Case studies
Israli-Palestinian Conflict
A long conflict over land, identity and national rights.
Violent conflict due to the disagreements
Contending Loyalties
When a person has two or more loyalties that conflict (ex: loyalty to your nation vs. your religion, or your nation vs. your culture).
You can’t support one without partly going against the other.
Haymarket Affairs
A labour protest in Chicago turned violent.
Worker loyalty vs government/national loyalty
They were fighting for better working conditions and hours.
Non-nationalist loyalty
A loyalty not related to a country or nation.
Examples:
religious loyalty
family loyalty
ideological loyalty
cultural loyalty
class loyalty
regional loyalty
How do nationalist loyalties shape people’s choices?
They influence decisions like:
voting
protesting
joining movements
prioritizing the nation over other loyalties
supporting or rejecting independence
People will act in ways that protect their nation’s identity, even if there are consequences.
The Charter of Quebec Values and Quebec separatism and the 1995 referendum
1. A bill passed in Quebec to nab public sector workers from wearing any religious symbols (such as hijabs, turbans, crosses)
2. Many Quebecers (mostly French-speaking) feel loyalty to their language, culture and history. They wanted their independence. Federalists wanted to stay with Canada. The vote was close (49.4% agreed, 50.6% disagreed) with the idea.
Cultural Pluralism
A belief or system where different cultures are allowed to keep their own traditions, languages, and identities within the same country.
Example: Canada supporting multiculturalism.
RCMP vs Baltej Dhillon
Baltej Dhillon, a sikh man, wanted to join the RCMP while wearing his turban.
Uniform rules conflicted, he fought and won the right for his people to wear turbans while working for the RCMP.
Inflation
When prices rise and money loses value, making things more expensive.
What choices have people made to affirm nationalist loyalties?
Examples:
Voting “YES” in Quebec referendums
Joining independence movements (ex: Palestinians, Israelis)
Supporting cultural language laws
Protesting against foreign control
Defending their land or culture
Residential schools and the Indian Act
Indigenous children were forced to give up their cultures.
Their cultural loyalties were attacked by Canadian nationalist policies
Sovereigntists & Federalists
1. People who believe a province or region should be independent and have its own country.
Example: Quebec separatists.
2. People who want their region/province to stay in Canada and support the federal (central) government.
A group of Black students attempted to enter a formerly white high school.
They fought for the right to desegregate public schools.
Alienation
When people feel separated or disconnected from their society, government, or community.
How can nationalist loyalties create conflict?
Two groups may want the same territory.
Governments may suppress cultural or religious loyalties.
People may face pressure to pick one loyalty over another.
Nationalist actions can lead to violence.
Examples:
· Israel/Palestine
· Quebec separatism
· Residential schools
· China vs Falun Dafa
Falun Dafa
The Chinese government saw it as a threat to national loyalty.
It was a spiritual movement in China.
Reasonable Accommodation & Reconciliation
1. When institutions adjust rules or practices so that minority groups can still participate fully — as long as the change does NOT harm other people’s rights.
Example: letting Sikh RCMP officers wear turbans.
2. Trying to repair broken relationships, usually between groups harmed in the past.
In Canada, this refers especially to Indigenous peoples + government.
Muhammad Ali & Conscientious Objectors
Muhammad Ali refused to fight in the Vietnam War due to religious and moral loyalty (Islam and pacifism).
Segregation
When groups are kept separate by law or social custom (ex: Black and white Americans in the U.S. South).
How have people reconciled contending nationalist loyalties?
Reasonable accommodation
Dialogue & compromise
Creating laws to protect minority rights
Negotiating peace agreements
Truth & reconciliation efforts
Dual citizenship, multicultural policies
Royal Commission
A government investigation that studies a big issue and recommends solutions.
Example: the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples (RCAP) looked at Indigenous rights and history.
How can nationalist and non-nationalist loyalties compete?
Examples:
Religious beliefs vs national laws (Ali refusing draft)
Cultural traditions vs national identity (Indigenous peoples in Canada)
Worker rights vs government authority (Haymarket)
Personal ethics vs national expectations