University of Chicago Press Pro-Family Politics and Fringe Parties in Canada

Pro-Family Politics and Fringe Parties in Canada exploresthe organizational and ideological nature of political parties that areinitially formed to do the work of social movements. Specifically, itexamines the development of the Family Coalition Party of BritishColumbia (FCP) from its origins as a group of alienated Social CreditParty members to its rebirth as the Unity Party of British Columbia,and through its struggles as a marginal political entity along theway. While addressing the FCP’s relationship to the larger NorthAmerican pro-family movement, Chris MacKenzie also deftly demonstrateshow the party can be seen as organizationally congruent with itsideological antithesis, the Green Party. Basing his findings on sevenyears of field research, he identifies the obstacles that politicalparties involved in social movement work must overcome in order forthem to achieve their goals. He concludes that, despite theirinvaluablecontribution to democracy, such party / movements havelimited political institutionalization. Consequently, their onlyrealistic goal may be to merge their ideals with those of another,larger political body. This book makes a substantial contribution to our understanding ofthe genesis, development, and impact of political party / movements inCanada. Moreover, it provides useful insight into the dynamics andissues that make up the current pro-family movements in Canada and theUnited States.