Immigration Policy Review: Multiculturalism In Canada

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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

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