Participating in a community populated by a different ethnic group which is filled with that groups’ political and religious beliefs, culture, and ideologies leads to the inevitable mix and clash of these factors in which the majority usually wins, unless the minority willingly put effort into upholding their heritage for generations to come (Smelser and Baltes, 84). This leads to cultural pluralism, not multiculturalism. The core difference between the two terms is that cultural pluralism still has a dominant culture with its own laws, values and identity, while multiculturalism lacks a dominant culture. Furthermore, a weakened culture may be the bridge from cultural pluralism to multiculturalism (Wikipedia). For Canada, in contrast, newcomers do not have to identify as Canadians. They keep their original identity and try to retain their culture in the new world. Canada became the first country to adapt multiculturalism as an official policy in 1971…
In the article “Why Multiculturalism Can’t End Racism,” Marlene Nourbese Philip discusses how multiculturalism promotes discrimination opposed to stopping it. Philip explains that there is inequality between different cultures and races in Canada; the Canadian government only recognizes the French and English in the constitution. Examples of genocidal practices against natives, past treatment of Chinese and Indian immigrants, and the preference of white European immigrants are used to explain unfairness amongst cultures in Canada and white supremacy. Philip believes Canadians can one day achieve equality among races but only if a strong, united effort is made.…
African Canadians have seen themselves as lower class citizens by mainstream society and their own racial communities. Neil Bissoondath’s a Canadian teacher that came to Canada from Trinidad at the age of eighteen and went to York University to earn his Bachelor of Arts in French. Bissoondath writes stories and essays focusing on economics, the cultural mix of Canada and social problems that are linked to multiculturalism. Bissoondath’s essay “Marginalization” focuses on the controversies central to multicultural policies in Canada. Through various examples and stories, Neil Bissoondath’s work “Marginalization” argues that the hyphen separating an individual’s ethnicity and place of settlement can be separated and demonized by society when it is seen fit. For example, reverting back to an individual’s ethnicity when there is a social controversy, need for aid or help for the in the individuals ethnic country and to take advantage of one’s ethnic perks.…
In the 1970s, the Federal Government undertook an official policy on multiculturalism that was based on the understanding that, “…there cannot be one cultural policy for Canadians of British and French origin, another for the original peoples and yet a third for all others. For although there are two official languages, there is no official culture, nor does any ethnic group take precedence over any other.” (Trudeau 1971) If Canada were to establish policies on official cultures, cultures that people must integrate into, the effect would be to increase feeling of alienation in minority communities by creating barriers to entrance. By actively promoting these different cultures, so long as there is a collective will for the…
In Canada there are a variety of different races that exist. The different types of ethnic groups that are included are Africans, Caucasians, Latinos, Asians, and Indians (Peterson, Krivo 2010). Historically, and in our present society the problem of racial segregation has been a very critical issue. The more enhanced diversity gets, the greater the likelihood that conflicts may arise. A major reasoning behind this is because of socio-economic issues (Peterson, Krivo 2010). According to Peterson and Krivo, there is a difference between Africans, Blacks, Latino’s, Aboriginals and Whites in terms of social and economic…
Source three talks about positive facts on multiculturalism in Canada. They adopted multiculturalism as an official policy. Multiculturalism assures that all citizens can keep their identities, traditions and have a sense of belonging. Multiculturalism is a great benefit to Canada’s economy and diversity, because new citizens can bring unique perspectives and intelligence into the country. Canada had become a diverse country with the help of globalization. Canada being a multicultural country has led to many positive outcomes for our…
The symbol I have chosen to write about is the scroll with a list of people not allowed in Canada. The reason the scroll has nothing written down is an example of how tolerant we are to immigrants/refugees. Thus, Canada is one of the first places someone thinks about when it comes to a tolerant and well-rounded country. The reasons above demonstrate why Canada is so multicultural. This is why it’s a popular place to move to. In conclusion, Canada is seen as a country full of polite people (and maple syrup) because we’re extremely tolerant of other people and…
Today Canada prides itself with how multicultural and diverse it is, taking a look at the 20th century shows that it has not always been that way, and that there have been many obstacles to overcome. The mistreatment of Japanese-Canadians during their internment, denying the 376 passengers of the Komagata Maru food or water for 2 months after not letting them into Canada, forcing indigenous children into the residential schools where they were stripped of everything they knew and taught to be “normal Euro-Canadian citizens”. Those are the 3 main events of the 20th century that showed how truly intolerant Canada was with people of other origins and backgrounds.…
Multiculturalism is part of many countries. In some places, like the United States or Australia, it is a cause for celebration as well as a plain fact. However, only in Canada, multiculturalism is a national ideology and a state policy. Furthermore, Canada institutionalized multicultural policy in the 1980s (Leung, 2011). Which made Canada the first nation to make a policy of multiculturalism part of its national constitution. Multiculturalism was referred to in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms adopted in 1982 (Leung. 2011). Multiculturalism is part of the four state ideologies. The four ideologies are as follows: multiculturalism ideology, civic ideology, assimilation ideology, and ethnist ideology. The multiculturalism ideology is the one that supports and recognizes people of diversity. Civic ideology subscribes to multiculturalism but does not support state funding to promote…
Canada’s topography is spectacular, you can go from oceans to lakes and from deserts to rainforests all in a day's drive, or drive across this vast nation and experience waves surging onto shore, fields of wheat dancing in the wind, cobble stone roads where Canada's first settlers had a dream for a new nation, and cliffs looking out onto what seems an endless sea. The beauty of my country makes me proud. Canada is the least racist country in the world, in my opinion. Ethnic backgrounds are mixed which makes Canada hard to define. Every culture has their own unique qualities and strengths; in Canada their qualities have merged to become one. This new nationality created from blended backgrounds is Canadian. In other countries a lot of people don’t accept ethnic minorities. In Canada, we treasure the various cultures that reside here. The more ethnic background we incorporate into our society the richer we will…
Diversity and immigration have played a major role in Canada’s past, present and future, creating global strength and unity. Canada has become very well known for being a multicultural nation made up of many ethnicities, however this did not exist up until the second World War (WWII). It was during that period of time that the world realized how devastating discrimination can be and how important it is to be accepting of all races. Previously, Canada also showed discrimination against its immigrants through very selective processes and expensive duties. For example, the Chinese Immigration Act of 1885 posed certain restrictions on the Chinese immigrants. Very few were accepted and those that were had to pay a high head tax, reaching up to $500…
A large part of Canada’s identity specifically is diversity, it is so important for a country and communities to be diverse and culturally accepting. Seeing diversity portrayed in media encourage people and small and large communities of people to welcome new cultures and to shares theirs passions, religions, symbols, and foods. This is something that in Canada should be shown and demonstrated more frequently TV shows, ads, commercials, and movies. By showing it in media is making a statement that it is good and it is okay to be diverse; it is alright for different cultures to collaborate and share what they like. Unfortunately this isn’t necessarily shown as much as should be in our Western Culture.…
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live on the beautiful island of Newfoundland and Labrador? This breathtaking province is located on the eastern edge of North America and is the youngest province to join Confederation in 1949 (Summers, 2010) to become a part of Canada. There are many attributes that make up this province. Physical, economical and human diversity play a large role in the makeup of this province. These various characteristics differentiate Newfoundland and Labrador from the other Canadian provinces and have shaped it into the magnificent province that it is today.…
The largest areas of culturally diverse societies consist within the 5 major metropolitan cites of Canada which are, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary (Mercer, 1995, 174). Most crimes occur in these large metropolitan cities, where many cultures are mixed within the large communities. As a result of many of the large Canadian cities being home to a majority group of people from a distinct array of ethnic identities, patterns of crime are often quite similar. For example, statistics have shown a large population of at risk black youth in the City of Toronto often indicted for street crimes. Or, the City of Vancouver, where the Asian youth gang phenomenon is at large (Mercer, 1995, 181). It is very important that the police forces in these communities represent or to the least have knowledge and sensitivity of these ethnic groups. Many of these at risk youth are either immigrants or first generation Canadians; therefore the police must be able to service them with the sensitivity of their background. Although, there have been efforts to diversify Canadian police there is still much work to be done. According to Geoffrey Li, the Law Commission of Canada has noticed through census statistics that: “in spite of concerted efforts to increase diversity in police services in Canada, women, members of visible and ethnic minority groups, as well as Aboriginal peoples, remain significantly underrepresented, compared to their representation in the communities being policed"(Li, 2008, 6). The enforcement and motivation for a more diverse police force is extremely important as the face of Canadian society is becoming less predominantly white males and more women, ethnic minorities, and Aboriginal, fueling the…
The dynamics of Canada’s Laws of tolerance, bilingualism and multiculturalism towards non-British descent have changed since World War II (WW II). During the First World War, a term called “Enemy Aliens” was used towards Canadians of non-British descent who were treated very poorly. Many were sent to internment camps where they had to endure harsh living conditions. Equality was not present at the time. It was nearly 26 years after the end of WWII that a formal Multiculturalism Policy was adopted in 1971. It ensured that all Canadians will have the freedom of belief, opinion and religion. It created a more culturally diverse society which has now become the hallmark of Canadian identity. Another significant development was the introduction of The Official Languages Act 1969 which essentially proclaimed both English and French to be the two official languages of Canada. As a result of these two Acts, Canada has ensured that it is committed to recognizing the rights of minorities in general and of immigrants on non-British descent in particular.…