Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dsjbd Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-22T05:26:48.275Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Recognition, Redistribution and Redress: The Case of the “Chinese Head Tax”

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 August 2005

Matt James
Matt James
Affiliation:
University of Victoria
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Abstract. This article uses the recent Canadian campaign seeking redress for the infamous “Chinese head tax” as a vantage point from which to consider whether recognition-seeking social movements are undermining the cause of egalitarian redistribution. Methodologically, the article seeks to complement the normative theorizing and conceptual model-making that have tended to characterize the “recognition versus redistribution” debate by focusing more concretely on the dynamics of an actual social movement campaign. The article demonstrates how this approach can help to identify important nuances in recognition campaigns that blanket claims about recognition's impact both ignore and serve to obscure.

Résumé. Cet article étudie la récente campagne canadienne cherchant la réparation dans les cas d'application de l'infâme taxe d'immigration aux Canadiens d'origine chinoise. Cette campagne offre l'opportunité pour étudier si les mouvements sociaux militant pour la reconnaissance des situations d'abus perpétrées par le passé sont en train d'éroder la cause de la redistribution égalitaire. D'un point de vue méthodologique, l'article essaie de compléter la théoretisation normative et le developpement de modèles conceptuels qui ont seulement pris en compte le débat dit “ de la reconnaissance versus la redistribution ”, en se concentrant plus sur l'étude de la dynamique d'une campagne sociale contemporaine. L'article montre le fait que cette approche peut aider à mettre en exergue d'importants nuances dans les campagnes dites “ de la reconnaissance ”, que des études plus generaux sur l'impact de la reconnaissance ignorent.

Type
Research Article
Information
Canadian Journal of Political Science/Revue canadienne de science politique , Volume 37 , Issue 4 , December 2004 , pp. 883 - 902
Copyright
© 2004 Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Abu-Laban, Yasmeen. 2001. “The Future and the Legacy: Globalization and the Canadian Settler-State.” Journal of Canadian Studies 35: 4 (Winter): 262–276.Google Scholar
Abu-Laban, Yasmeen, and Tim Nieguth. 2000. “Reconsidering the Constitution, Minorities and Politics in Canada.” Canadian Journal of Political Science 33: 3: 465–498.Google Scholar
Baines, Beverley. 2002. “When is Past Discrimination Un/Constitutional? The Chinese Canadian Redress Case.” Saskatchewan Law Review 65: 573–585.Google Scholar
Bakan, Joel. 1997. Just Words: Constitutional Rights and Social Wrongs. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Banting, Keith, and Will Kymlicka. 2004. “Do Multiculturalism Policies Erode the Welfare State?” In Cultural Diversity versus Economic Solidarity, ed. Phillipe Van Parijs. Brussels: De Boeck Université.
Barry, Brian. 2001. Culture and Equality: An Egalitarian Critique of Multiculturalism. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press.
Bolan, Kim. 1994. “Liberal's [sic] refusal to redress head tax ‘betrays' Chinese Canadians’ trust.” The Vancouver Sun, December 15, A3.
Bolan, Kim. 1995. “Chinese group asks UN to act on redress.” The Vancouver Sun, March 22, B3.
Bolaria, B. Singh, and Peter S. Li. 1988. Racial Oppression in Canada 2nd ed.. Toronto: Garamond Press.
Boswell, Randy. 2001. “Pay now, avoid court: head-tax descendants.” The Ottawa Citizen, March 14, A5.
Bourdieu, Pierre. 1986. “The Forms of Capital.” In Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education, ed. John G. Richardson. New York: Greenwood Press.
Brodie, Janine. 2002. “Citizenship and Solidarity: Reflections on the Canadian Way.” Citizenship Studies 6: 4: 377–394.Google Scholar
Butler, Judith. 1998. “Merely Cultural.” New Left Review 227 (January/February): 33–44.Google Scholar
Canada. Minister of Public Works, and Government Services. 1997. History of the Vote in Canada. Ottawa: Minister of Public Works and Government Services Canada.
Canada. Ministry of Canadian Heritage. 1994. Ministry of Canadian Heritage News Release. “Sheila Finestone Tables and Sends Letter on Redress to Ethnocultural Organizations.” December 14.
Canadian Council for Refugees. 1997. “Impact of the Right of Landing Fee.” Available at www.web.net/∼ccr/headtax2.htm (last accessed September 8, 2003).
“Canadians going to Japan for germ-warfare case.” 2003. The Globe and Mail (Toronto), May 16, A6.
Carmichael, Amy. 2002. “‘We are not going to go away’.” The Windsor Star, June 11, C1.
Chalykoff, Lisa. 1998. “Encountering Anomalies: A Cultural Study of Early Chinese Migrants to Canada.” In Painting the Maple: Essays on Race, Gender and the Construction of Canada, eds. Veronica Strong-Boag, Sherrill Grace, Avigail Eisenberg and Joan Anderson. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press.
Chen, Xiaobei. 2003. “The Birth of the Child-Victim Citizen.” In Reinventing Canada: Politics of the 21st Century, eds. Janine Brodie and Linda Trimble. Toronto: Prentice-Hall.
Chinese Canadian National Council. 1988. It is Only Fair! Redress for the Head Tax and Chinese Exclusion Act. Toronto: Chinese Canadian National Council.
Chinese Canadian National Council. 1998. “Newsletter—October 1998.” Available at www.ccnc.ca (last accessed May 1, 2003).
Chinese Canadian National Council. 2001. “News release—November 20.” Available at www.ccnc.ca (last accessed May 1, 2003).
Chinese Canadian National Council. 2003a. “The Last Spike Campaign.” Available at http://www.ccnc.ca/redress/lastspike.html (last accessed December 11, 2003).
Chinese Canadian National Council. 2003b. “Canadians for Redress.” Available at www.ccnc.ca/redress/redress.html (last accessed December 10, 2003).
Chinese Canadian National Council. 2003c. “News release: Canadian civic and political leaders joining call for Chinese Head Tax and Exclusion Act redress.” May 1, 2003 (on file with author).
Chinese Canadian National Council. 2004. “Chinese Head Tax and Exclusion Act: Questions and Answers.” Available at www.ccnc.ca/currentIssues/Redress-QA.doc (last accessed May 25, 2004).
Chinese Society of Nova Scotia. 2003. “The Last Spike Campaign.” Available at www.cs-ns.com/The_Last_Spike_Campaign.htm (last accessed December 11, 2003).
Cho, Lily. 2002. “Rereading Chinese Head Tax Racism: Redress, Stereotype, and Antiracist Critical Practice.” Essays on Canadian Writing 75 (Winter): 62–84.Google Scholar
Cunningham, Michael. 1999. “Saying Sorry: The Politics of Apology.” Political Quarterly 70: 3 (July-September): 285–293.Google Scholar
Dere, William Ging Wee. 2002. “United Nations and Human Rights.” Paper presented to the Nova Scotia Human Rights Conference, Halifax, December 9. Available at www.asian.ca/redress/sp_19951205.htm (last accessed May 1, 2003).
Eng, Susan. 2002. “Tell it to my father.” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), September 27, A17.
Eng, Susan. 2003. “If this is ‘inclusive’, count me out.” The Globe and Mail, May 13, A17.
Fleras, Augie, and Jean Leonard Elliott. 1992. Multiculturalism in Canada: The Challenge of Diversity. Scarborough, Ont.: Nelson.
Fox-Genovese, Elizabeth. 1980. “The Personal is Not Political Enough.” Marxist Perspectives 2 (Winter): 94–113.Google Scholar
Fraser, Nancy. 1995. “From Redistribution to Recognition? Dilemmas of Justice in a ‘Postsocialist’ Age.” New Left Review 212 (July/August): 68–93.Google Scholar
Fraser, Nancy. 2000. “Rethinking Recognition.” New Left Review 3 (May-June): 107–120.Google Scholar
Fraser, Nancy. 2001. “Recognition Without Ethics?” Theory, Culture & Society 18: 2–3: 21–42.Google Scholar
Fudge, Judy. 2001. “The Canadian Charter of Rights: Recognition, Redistribution and the Imperialism of the Courts.” In Sceptical Essays on Human Rights, eds. Tom Campbell, K.D. Ewing and Adam Tomkins. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gitlin, Todd. 1995. The Twilight of Common Dreams: Why America is Wracked by Culture Wars. New York: Metropolitan Books.
Grint, Keith. 1991. The Sociology of Work: An Introduction. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Higgins, Dalton. 2001. “Slaves in Canada: Blacks demand reparations for racist past.” NOW Magazine Online Edition, July 12–18. Available at www.nowtoronto.com (last accessed May 5, 2003).
James, Matt. 1999. “Redress Politics and Canadian Citizenship.” In The State of the Federation 1998/99: How Canadians Connect, eds. Tom McIntosh and Harvey Lazar. Montreal and Kingston: McGill-Queen's University Press.
Kobayashi, Audrey. 1992. “The Japanese-Canadian Redress Settlement and its Implications for ‘Race Relations’.” Canadian Ethnic Studies 24: 1: 1–19.Google Scholar
Lee, Sky. 1990. Disappearing Moon Café. Vancouver: Douglas and MacIntyre.
Letts, Daron. 2002. “Time for an apology.” Available at www.rabble.ca (last accessed May 2, 2003).
Lu, Catherine. 2002. “Justice and Moral Regeneration: Lessons from the Treaty of Versailles.” International Studies Review 4: 3: 3–25.Google Scholar
Lu, Catherine. 2003. “Delivering the Goods, and the Good: Repairing Moral Wrongs.” In Calling Power to Account: Law's Response to Past Injustice, ed. David Dyzenhaus and Mayo Moran. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Mack, Shack Jang, Quen Ying Lee, and Yew Lee. 2002. Factum of the Appellants. Shack Jang Mack, Quen Ying Lee, and Yew Lee v. Attorney General of Canada. Court of Appeal for Ontario, Court File No. C36799.
Maier, Charles S. 2003. “Overcoming the Past? Narrative and Negotiation, Remembering and Reparation.” In Politics and the Past: On Repairing Historical Injustices, ed. John Torpey. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.
Makin, Kirk. 2002. “Complaint that judge was racist dismissed.” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), October 29, A23.
McBride, Stephen. 1992. Not Working: State, Unemployment and Neo-Conservatism in Canada. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
McBride, Stephen, and John Shields. 1997. Dismantling a Nation: The Transition to Corporate Rule in Canada. 2nd ed. Halifax: Fernwood.
Miki, Arthur K. 1996. “Japanese Canadian Redress Strategy.” Paper presented at Chiefs' Special Assembly on Residential Schools, British Columbia Union of Indian Chiefs, Vancouver, BC, March 25–26.
Moore, James. 2002. Canada. House of Commons. Hansard. 37th Parl., 2nd Sess., October 29, 1405.
National Association of Japanese Canadians. 1991. Presentation to the Special Joint Committee on a Renewed Canada. Minutes of Proceedings and Evidence. No. 16, November 4.
Norris, Alexander. 1993. “Italian, Chinese groups reject redress offer.” The Gazette (Montreal), May 29, A6.
Poon, Jennifer. 2003. “Redress for Chinese head-tax struck down on appeal.” Association of Chinese Canadian Professionals Newsletter 3: 3 (Spring). Available at www.accp.ca/publications/doc/accpnews3-3.pdf (last accessed May 3, 2003).Google Scholar
“Post-WCAR conference resolution calls for redress of the Chinese Head Tax, and Exclusion Act.” 2002. Available at www.asian.ca/redress/art_20021026.html (last accessed May 1, 2003).
Roman, Karina. 2001. “‘Correct this black mark on our history’.” The Ottawa Citizen, March 19, D1.
Russell, Peter H. 1995. “The Constitution, Citizenship and Ethnicity.” In Ethnicity and Citizenship: The Canadian Case, eds. J.A. Laponce and William Safran. Portland, Or.: Frank Cass.
Shack Jang Mack, et al. v. A.G. Canada. 2001. 55 O.R. (3d) 113.
Shack Jang Mack, et al. v. A.G. Canada. 2002. 165 O.A.C. 17.
Smith, Graeme. 2001. “Chinese take head-tax struggle to Ottawa.” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), July 12, A4.
Smith, Miriam. 1999. Lesbian and Gay Rights in Canada: Social Movements and Equality-Seeking, 1971–1995. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Taylor, Charles. 1994. “The Politics of Recognition.” In Multiculturalism: Examining the Politics of Recognition, ed. Amy Gutmann. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Thomas, Don. 2000. “$1.2B lawsuit ‘a matter of justice’.” Edmonton Journal, December 20, A3.
Thompson, Janna. 2002. Taking Responsibility for the Past: Reparation and Historical Injustice. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Torpey, John. 2001. “‘Making Whole What Has Been Smashed’: Reflections on Reparations.” Journal of Modern History 73: 2 (June): 333–359.Google Scholar
Torpey, John. 2003. “Introduction: Politics and the Past.” In Politics and the Past: On Repairing Historical Injustices, ed. John Torpey. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield.
Tully, James. 2000. “Recognition Redux: Struggles Over Recognition and Redistribution.” Constellations 7: 4: 469–482.Google Scholar
Tully, James. 2001. “The unfinished business of the Chinese Head Tax.” The Globe and Mail (Toronto), July 13, A14.
Webber, Jeremy. Forthcoming. “Rights, and Wrongs, Institutions and Time: Species of Historic Injustice and Their Modes of Redress.” In Calling Power to Account: Law's Response to Past Injustice, ed. David Dyzenhaus and Mayo Moran. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Weiner, Gerry. 1988. “Speaking Notes for the Honourable Gerry Weiner, Minister of State for Multiculturalism and Citizenship, at the Japanese Canadian Redress Agreement Press Conference,” September 22.
Wong, Victor Yukmun. 1995a. “Chinese Canadians seek redress at UN.” The Vancouver Sun, March 24, A3.
Wong, Victor Yukmun. 1995b. “An old wrong stays wrong.” The Vancouver Sun, January 13, A15.
Wood, Ellen Meiksins. 1998. The Retreat from Class: A New ‘True’ Socialism. 2nd ed. London: Verso.
Young, Iris Marion. 1997. “Unruly Categories: A Critique of Nancy Fraser's Dual Systems Theory.” New Left Review 222 (March/April): 147–160.Google Scholar