howard Sapers, Correctional Investigator, released his annual report of the status of the prisons. He found that from 2005 to 2015 the overall population in the correction system in Canada grew by 10 percent. The Aboriginal inmate population grew by more than 50 percent. This phenomenon was evident in both male and female populations.
Who Is Howard Sapers?
Why should you listen to Sapers? He was appointed to his position as Correctional Investigator of Canada in 2004. This is his 11th annual report. He is not tied to any political climate, as he has served under two Prime Ministers and under five different Ministers of Public Safety. During his tenure in his position, his team has responded to over 200,000 complaints and calls. Sapers has provided testimony to many different Parliamentary Committees and responded to criminal justice reforms handed down by the government. He believes in human dignity and decency even for those who are deprived of their liberty. Sapers is an advocate for a fair and rational criminal justice system.
In his message of his annual report, he breaks down the incarceration statistics even further, offering some interesting statistics:
Twenty-five percent of the prison population is now 50 or older.
Only about 40 percent of inmates have a formal education of grade eight or higher.
Sixty percent of inmates have not graduated high school.
Sixty percent of female inmates require prescription medications to manage their mental health needs.
Seventy percent of female inmates report histories of sexual abuse.
Eighty-six percent of women in the prison system report physical abuse at some point in their lives.
Eighty percent of the male inmates have experienced addiction and substance abuse.
Is Racism the Problem?
The Torontoist reports that the high rate of blacks in prison is due to racism and over-policing. In Canada, blacks make up about three percent of the general population but 10 percent of the prison population. Indigenous Canadians make up 24.4 percent of the federal prison population but only 4.3 percent of the general population. This is not a problem just in Canada. In the United States, the numbers aren’t quite as pronounced, but African-Americans make up 13 percent of the general population and account for 37 percent of the prison population.
One local lawyer is calling for an initiative similar to the 1991 Aboriginal Justice Strategy that was created to address the growing population of Indigenous Canadians in the prisons. It offered restorative justice and diversion programs and alternative sentencing. In 2011, a report was issued that outlined the success of the AJS. It had this to say:
“Evidence that the long-term outcome of the AJS of ‘reduced crime and incarceration rates in communities with funded programs’ is being achieved is evident through the results of the recidivism study, which found a significant difference between rates of re-offending of AJS-funded program participants and a comparison group.”
Unfortunately, these same outcomes are not being seen in the prisons.
Are There Solutions?
Some might say that criminals get what they deserve. They do have to pay for their crime, but when you look at some of Sapers’ findings, one has to wonder if the solution starts with ensuring people have an education and that their mental health needs are taken care of. Women who are abused need help to improve their self-confidence and outcomes. Things won’t change overnight, but these statistics should concern everyone.
Simply by signing up to be an organ donor, one can help give the gift of life to someone in need.
The world’s first single and double lung transplants were performed in Ontario in 1983 and 1986 respectively. Canada is a leader in the field of transplantation when it comes to medicine and technology, but when it comes to the number of organ donors, we’re lagging behind the rest of the world, including the United States.
In the last 10 years, the number of deceased organ donors has increased in Canada, but the number of people needing transplants has also increased. In 2014, there were more than 4,500 people waiting for organ transplants. Doctors performed 2,356 organ transplants, and 278 people died waiting for an organ. Kidney transplants account for 77 percent of the need.
Surprisingly, 90 percent of Canadian citizens support organ and tissue donation. It’s something practically everyone agrees on, but according to the Canadian Transplant Society, only about 20 percent of the population has actually made plans to donate.
Qualifications for Organ Donors
Don’t discount your health, age or other factors when determining whether you should be a donor. Your health today doesn’t determine whether your organs qualify to be donated. There are many different organs that can be donated. Your organ donation could save up to eight lives. Tissue donations could improve the quality of life in up to 75 different people. Also consider the improvement in life quality for the families and friends of those individuals who are helped.
There are many myths about organ donations. Some people worry that the hospital staff won’t work as hard to save your life if they know you’re an organ donor. This is simply a myth perpetuated by the tabloids, urban legends and television. Doctors have to focus on your life, not the life of another person.
Another myth that is perpetuated by the tabloids is that you may not really be dead. Doctors perform even more tests on organ donors to determine that they are really dead than they might on someone who hasn’t agreed to organ donation.
If you’re concerned about your religion’s position on organ donation, check with your clergy. Most major religions support organ donation, but you should discuss your theological concerns with someone who is knowledgeable about the tenets of your faith.
Legally, children cannot decide to be an organ donor, but children do die every day, and other children are waiting for organs from smaller people. Parents and legal guardians can give permission for children to be organ donors. There’s no denying that it is a difficult decision. Thinking about your position on organ donation before something happens is one way to have peace about it if it ever happens that you do need to make the choice.
How to Register
Registering to be an organ donor is the most effective method of identification. You may lose a wallet card, or it might be unavailable when it is needed. Telling one family member is recommended, but again, in the stress of the moment, your decision may be forgotten. Registration is quick and easy.
It actually takes very little time to register as an organ donor. In Ontario, the website is beadonor.ca. You’ll need your health card number and some basic information about yourself. If you’re in another province or territory, the Government of Canada’s website, under health, diseases and conditions, has links to instructions for your place of residence.
Loved ones are asked about your wishes at your death, which is why it’s important to talk to them about your decision. The Canadian Transplant Society has some resources to help you talk to your family, and it offers an End of Life Wishes form for download. Make a difference in people’s lives after your death by choosing to be an organ donor. Get informed.
Not everyone has the money to go to some exotic overseas location on their honeymoon. There’s plenty of great places right here in Canada that don’t require a passport or long flights across the country. Spend your time exploring this beautiful country instead of traveling to some remote destination where you have to spend the first day recovering from jet leg. Here are some ideas you may not have thought about for your post-wedding vacation.
Whitehorse, Yukon
Come see the Northern Lights and enjoy the most romantic view on the planet when you visit this capital city. With a population of less than 30,000, you’ll have plenty of privacy for romantic walks along the historic sites or at the outdoor attractions. There are a number of trails available for both motorized and non-motorized travel. For a peaceful honeymoon in the great outdoors, Whitehorse is a great place.
Montreal, Quebec
The second largest city in Canada, Montreal is the ninth largest in North America. It’s home to all types of music, but is probably best known for producing jazz musicians. There’s plenty of art museums and architecture if you want to get some culture on your honeymoon. Montreal is also home to a number of sports teams. Depending on the season, you’ll have lots of options for great outings to make exciting memories.
Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick
Home to the highest tidal range in the world, Bay of Fundy is a romantic getaway for brides and grooms everywhere. Take a walk along the beach or kayak down one of the many rivers when the tide is high. Visit a winery for a special bottle to take home, or enjoy whale watching during the right season. Bikes are available for rental to enjoy the rustic villages and trails during the day. Small communities offer unique restaurants and local artisan work for souvenirs.
Vancouver, British Columbia
Vancouver is the eighth largest city in Canada, but named as one of the top five cities worldwide for livability. You’ll have indoor and outdoor options, with luxurious accommodations developed when Vancouver hosted the Winter Olympics. Art, music, and shopping are close at hand if you want to experience an urban getaway, while skiing and other outdoor sports complexes are within driving range for an active day of fun. You can explore the beach or the forest, both in the same day if you like.
Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia
For a natural vacation near glacial formations, the fishing village of Peggy’s Cove offers fresh seafood, lighthouses, and ocean walks. Stay at one of the inns or cottages along the beach to wake up to a sunrise over the bay or enjoy the sunset right from your own dock. There’s plenty to do and see, or you could just pack a picnic and enjoy the peace and quiet of nature.
Quebec City, Quebec
As one of the oldest cities in North America, Quebec City is one of the prettiest with a number of historical landmarks. Enjoy the Parc Aquarium du Quebec on one of your dates. Come see hundreds of animals unique to North America and learn about the conservation efforts to protect the environment. For a more urban getaway, go shopping or enjoy the numerous nightclubs. If you enjoy sports, you’ll find professional teams of all kinds. There’s so much to see and do to make memories in Quebec City when you’re on your honeymoon.
Banff, Alberta
As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Banff, Alberta is a small town in the Alberta Rockies. It sits 1,400 meters above sea level, making it the community with the second highest elevation in Alberta. Come for the hot springs or the outdoor sports. It’s a resort town with plenty to keep the two of you busy. There are a number of hotels and cottages offering accommodations all year long.
