Le contrôle de la discrimination raciale au Canada

This article is divided into four parts: the first is a brief survey of race relations in Canada before the enactment of anti-discrimination legislation; the next two parts are devoted to an outline of the scope of this legislation and of the administration and enforcement of it ; finally, the last part suggests some current and possible future developments to make it more effective. Prior to the nineteenth century both the French and the British settlers in the colonies that have become a part of Canada had slaves. Slavery was not, however, very extensive due to lack of large agricultural holdings. At the end of the eighteenth century the legislature in Upper Canada and some judges in Lower Canada limited its expansion and helped to end its practice. The British Imperial Emancipation Act of 1833 brought it to an end. In the next few decades, up to the American Civil War, some Canadians helped run-away slaves from the slave-holding states in the United States, while others actively discouraged them from coming. By the end of the nineteenth century a new source of racial tension arose on the West Coast between the newer immigrants from Asia and the older immigrants from Europe. The result was the enactment of numerous discriminatory laws by the legislature of British Columbia and subsequently, on a lesser scale, by the other western provinces. Most of these remained on the statute books until after World War II. None of these laws were held invalid by the courts on the basis of their discriminatory nature. In addition, both the common law and the Civil Code were interpreted as not prohibiting private discrimination, except by hotel-keepers and common carriers. The change from this situation started in the I930's with a few specific legislative prohibitions of discrimination in specific instances. In the 1940's Ontario, with respect to signs and advertisements and Saskatchewan, with respect to a whole range of activities, enacted legislation prohibiting discrimination, enforcing their prohibitions with penal sanctions. The 1950's saw the introduction of fair employment and fair accommodation practices acts. By the I960's these were being consolidated into comprehensive human rights codes administered by human rights commissions. This trend has continued up to this year, with the result that all eleven jurisdictions have commissions charged with enforcing antidiscrimination codes or acts. The usual, but not invariable, procedure is the laying of a complaint, the investigation of it by the commission staff, an attempt to bring about a settlement and finally, failing that, a hearing before an adjudicative tribunal to determine whether an act of discrimination did occur and, if so, what redress is appropriate. In concluding, three suggestions are made regarding measures that could be taken to strengthen the effectiveness of anti-discrimination legislation: (I) contract compliance; (2) greater independence for the commissions from the government; and (3) giving the legislation paramountcy over other statutes

Ways for Insuring the Protection of Minorities

La première question qui se pose est celle de définir ce que sont les droits des minorités. L'auteur l'aborde en examinant la reconnaissance qu'ont reçue ces droits dans le passé, à travers les traités internationaux, les constitutions d'autres pays ainsi que l'expérience canadienne. Il s'attarde sur la distinction à faire entre « droits individuels » et « droits de minorités ». L'essence de cette distinction se situe surtout dans le fait que la protection des groupes minoritaires exige une action positive du gouvernement tandis que celle des droits individuels ne nécessite aucune intervention

Creatine Fails to Augment the Benefits from Resistance Training in Patients with HIV Infection: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study

Progressive resistance exercise training (PRT) improves physical functioning in patients with HIV infection. Creatine supplementation can augment the benefits derived from training in athletes and improve muscle function in patients with muscle wasting. The objective of this study was to determine whether creatine supplementation augments the effects of PRT on muscle strength, energetics, and body composition in HIV-infected patients.This is a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled, clinical research center-based, outpatient study in San Francisco. 40 HIV-positive men (20 creatine, 20 placebo) enrolled in a 14-week study. Subjects were randomly assigned to receive creatine monohydrate or placebo for 14 weeks. Treatment began with a loading dose of 20 g/day or an equivalent number of placebo capsules for 5 days, followed by maintenance dosing of 4.8 g/day or placebo. Beginning at week 2 and continuing to week 14, all subjects underwent thrice-weekly supervised resistance exercise while continuing on the assigned study medication (with repeated 6-week cycles of loading and maintenance). The main outcome measurements included muscle strength (one repetition maximum), energetics ((31)P magnetic resonance spectroscopy), composition and size (magnetic resonance imaging), as well as total body composition (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry). Thirty-three subjects completed the study (17 creatine, 16 placebo). Strength increased in all 8 muscle groups studied following PRT, but this increase was not augmented by creatine supplementation (average increase 44 vs. 42%, difference 2%, 95% CI -9.5% to 13.9%) in creatine and placebo, respectively). There were no differences between groups in changes in muscle energetics. Thigh muscle cross-sectional area increased following resistance exercise, with no additive effect of creatine. Lean body mass (LBM) increased to a significantly greater extent with creatine. CONCLUSIONS / SIGNIFICANCE: Resistance exercise improved muscle size, strength and function in HIV-infected men. While creatine supplementation produced a greater increase in LBM, it did not augment the robust increase in strength derived from PRT.ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00484627