Pierre Trudea
15th Prime Minister Of Canada (1968-1979, 1980-1984)
Leadership Assignment:
What was Pierre Trudeau involved in that made him a leader
Before he became Prime Minister
Pierre Trudeau was born on October 18, 1919 and was born in Montreal. He was born to a Québécois father and Scottish mother, which is the reason he is bilingual. His family was quite wealthy while growing up, and after graduating from College he went to the University of Montreal for his law degree. He then went to Harvard University and got a masters degree in political economy and also studied in Paris and London. After graduating he got a desk job within the Queen's Privy Council. Then in 1961 he went back to the University of Montreal as a professor and taught constitutional law.
Rise in the Canadian government
Four years after teaching, him and 2 of his colleagues were invited to be potential candidates for the Liberal Party of Canada. And in that year they all won the election. Trudeau then became minister of justice, and within a year made a big impact in the laws such as liberalizing abortion and homosexuality. When the 14th Prime Minister Lester Pearson retired in 1967, Trudeau campaigned to become his successor and won the election a year later. His ideas were very popular at the time and many people thought his style and attitude fitted how the times and opinions were changing. As soon as he was elected he started fighting for universal health care, and also fought against the referendum of Quebec and made sure that they stayed a province in Canada. In 1981 Trudeau made Canada its own nation when the Canadians House of Commons approved his request to officially separate Canada from Britain.
What actions did Trudeau take to portray leadership
He was seen as many as a diligent and intelligent man by many who supported him. Trudeau tried to make the right choice in every situation. Trudeau's ideas and perspective on many things was appreciated by his citizens. Such as the Official Languages Act in 1969 making Canada bilingual. In the 1970 "October Crisis" he invoked the War Measures Act to take a stand against terrorist and showed that he wouldn't tolerate anyone putting his people in danger. Overall he is a prime minister that stands his ground and uses his knowledge to choose the right decision especially in difficult situations.
3 of Nelson Mandela's Lessons of Leadership that Pierre Trudeau applied in his career as Prime Minister
"Courage is not the absence of fear-it's inspiring others to move beyond it"
After announcing he was going to retire in 1979 Trudeau ran for election again. And with a lot of support he became Prime Minister for a second time. Even though he was scared to come back into the world of politics he still did. And at that time economical issues in Canada were growing. But he stayed and did what he could for the next four years and inspired his colleagues to do the same.
"Nothing is Black or White"
One of Trudeau's great accomplishments was stopping the referendum of Quebec. He didn't see Canada as 9 provinces and Quebec, but as a whole. And he wanted all Québécois to see that they should as well. Which then united the nation and made them 1 country.
"Appearances Matter - And remember to smile"
Pierre Trudeau was always regarded as an intelligent an diligent person who was very good at conversing with people and being likeable and he was usually smiling.
Bibliography (MLA Format)
"Pierre Trudeau Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.
"Pierre Trudeau." Pierre Trudeau. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.
"Pierre Elliott Trudeau - Canada's 15th Prime Minister." Library and Archives Canada. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.
"Pierre Trudeau." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2015.