Canada pioneered the act of constitutionally entrenching Multiculturalism, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms declares the Multiculturalism policy as a fundamental and defining feature of Canadian society. The concept of multiculturalism emerged in 1971, as a result of an unanimous agreement in Parliament ; it received royal assent with the passage of the Multiculturalism Act, in 1988. The Canadian government had the elusive task of fabricating a national Canadian identity through official governmental policies. The government approached this task by spreading racist discourse vis à vis cultural diversity in its Immigration Policy Review. The policy of Multiculturalism had admirable aspirations for the future of the Canada, however, in practice, …show more content…
Canada’s early institutions systematically oppressed Aboriginal people, through colonization, residential schools, and hegemony — the dominant values of Canadian society reinforced that of the ruling class and masked inequality—. Thus, Canada racialised its immigration policies to attract immigrants exclusively from European background. By implementing these policies, the immigration system racialised access to Canada and citizenship, this exclusion and racialised immigration policy lasted until the 1970s . The past policies of Canada racialised immigration policy by aiming to preserve the racial status …show more content…
The very nature of multiculturalism is a major point of contention; Canada had the objective of establishing a rules-based framework along side a set of normative standards which engaged differences, but simultaneously achieve this without eroding Canadian identity, unity, and prosperity. The policy of multiculturalism engaged Canada in a paradox; making Canada safe for differences yet safe from difference. There is an apparent contradiction in the policy of multiculturalism as being both a progressive and inclusive policy, and exclusionary in an attempt to preserve a unified Canadian identity. In theory, Canada is the most advanced society in terms of minority rights and enshrining multiculturalism in its Constitution, however in practice, Canadian multiculturalism falls short of its own standards. In the field of the Canadian immigration system, fragments of multiculturalism are lacking in its practice. Although the theoretical concept of multiculturalism is to be admired, in practice, it creates a division within Canadian society. The policy of multiculturalism accepts and tolerates practices and customs which are fundamentally different and incompatible with Canada fundamental values. Thus, multiculturalism negatively affects the core values on which Canada was built, furthermore, it creates the false belief of
In “Canadian Multiculturalism: Global Anxieties and Local Debates” Keith Banting and Will Kymlicka challenge the understanding that failed multiculturalism in Europe will follow suit in Canada. Although Canada is not immune from the challenges that can come with multiculturalism, the way in which they tackle problems are country specific and do not necessarily reflect the practice or outcomes of other nations. As UK critic of multiculturalism Trevor Phillips, observes Canada to be ‘sleepwalking towards segregation’ (44) when the dynamics are far more complicated. TRANSITION SENTENCE REQUIRED
Canada is an ethnically diverse country. The notion of "multiculturalism" began circulating in Canada in 1971 and is a word that is now commonly used to define this country, unlike the word "melting-pot" which is used to describe Americans' loss of ethnic identity. The broadcasting system in Canada is pressured by the government to acknowledge the culturally diverse society by broadcasting a fair representation of the population in terms of ethnicity. This is achieved through the many acts that have been passed through parliament: the multiculturalism policy of 1971, the Canadian Multiculturalism Act of 1988, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms of 1982, the Ethnic Broadcasting Policy of 1985, and most recent, the Broadcasting Act of 1991. These legislative and policy frameworks have provided guidelines for the management of Canadia...
Canada is internationally renowned for its commitment to multiculturalism. In fact, Canada was the first nation to officially adopt a multicultural policy. However, while the Canadian government has developed a broad-based multicultural mandate that includes a national human rights code and increased penalties for hate-motivated crimes, and most Canadians oppose overt forms of discrimination and hate, racism continues to exist in Canadian society, albeit in a subtle fashion.
Do you know that despite Canada being called multicultural and accepting, Canada’s history reveals many secrets that contradicts this statement? Such an example are Canadian aboriginals, who have faced many struggles by Canadian society; losing their rights, freedoms and almost, their culture. However, Native people still made many contributions to Canadian society. Despite the efforts being made to recognize aboriginals in the present day; the attitudes of European Canadians, acts of discrimination from the government, and the effects caused by the past still seen today have proven that Canadians should not be proud of Canada’s history with respect to human rights since 1914.
Multiculturalism in Canada is actually a beautiful element. Through different texts such as “I am not racist” and “I’m a Banana and proud of it” multiculturalism may not be a beautiful thing after all. The stereotyping, that is describing people shape, colour and language they speak. In Canada, stereotyping and racism occurs even if we think it’s not as we are multicultural country.
In the 1900’s a prominent English scholar Gilbert Murray said: “There is in the world a hierarchy of races;[some] will direct and rule the others, and the lower work of the world will tend in the long run to be done by the lower breeds of men. This we of the ruling colour will no doubt accept as obvious.”(Walker; 1997) It was very true at the time; everywhere you looked you could see that white men assumed all roles of responsibility. Canada has been fighting a never-ending war against racism in the 19th century. It. It has modified or created many laws to help try to combat the discrimination that exists within our country. Canada has modified its immigration act to make it less discriminatory. It has created the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to bring equality to everyone and it has, created human rights acts to protect people of different races.
Systemic discrimination has been a part of Canada’s past. Women, racial and ethnic minorities as well as First Nations people have all faced discrimination in Canada. Policies such as, Charter of Rights and Freedoms, provincial and federal Human Rights Codes, as well has various employment equity programs have been placed in Canada’s constitution to fight and address discrimination issues. Despite these key documents placed for universal rights and freedoms Aboriginal and other minority populations in Canada continue to be discriminated against. Many believe there is no discrimination in Canada, and suggest any lack of success of these groups is a result of personal decisions and not systemic discrimination. While others feel that the legislation and equality policies have yet resulted in an equal society for all minorities. Racism is immersed in Canadian society; this is clearly shown by stories of racial profiling in law enforcement.
“Multiculturalism” entered public speech in the late 1960s and early 1970s in Canada that focused on unique cultural diversity, nationalities, and ethnicity across the nation. Multiculturalism and Immigration are important factors in the development of Canada to attain a strong multicultural example of economic stability, social and political growth which leads to the emergence of Canada’s identity and culture.
Every year, over 250,000 people make Canada their new home. Attracted by its education system, economy and universal healthcare system, there are few other places in the world like it. All Canadians are guaranteed equality before the law and equality of opportunity, regardless of where they are from. However, some might argue that Canadian policy has not been put into practice as well as it should be. Is the concept of true equality a far-fetched idea? It seems that Canada has taken great measures to promote the integration of immigrants socially, but can the same be said for their integration economically? Politically? To judge whether or not Canada has been successful at promoting the integration of immigrants in these realms, a deeper understanding of Canadian policy must be considered.
Multiculturalism policy was first adopted in Canada in 1971, which reaffirms the dignity and value of all its citizens regardless of ethnic origins, race, religious affiliations, or language. Part of this policy, Canada confirms the rights of all the aboriginals along with the recognition of two official languages. Indeed, multiculturalism has great importance since its main purpose is to give equal treatment to all the citizens (Daniel, 2010). It ensures that all individual citizens could still maintain their identities, and have pride with their ancestry. Through this initiative, the Canadian government was able to give their citizens a feeling of self-confidence, making them more open to their diverse cultures. The multiculturalism policy
Multiculturalism and the Canadian identity. Introduction What is the Canada Tax Code? What is a Canadian emigrant? Canada, to employ Voltaire's analogy, is nothing but “a few acres of snow”.
Today in Canada it is not uncommon to see people of various races, ethnic backgrounds or cultural groups living within a mutual society; commonly known as multiculturalism. Multiculturalism refers to the presence of, or support for the presence of several distinct cultural or ethnic groups within a society. As the topic becomes more more popular due to news events and social media debates, multiculturalism gets twisted and misunderstood. In essence, multiculturalism is not about dwelling on about our differences, it is about emphasizing our commonality. Diversity of the human race has the power to unify society and make it stronger. Firstly, innovation
The country of Canada is known for its celebration of diverse population and multiculturalism. For years foreigners have been immigrating to Canada to find better opportunities for themselves and their families. Citizenship offers protection of human rights and freedoms including mobility and equality among others, under the Charter. (Canadian Charter, 1982, s 6(2)(b)) The status of Canadian citizenship first started with the official Citizen Act in 1947, which distinguished Canada from other parts of the British Commonwealth. “Before 1947, residents of Britain, Australia, and New Zealand could without limitation immigrate to Canada whenever they chose … Canadians had the same rights to move to those countries and exercise political rights” (Dickerson, Flanagan & O'Neill, 2009). As the country has become more developed, the state of immigration has changed with it. The process of obtaining legal citizenship today is varied according to the applicants’ circumstances. The current state of immigration into Canada is shaped by these paths to citizenship.
Multiculturalism is a significant fabric of Canadian society that defines its unique identity among the rest of the world. Enactment of the Canadian multicultural policy (1971) affirmed government position and recognition of multiculturalism as a vital element of Canada. It is imperative to understand that multiculturalism is a static concept that keeps changing overtime and has a multidimensional entity. Canadians have always and will continue to revise the concept of multiculturalism to suit the ever expanding needs of Canadian society. In this paper, I will evaluate the reasons behind Canada’s adoption of multicultural policy and assess whether the policy should be maintained or not. I will defend the thesis that Canada’s multiculturalism
Growing up with a diverse community makes you realize that Canada is growing and slowly becoming a Multicultural society. Multiculturalism as stated in the textbook, is defined as allowing and accepting different cultures and providing them encouragement and support to keep their culture and diverse traditions (Mintz et al. 2015, 34). In 1971, Canada became the first country in the world to adapt the official policy of multiculturalism. (Government of Canada. “Canadian Multiculturalism: An Inclusive Citizenship” 2012). Canada grants all residents of Canadian citizens regardless of their “racial or ethnic origins, their language, or their religious affiliation”. (Government of Canada. “Canadian Multiculturalism: An Inclusive Citizenship”