Canada's multiculturalism and the integration of immigrants in the Canadian society

Name:
Institution:
Course:
Date of submission:
Canada’s multiculturalism and the integration of immigrants in the Canadian society
Introduction
Table of Contents
 TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u  HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262771"
1.0 Introduction  PAGEREF _Toc352262771 \h
2
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262772"
2.0 History of multiculturalism in Canada  PAGEREF _Toc352262772 \h
2
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262773"
3.0 Multiculturalism as a strategy of integration  PAGEREF _Toc352262773 \h
5
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262774"
4.0 Economic value of multiculturalism  PAGEREF _Toc352262774 \h
6
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262775"
5.0 Social value of multiculturalism  PAGEREF _Toc352262775 \h
8
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262776"
6.0 Multiculturalism integrated with national identity  PAGEREF _Toc352262776 \h
8
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262777"
7.0 Conclusion  PAGEREF _Toc352262777 \h
9
 HYPERLINK \l "_Toc352262778"
8.0 Work cited  PAGEREF _Toc352262778 \h
10

1.0 Introduction
Multiculturalism connotes that there is equality among diverse people in a society regardless of their religion, origin, race or culture. In Canada, multiculturalism and integration of immigrants matters because they contribute to the economy’s growth, while social inclusion ensures that there is social harmony among diverse cultures. The official recognition of multiculturalism through policy formulations ensures that there is no discrimination on basis of ethnicity. According to Reitz (528) multiculturalism in Canada is an approach toward integration of immigrants and not isolationist. Cultural freedom and political participation of people in Canadian institutions is proof that there is belief in the concept of unity in diversity. This paper highlights on the values of multiculturalism to Canadians, economically, socially and as a national identity.
History of multiculturalism in Canada
Canada is a motherland of immigrants, and the demographic make up of the nation has changed significantly over time along with the immigration patterns. Prior to colonization, the nation was mainly composed of aboriginal groups, but colonization brought new demographic trends. During colonization the population of Europeans especially the English and French grew substantially with the nation now populated by three major ethnic groups namely the English, French and aboriginal people. The first British settlers took residence on the Eastern region of the country along the Atlantic coastline, while French settlers settled in Nova Scotia and Quebec (Edwards & Saltman, 2010). Though, coming from the same continent the British and French settlers had different cultures, legal systems and languages. The British were mostly Protestants, while the French were Catholics with time the British conquered most of Canada imposing their culture, but the French culture did not die away.
Historically, the British, French and aboriginal people are regarded the founding nations of Canada (Edwards & Saltman, 2010). This notion supposes that these groups have had a philosophical impact on the political and social institutions of the country more than other groups due to their long history in the country. However, the concept of multiculturalism is in contrast to the principle of founding nations, based on the idea that all cultural groups contribute to the development of the nation. In addition to earlier settlers and indigenous people of the land, other groups had migrated by 1867 when the confederation was formed (Edwards & Saltman, 2010). The construction of the transnational railway facilitated immigration westwards from the late 19th century. Most immigrants were primarily of European descent with those from Eastern Europe and Scandinavia also immigrating in large numbers.
However, there were other non Europeans with Asians migrating during the construction of the railway, while African American people also settled in Nova Scotia and Ontario after escaping slavery (Edwards & Saltman, 2010). Thus, subsequent immigration to Canada altered the ethnic make up with there being numerous cultures and ethnicities. Even though, many immigrants came from Europe particularly the English and French, there society now constitutes many other people. But, the demographic trends are not uniform across provinces because many immigrants tend to settle in metropolitan cities. Thus, immigration had had a profound impact on the population with plurality now common which then makes it plausible to call for the recognition of multiculturalism.
Early adoption of multicultural policies were two fold in their recognition of the rights of French and aboriginal Canadians. During the colonization of Canada the British crafted policies that sought to extend their influence over other communities. However, by the time of forming the confederation, French Canadians had their own distinct political rights that recognized the principle of self determination. Thus, the French language was recognized as an official language, while Quebec which was mainly populated by the French had political autonomy (Edwards & Saltman, 2010). However, policies on aboriginal and other immigrants were few during the 19th and early 20th century. In essence, the adoption of the Immigration Act mainly focused on European descended immigrants. To create homogeneity in the society the government mainly pursued assimilation policies. However in the mid 20th century the policies focused on equity in policy formulations on multiculturalism.
Efforts towards more integration gained momentum after the realization that French-speaking people from Quebec were not entirely happy with the English dominated structure of the society. This necessitated the formation of a Royal commission to deal with bilingualism and biculturalism with a view towards promoting multiculturalism in the year 1963. Despite the notion that the French language did not need any special recognition, this commission brought forth the issue of unity in diversity in which, there was equality but communities were free to exercise their culture. So as to achieve this it was vital to reach a compromise through policy formulations (Stoddard 8).
The passage of the Official Languages Act officially institutionalized bilingualism in 1969, paving the way for the subsequent adoption of other similar Acts. In a report titled, The Cultural Contribution of Other Ethnic Groups the role of French speaking gained more prominence, but there was still no much emphasis on other communities. This report seems to have mainly focused on Quebec from a political angle, but this also paved the way for more calls for integration. There were findings that there was successful integration of many ethnic communities, but with little assimilation of these groups (Stoddard 8).
Multiculturalism as a strategy of integration
Under prime mister Trudeau, Canada adopted the recommendations of a report on multiculturalism in 1971, which brought forth a new system that recognized multiculturalism, but with emphasis on a bilingual system in the society (Stoddard 11). The idea behind the adoption of the document was that it would facilitate cultural freedom, as well as pave the way for the recognition of linguistic differences in a new framework. Furthermore, Trudeau made public pronouncement which meant that national unity would grow stronger if people accepted their unique identity, then they would also learn to respect the differences in other people, and be more willing to share ideas (Stoddard 11). The policy further led to the recognition that there was a need to reduce cultural barriers that limited full integration into the Canadian society, and also ...