Canada

Troubled history;
progressive policy;
complicated present.
Why Canada?
1st Multicultural Policy in 1970s

Multination and Polyethnic State

Survey
1. What is the official language of Canada?
2. Who is the current Prime Minister?
3. What is the capital city?
4. What do you estimate is the current population of Canada?
5. What image do you have of a typical Canadian person (3 adjectives)?
History
Indigenous Peoples - First Nation

Colonization: 1497 (apart from Vikings)

French and English: struggle for land

Crowfoot and Family - Siksika First Nation

First Nations
● Woodlands
● Iroquoian
● Plains
● Plateau
● Pacific Coast
● Mackenzie and Yukon River Basins
Example:
Woodlands Nation
Ojibwa - those who keep record

Ottowa - traders

Many other groups too!

Farmers and hunters

Algonquian languages
New France and the British Empire
Battles to control the territory

British and French colonies

1757 British defeated France for control of area

1774 Quebec Act

British Institution with French Culture

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/discover/section-06.asp
Assimilation
Indigenous people forced to assimilate
and fit in to French or English culture

Forced boarding schools for children and

teenagers

Separated from family, language and

traditions: “cultural genocide”

Expropriation of cultural homes and land

rights are other key issues
Pre-1971
Canadian citizens had been British subjects until 1947

Anglo-centric culture

Post-WWII immigration led to consideration of other ethnic groups

Quebecois separist movement

Multiculturalism Act, 1971
Follows Official Languages Act of 1969 (English and
French become official languages)

Originally designed to manage biculturalism and

bilingualism (English and French)

Other ethnic groups were considered after concerns

expressed by critics

Promoted respect for cultural diversity

An Introduction
Prime Minister Pierre
Trudeau’s introduction to the
act.
The Principles
1. Pluralism: allow groups to
maintain cultural identity.
2. Remove Obstacles: full
participation in society.
3. Cultural Exchange: promote
interaction between groups.
4. Bilingualism: provide
opportunities for immigrants to
obtain one of the official
languages.
Warm Up: Do you know any famous
Canadians?
What did we learn on Monday?
What was new?

What was true to your expectations?

What was unexpected?

What else would you like to know?

Context Today
Population: 36 million

1 in 5 Canadians born outside of the

country

9 million Francophones

1.4 million identify as aboriginal

Culture in Canada
Catholicism and Protestantism are
the two biggest religions

Fewer class distinctions

“I” over “we”

Language and Culture: Highly Interconnected
Masculinity: sports Francophone and Anglophone differences

Femininity: work-life balance

Indulgence: This dimension is defined as the extent to which people try
Less emotionally expressive to control their desires and impulses, based on the way they were raised.
A Comparison
Analysis of Canada as a Whole
Low neuroticism

Low anxiety

Open and agreeable

Moderate extroversion
Environment and Culture: Cold Cultures
Task-Oriented

Direct Communication

Individualistic

Time and Structure Oriented

Ethnicity
There is a great
difference in the
demographics of each
province, as shown in the
graphic:
Francophones and Anglophones
“However, among Francophones, the dominant
personality types were introverted, sensing, think-ing,
and judging, and among Anglophones, the dominant
types were intuition, feeling, and perceiving.”

Francophones: more collectivist, less achievement

focused, more open-minded, and less conservative than
anglophones.

Personality and Culture: A Comparison of Francophones and Anglophones in

Quebec (PDF Download Available). Available from:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/5339382_Personality_and_Culture_A_
Comparison_of_Francophones_and_Anglophones_in_Quebec [accessed Nov 08
2017].
Language
Canadian English Canadian French

British influence Archaic, different idioms and anglicisms

Neighbour / Colour on - nous

Centre / Theatre pis - et

Washroom astheure -> à cette heure = maintenant (now)

Pop magasiner - ?

University rusher / spotter

“Ey” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KO6zzU-W
oDg
What about indigenous
cultures in Canada?
Growing population

Semi-fluency in native languages increasing

More representation in parliament than ever

PM has promised to protect indigenous rights

Canadian Members of
Parliament
● The most diverse parliament in
Canada
● 338 members in total
● 88 women
● 10 Muslim MPs
● 10 indigenous MPs
● Still majority male, white Anglo-Saxon
Prejudice, Stereotypes and Other Issues
Stereotypes of alcoholism and unemployment

Education, physical and mental health, higher levels

of incarceration, lower level of education and
suicide are key issues that affect aboriginal peoples
in Canada.

Feminicides is another serious issue that affects

indigenous women.
And immigrant groups?
Representation: 4 Sikh cabinet members (of 30

Criticism of Diversity and Love Vs Hate

However: lower wages and fewer opportunities

96,000 Mexicans in Canada (birth and ancestry)

Other visible minorities are not represented
as well.
 Immigration
China
India
United Kingdom
Philippines
United States
Italy
Hong Kong
Germany
Vietnam
Pakistan
Canadians say that multiculturalism...
And that...
Will Kymlicka:
Multicultural
Citizenship

Book written 1995

Canadian political philosopher

Nation closely related to Culture or People:

historical community with shared language,
traditions, homeland
Types of Multiculturalism in Canada
Multination: the existence of a
number of nations, cultures or
peoples in one state, usually as a
result of colonialism, but also
seen in countries such as
Switzerland and Belgium.
Polyethnic: the result of How do you understand
immigration is the existence of a
these concepts in terms of
number of people from cultures
that are not part of the larger Canada’s social makeup?
state.
Reading
Chapter 1, pp. 1-6

Questions:

1. What was the Western idealized model of the polis?

2. What changed in approaches to multicultural societies after WWII?
3. What is the objective of affirmative action? Can you give an example?
4. What are some of the main issues in multicultural policy?
Glossary
polis (p. 2) - state or society

polities (p.2) - political organization

homogenous - similar (p. 2 ) because of shared origin, opposite of heteregenous

assimilate (p. 2) - fit in or be made to fit in and become the same / similar

ethnocultural (p.3) - relating to a particular cultural group

neglect (p. 3) - fail to care for properly

References and Further Readings
Canada’s Multiculturalism Act

https://www.pier21.ca/research/immigration-history/canadian-multiculturalism-po
licy-1971

https://lop.parl.ca/content/lop/ResearchPublications/2009-20-e.pdf

Demographics

https://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/91-003-x/2007001/4129904-eng.htm
Forced Boarding Schools

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/the-bitter-legacy-of-canadas-fo
rced-assimilation-boarding-schools

Cultural Value Dimensions

https://www.hofstede-insights.com/country-comparison/canada,the-usa/

Discrimination

https://www.povertyactionlab.org/evaluation/discrimination-against-skilled-immig
rants-canadian-labor-market
Canadian French

https://www.livinglanguage.com/blog/2016/10/12/differences-between-european-
and-canadian-french/

Hot and Cold Cultures

http://www.ubahouston.org/filerequest/5452