Eugene Forsey
Encyclopedia
Eugene Alfred Forsey, served in the Canadian Senate
from 1970 to 1979. He was considered to be one of Canada
's foremost constitutional experts.
, he attended McGill University
in Montreal, Quebec.
Forsey was a supporter of Conservative Party led by Arthur Meighen
until he went to Balliol College
, Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship
during which he was converted to democratic socialism
. Upon returning to Canada, he joined the League for Social Reconstruction
, and was a delegate at the founding convention of the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) in 1933 in Regina
.
From 1929 to 1941, Forsey served as a lecturer in economics and political science at McGill University. He also taught Canadian government at Carleton University
in Ottawa and Canadian government and Canadian labour history at the University of Waterloo
. From 1973 to 1977, he served as chancellor of Trent University
.
While he had become a social radical, he remained a "Constitutional conservative", and wrote his PhD
thesis on the King-Byng Affair
, defending the positions of Arthur Meighen and Governor-General Baron Byng. The thesis was published in 1943 as The Royal Power of Dissolution of Parliament. This was one of very few major works on the reserve powers of the Crown in Commonwealth of Nations
countries.
Forsey was president of the CCF in Quebec
in the 1930s. He spent a number of years working for the CCF, and then as research director for the Canadian Congress of Labour
and its successor, the Canadian Labour Congress
(CLC). He was a candidate for the party in the Ottawa area riding
of Carleton in a 1948 by-election
, but lost to the new Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
leader George Drew. When asked why he lost he famously quipped that it was because the other candidate received more votes. He ran and lost again in the 1949 election
.
In 1958, Forsey, though still a CCF member, was appointed by the government of John George Diefenbaker to the Board of Broadcast Governors
, the predecessor of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. He remained in that position until he resigned in 1962 because of policy differences.
Shortly after the formation of the New Democratic Party
from the alliance of the CLC with the CCF, Forsey resigned from the party because of its constitutional policy which viewed Quebec
as a nation within Canada. Later in the 1960s, he was attracted to the views of Pierre Trudeau
on the Canadian constitution, and joined the Liberal Party of Canada
upon being appointed to the Senate in 1970. He retired from the Upper House on reaching the age of 75 in 1979, and turned down an offer from the Liberals to run for a seat in the Canadian House of Commons
. He subsequently resigned from the Liberal Party in 1982 due to disagreements with the proposed changes to the Constitution of Canada
.
In 1968, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada
and was promoted to Companion in 1988. He was appointed to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
on June 10, 1985.
In his many commentaries on constitutional issues, especially the reserve powers of the Crown, Forsey was a conspicuous supporter of the action of the Governor-General of Australia, Sir John Kerr, in dismissing the Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam
, in the 1975 constitutional crisis because his government was unable to obtain supply (approval to spend money) from the parliament and refused to call a general election.
In retirement Forsey published a study of the labour movement in 1982, Trade Unions in Canada: 1812-1902. His publication How Canadians Govern Themselves is perhaps his most enduring legacy, being a simple yet comprehensive guide to Canadian government that is continuously edited and published with posthumous credit.
Eugene Forsey's daughter, Helen Forsey was a candidate for the New Democratic Party in the 2006 federal election
in the riding of Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
.http://www.ndp.ca/helenforsey/welcome
Works about Forsey
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
from 1970 to 1979. He was considered to be one of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
's foremost constitutional experts.
Biography
Born in Grand Bank, NewfoundlandGrand Bank, Newfoundland and Labrador
Grand Bank, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada or 'Grand Banc' as the first French settlers pronounced it, is a small rural town with a population of 2,580. It is located on the southern tip or "toe" of the Burin Peninsula , 360 km from the province's capital of St...
, he attended McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in Montreal, Quebec.
Forsey was a supporter of Conservative Party led by Arthur Meighen
Arthur Meighen
Arthur Meighen, PC, QC was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served two terms as the ninth Prime Minister of Canada: from July 10, 1920 to December 29, 1921; and from June 29 to September 25, 1926. He was the first Prime Minister born after Confederation, and the only one to represent a riding...
until he went to Balliol College
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
, Oxford on a Rhodes Scholarship
Rhodes Scholarship
The Rhodes Scholarship, named after Cecil Rhodes, is an international postgraduate award for study at the University of Oxford. It was the first large-scale programme of international scholarships, and is widely considered the "world's most prestigious scholarship" by many public sources such as...
during which he was converted to democratic socialism
Democratic socialism
Democratic socialism is a description used by various socialist movements and organizations to emphasize the democratic character of their political orientation...
. Upon returning to Canada, he joined the League for Social Reconstruction
League for Social Reconstruction
The League for Social Reconstruction was a circle of Canadian socialist intellectuals officially formed in 1932, though it had its beginnings during a camping retreat in 1931. These academics were advocating radical social and economic reforms and political education. Industrialization,...
, and was a delegate at the founding convention of the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) in 1933 in Regina
Regina, Saskatchewan
Regina is the capital city of the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. The city is the second-largest in the province and a cultural and commercial centre for southern Saskatchewan. It is governed by Regina City Council. Regina is the cathedral city of the Roman Catholic and Romanian Orthodox...
.
From 1929 to 1941, Forsey served as a lecturer in economics and political science at McGill University. He also taught Canadian government at Carleton University
Carleton University
Carleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...
in Ottawa and Canadian government and Canadian labour history at the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
. From 1973 to 1977, he served as chancellor of Trent University
Trent University
Trent University is a liberal arts and science-oriented institution located along the Otonabee River in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.The enabling legislation is the Trent University Act, 1962-63. The University was founded through the efforts of a citizens' committee interested in creating a...
.
While he had become a social radical, he remained a "Constitutional conservative", and wrote his PhD
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
thesis on the King-Byng Affair
King-Byng Affair
The King–Byng Affair was a Canadian constitutional crisis that occurred in 1926, when the Governor General of Canada, the Lord Byng of Vimy, refused a request by his prime minister, William Lyon Mackenzie King, to dissolve parliament and call a general election....
, defending the positions of Arthur Meighen and Governor-General Baron Byng. The thesis was published in 1943 as The Royal Power of Dissolution of Parliament. This was one of very few major works on the reserve powers of the Crown in Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
countries.
Forsey was president of the CCF in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
in the 1930s. He spent a number of years working for the CCF, and then as research director for the Canadian Congress of Labour
Canadian Congress of Labour
The Canadian Congress of Labour was founded in 1940 and merged with Trades and Labour Congress of Canada to form the Canadian Labour Congress in 1956.-Founding:...
and its successor, the Canadian Labour Congress
Canadian Labour Congress
The Canadian Labour Congress, or CLC is a national trade union centre, the central labour body in English Canada to which most Canadian labour unions are affiliated.- Formation :...
(CLC). He was a candidate for the party in the Ottawa area riding
Electoral district (Canada)
An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...
of Carleton in a 1948 by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
, but lost to the new Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
leader George Drew. When asked why he lost he famously quipped that it was because the other candidate received more votes. He ran and lost again in the 1949 election
Canadian federal election, 1949
The Canadian federal election of 1949 was held on June 27 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 21st Parliament of Canada. It was the first election in Canada in almost thirty years in which the Liberal Party of Canada was not led by William Lyon Mackenzie King. King had...
.
In 1958, Forsey, though still a CCF member, was appointed by the government of John George Diefenbaker to the Board of Broadcast Governors
Board of Broadcast Governors
The Board of Broadcast Governors was a Canadian arms-length government agency created in 1958 to regulate television and radio broadcasting, originally taking over that function from the CBC. It was replaced by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission in 1968....
, the predecessor of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. He remained in that position until he resigned in 1962 because of policy differences.
Shortly after the formation of the New Democratic Party
New Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
from the alliance of the CLC with the CCF, Forsey resigned from the party because of its constitutional policy which viewed Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
as a nation within Canada. Later in the 1960s, he was attracted to the views of Pierre Trudeau
Pierre Trudeau
Joseph Philippe Pierre Yves Elliott Trudeau, , usually known as Pierre Trudeau or Pierre Elliott Trudeau, was the 15th Prime Minister of Canada from April 20, 1968 to June 4, 1979, and again from March 3, 1980 to June 30, 1984.Trudeau began his political career campaigning for socialist ideals,...
on the Canadian constitution, and joined the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
upon being appointed to the Senate in 1970. He retired from the Upper House on reaching the age of 75 in 1979, and turned down an offer from the Liberals to run for a seat in the Canadian House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
. He subsequently resigned from the Liberal Party in 1982 due to disagreements with the proposed changes to the Constitution of Canada
Constitution of Canada
The Constitution of Canada is the supreme law in Canada; the country's constitution is an amalgamation of codified acts and uncodified traditions and conventions. It outlines Canada's system of government, as well as the civil rights of all Canadian citizens and those in Canada...
.
In 1968, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
and was promoted to Companion in 1988. He was appointed to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
Queen's Privy Council for Canada
The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...
on June 10, 1985.
In his many commentaries on constitutional issues, especially the reserve powers of the Crown, Forsey was a conspicuous supporter of the action of the Governor-General of Australia, Sir John Kerr, in dismissing the Prime Minister, Gough Whitlam
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam, AC, QC , known as Gough Whitlam , served as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia. Whitlam led the Australian Labor Party to power at the 1972 election and retained government at the 1974 election, before being dismissed by Governor-General Sir John Kerr at the climax of the...
, in the 1975 constitutional crisis because his government was unable to obtain supply (approval to spend money) from the parliament and refused to call a general election.
In retirement Forsey published a study of the labour movement in 1982, Trade Unions in Canada: 1812-1902. His publication How Canadians Govern Themselves is perhaps his most enduring legacy, being a simple yet comprehensive guide to Canadian government that is continuously edited and published with posthumous credit.
Eugene Forsey's daughter, Helen Forsey was a candidate for the New Democratic Party in the 2006 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
in the riding of Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004....
.http://www.ndp.ca/helenforsey/welcome
Selected bibliography
Works by Forsey- A life on the fringe : the memoirs of Eugene Forsey. Toronto : Oxford University Press, 1990.
- How Canadians govern themselves, 7th ed. (ISBN 0-662-39689-8) Ottawa : Canada, 2005 (1st ed. 1980, 2nd ed. 1988, 3rd ed. 1990).
- Freedom and order. Toronto : McClelland and Stewart, 1974.
- The royal power of dissolution in the British Commonwealth. Toronto : Oxford University Press, 1938; reprinted 1968; reprinted with a new introduction by Eugene Forsey in 1990 in "Evatt and Forsey on the Reserve Powers" (ed. by George WintertonGeorge WintertonGeorge Graham Winterton was Professor of Constitutional Law at the University of Sydney. Prior to his appointment to Sydney University in 2004, he taught for over 28 years at the University of New South Wales...
). - Our Present Discontents (The George C. Nowlan Lectures). Wolfville : Acadia University, 1968.
Works about Forsey
- Hodgetts, J.E. The sound of one voice : Eugene Forsey and his letters to the editor. Toronto : University of Toronto Press, 2000.
- Evatt and Forsey on the reserve powers. Sydney : Legal Books, 1990.
- Donald MarkwellDonald MarkwellFor the Montgomery, Alabama, talk radio personality, Don Markwell, see Don Markwell Professor Donald John 'Don' Markwell is an Australian social scientist and college president...
, "Canada's Best", The Round Table: The Commonwealth Journal of International Affairs, 1990/1991.
External links
- Political biography from the Library of Parliament
- Order of Canada Citation
- How Canadians Govern Themselves, current edition from Library of Parliament
- Obituary, New York Times