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  • Perhaps one of the best things about living in a democracy is that we all have guaranteed

  • political and civil rights, like: freely forming and expressing our own opinions (even if others

  • don’t agree), being free to worship in your own way, and the right to protest, if you

  • so choose. In 1982, our government created the Canadian

  • Charter of Rights and Freedoms to protect our rights. Have you heard of it before? The

  • Charter contains seven sections that define our rights as Canadians: fundamental rights,

  • democratic rights, mobility rights, legal rights, equality rights, official language

  • rights and minority language education rights. Having democratic rights means that every

  • Canadian citizen, 18 years of age and older, has the right to participate or vote in government

  • elections. And, elections are legally required to be held at least every five years.

  • The right to vote in Canada has changed so much over time. In the early days, only wealthy,

  • property or land-owning men could vote, which means there weren’t many voters, and the

  • system wasn’t very fair or democratic. Needless to say, women weren’t so happy

  • about this. Starting in the 1870s, they campaigned for the right to vote. Finally, in 1916, Manitoba

  • became the first province to grant women the right to vote, and by 1918, women all across

  • the country had the same right as men when it came to voting in federal elections.

  • Still, things weren’t ideal. Even though the right to vote was expanded with the 1920

  • Dominion Elections Act, many people were still excluded:

  • Canadian citizens of Chinese or Japanese origin were denied the right to vote; plus, Aboriginal

  • peoples could only vote if they gave up their treaty rights and registered Indian status;

  • and certain religious groups were not allowed to vote;.

  • It wasn’t until 1960 when all these restrictions were finally removed and we achieved real

  • universal suffrage”. Recently, there have been steps to ensure

  • voting is accessible and convenient for all voters, so people with disabilities and those

  • unable to go to their polling station can still vote.

  • Despite the fact that all Canadian citizens, 18 years of age and older, now have the right

  • to vote and it’s actually easier than ever, many choose not to vote on election day. In

  • the 2011 federal election, only 61% of eligible Canadians cast ballots. That’s pretty low.

  • Voter turnout is even lower among young Canadians. Only 4 out of 10 young people voted in the

  • last electionless than half the population of young Canadians!

  • We have to remember that there are obligations that come with our rights. Others before us

  • ensured we all have the right to voteand with this right comes the responsibility to

  • cast a ballot and make an informed choice on election day.

Perhaps one of the best things about living in a democracy is that we all have guaranteed

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B1 中級 美國腔

投票權 (The Right to Vote)

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    Emily 發佈於 2021 年 01 月 14 日
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