List the following on the board: the PQ, FLQ, Rene Levesque, Robert Bourassa, Pierre Trudeau, Pierre Laporte, James Cross, and have students share their knowledge about each.
Then ask students what they know about the various Quebec independence movements that have developed during the past few decades, and how they have sought to bring about independence (electing sovereigntist provincial governments, holding two province-wide referenda on sovereignty in 1980 and 1995).
Finally, have students state their opinions of political terrorism. What does the word convey to them? How would they define terrorism? Can they think of any situations where violence as a means of effecting political change could ever be justified? Could such actions ever be justified in the Canadian situation? Why might someone in Quebec in 1970 believe that political violence was the only means available to achieve the goal of independence?
Have students browse the October Crisis topic for 20 to 30 minutes, watching and listening to the video and audio clips in any order they wish. As they explore, they should make a list of what they consider to be the most interesting and important aspects of the crisis, including what caused it, its main events, the figures involved in it, and how it was finally resolved. Using this information, students should prepare a brief report (a few paragraphs long) explaining what the October Crisis was and why it continues to be such a significant event in Canadian history.
Write the following questions on the board: Why was the October Crisis of 1970 such a significant and tragic event in Canadian history? What do you think were its most important causes? What roles were played by the main political figures involved? What significant consequences followed from this event?
Divide the class into groups and assign one question to each group. Based on their research, students should prepare and present a preliminary response to the question their group has been assigned, and share the group’s ideas with the rest of the class.
Once the class has discussed the questions and the group responses to them, write the main points and ideas that have arisen from the exercise on the board, or have students prepare their own written summaries of the class discussion.
Ask students to think about how an event such as the October Crisis could have occurred in a country like Canada. Have them compare what happened in October 1970 to similar events they know that have taken place in other countries where governments suspend normal democratic rights and freedoms in order to deal with perceived threats such as terrorism. Ask them to compare the Trudeau government’s invoking of the War Measures Act in 1970 to the passage of the Anti-Terrorism Act by the Chretien government in 2001.
