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Event Information:
More
than 200,000 people are expected to
attend Vancouver's Canada Day
celebrations, surpassing the crowd
that hit the downtown streets for
the Stanley Cup Final. This year's
festivities will include a parade
featuring 2,200 participants, a
party on the waterfront near Canada
Place, and an evening fireworks
display. The parade will start on
Georgia Street at Broughton and
continue to Burrard, where it will
turn north and eventually conclude
at Hastings. Planners chose this
route for the abundance of viewing
space available on Georgia and
Burrard streets.
In
1946, Philéas Côté, a Quebec member
of the House of Commons, introduced
a private member's bill to rename
Dominion Day as Canada Day. His bill
was passed quickly by the House of
Commons but was stalled by the
Senate, which returned the bill to
the Commons with the recommendation
that the holiday be renamed The
National Holiday of Canada, an
amendment that effectively killed
the bill. Beginning in 1958, the
Canadian government began to
orchestrate Dominion Day
celebrations, usually consisting of
Trooping the Colour ceremonies on
Parliament Hill in the afternoon and
evening, followed by a mass band
concert and fireworks display.
Canada's centennial in 1967 is often
seen as an important milestone in
the history of Canadian patriotism,
and in Canada's maturing as a
distinct, independent country, after
which Dominion Day became more
popular with average Canadians. Into
the late 1960s, nationally
televised, multi-cultural concerts
held in Ottawa were added, and the
fête became known as Festival
Canada; after 1980 the Canadian
government began to promote the
celebrating of Dominion Day beyond
the national capital, giving grants
and aid to cities across the country
to help fund local activities.
Canadian expatriates will organize
Canada Day activities in their local
area on or near the date of the
holiday. For instance, since 2006,
annual Canada Day celebrations have
been held at Trafalgar Square, the
location of Canada House, in London,
England; organized by the Canadian
community in the United Kingdom and
the Canadian High Commission, the
event features Canadian performers
and a demonstration of street
hockey, amongst other activities.
Annual celebrations also take place
in Hong Kong, entitled Canada D'eh
and held on June 30 at Lan Kwai
Fong, where an estimated attendance
of 12,000 was reported in 2008; in
Afghanistan, where members of the
Canadian Forces mark the holiday at
their base; and in Mexico, at the
American Legion in Chapala and the
Canadian Club in Ajijic.
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