'I don't think Canadians are going to sit still and let it happen': The New Brunswick Ad Hoc Committee on the Constitution and citizens' response to the Meech Lake Accord

This thesis explores the response of citizens to the Constitution Amendment, 1987, commonly the Meech Lake Accord, by focusing on the activities of the New Brunswick Ad Hoc Committee on the Constitution. In so doing, it examines two under researched historiographical areas: the response of citizens to the Accord, particularly in New Brunswick, as well as the history and structure of second wave feminism in New Brunswick. Following the model used by constitutional historian Michael D. Behiels, this thesis employs a "bottom-up" approach to constitutional developments and arrives at the following conclusions: First, there was a profound difference in constitutional understanding between the governing elite who negotiated the Meech Lake Accord and the citizens who opposed it. This argument draws heavily on the work of political scientist Alan C. Cairns. Second, both the distinctive structure and philosophical outlook of the Ad Hoc Committee emerged from the practices of second wave feminism. Third, the actions of citizens' groups like the Ad Hoc Committee played an important role in the failure of the Accord and have had a profound impact on constitution-making in Canada.