Another common theme that emerged was not being recognised as Canadian by others. Isabelle talked about how she felt Canadian however, people did not recognise her as that. People saw her as a woman who wears a hijab. She said how people always try to guess her ethnic background. Maya, Pizza and Nick all shared similar feelings that they all felt 100 percent Canadian but, felt mainstream Western society did not accept them as that. Pizza felt that she was recognized by her brown skin colour rather then who she was as a person. Pizza said “people never really ask me my ethnic background they just guess I’m brown because of my skin colour”. This shows how other Canadians are interested in knowing what someone’s background is. Being born in Canada
My Canadian identity, while abroad and at home, is something that I am constantly grappling with. I am so grateful to have a home in a place that is well liked and respected abroad, but have a hard time justifying our glowing reputation on the world stage the more I learn about Indigenous issues. Coming from a sheltered and privileged urban setting, it wasn’t until university that I became truly aware of Indigenous history and struggles, and the colonial legacies and institutionalized racism that prevail to this day. Thus, it was challenging to give in to the banal nationalism surrounding Canada 150 over the course of 2017 – as I did not feel I could mindlessly enjoy celebrations that often ignored the values and events that this country was founded on (Piller, 2012). For that reason, I chose to travel abroad for a few months over the summer, and dedicated conversations about my country to teaching others about the issues that we face here. With the knowledge about culture that I have gained from this course, I now realize that this choice was made as a result of my deeper value systems and reflects my learned desires to help others.
Canadian to be treated as an equal. Culturally, Trudeau wanted to celebrate and unite the
Jocelyn Letourneau’s is a history professor that wrote the essay “Reconstructing the Canadian Identity”. The author argues that if one compares the Harper government's idea of conservatism against Trudeau’s idea of multiculturalism, the reader can infer that multiculturalism is failing and Canada should go back to its monarch roots. By bringing back symbols of monarchy, a new Canadian perspective would form. Letourneau’s essay is structured in a very well and composed matter. His arguments and connections are structured in proper format where his whole essay can be linked and understood easily by the average individual. Although Letourneau’s essay is structured in a proper format, it is without its faults. The essay contains many fallacies that give his arguments a weak perspective on the topic. Also throughout his essay, the author appears to be taking a side within his argument. His bias viewpoint makes himself, and his work uncredible to the reader.
In a world where seven billion people can communicate in fractions of a second across the globe, share thoughts and exchange cultures, the way we choose to identity ourselves can often ‘’mark’’ us. You can often tell a lot about someone who proclaims to be Quebecois before being Canadian. And theses thing are often present in areas that have a clash of cultures, such as Québec in the former example. But the author Thomas King dives deeper into the subject with his short story Borders. King’s characters do not attach themselves to the place they were born, instead they take pride in their parents’ legacy, their heritage. By writing through the eyes of a twelve year old boy and using opposition, King displays the importance of such things and how minorities are slowly losing them.
Culture can be defined as the behaviours and belief characteristics of a particular social, ethnic,
Canada's contribution on the home front played a significant role in the war effort. The federal government transformed the Canadian lifestyle by introducing rationing which limited the quantity and type of goods we consumed. On September 3, 1939, Prime Minister Mackenzie King’s government established the Wartime Prices and Trade Board (WPTB) which introduced rationing and controlled prices to avoid inflation. Every Canadian was issued a ration card to buy essentials such as sugar, meat, gasoline etc. Even though the cards restricted the number of goods it ensured the limit was enough to fulfill an individual's need. Special permits were required to purchase cars, appliances, and other resource consuming. Overall, rationing was a
Nationalism is an important aspect of national pride and identity for countries around the world. For example, Canada takes pride in its cultural identity, one that is claimed to be different from other ‘Western’ more ‘industrialized’ nations, such as countries in Europe, and the United States. Even though Canada currently has a national identity that differs greatly from that of other more established countries, history has dictated the way in which a particular national identity exists today. In Canada, Samuel De Champlain and the French established colonies that created a cultural clash between the French Europeans, and First-Nations Canadians within the country. However, this notion of French Canadian Nationalism isn’t necessarily embraced by all of the Canadian Population. This paper seeks to analyze important pieces of Canadian History that have contributed to a broken concept of what constitutes Canadian nationalism, with an emphasis on how historic events prevent and affect coherent Canadian Nationalism in modern society. Through the analysis of the notions and histories associated with ‘First-Nations Nationalism’, ‘Quebecois Nationalism’, and a broader ‘Anti-American’ identity embraced by many Canadians, this paper seeks to locate common ground within the culturally diverse Canadian population in order to progress toward a singular coherent
Thirdly we have Ethnicity and nationality in M butterfly there are many good examples of how Renee, Gillard and Song identify using ethnicity and nationality.
Many people across the globe argue that nationalism within Canada is simply not feasible. It is said that we as a people, differ so greatly with our diverse cultures, religions, and backgrounds that we cannot come together and exist together as a strong, united nation. In his book, Lament for a Nation, George Grant tells the reader that “…as Canadians we attempted a ridiculous task in trying to build a conservative nation in the age of progress, on a continent we share with the most dynamic nation on earth. The current history is against us.” (1965) Originally directed towards the Bomarc Missile Crisis, the book argues that whatever nationalism Canada had was destroyed by globalization as well as the powerful American
What is Canada? What is a Canadian? Canada, to employ Voltaire's analogy, is nothing but “a few acres of snow.”. Of course, the philosopher spoke of New France, when he made that analogy. More recently, a former Prime Minister, Joe Clark, said that the country was nothing but a “community of communities”. Both these images have helped us, in one way or another, try to interpret what could define this country. On the other hand, a Canadian could be a beer, a hockey-playing beaver or even a canoe floating in a summer day's sunset. A Canadian could also be a “sovereigntyphobe”, refusing to see the liquefaction, albeit political, of the second largest country in the world.
Canada’s identity comes in many shapes and forms. Multiculturalism has been adopted and is at the forefront of Canadian identity. Following the Second World War, Canada’s multiculturalism policies became more acceptable and even successful in, not only accepting, but inviting multiple ethnic cultures in. In contrast to other countries, multiculturalism adaptation works for the Canadian culture. Canadian policies on multiculturalism have shifted over the past few decades; policies are now implemented for integration, not discrimination.
As I walked to the parking lot where my mom had arrived to pick me up from school, my sister ran out of the car, ran towards me and yelled excitedly, “We’re going to Canada!” Having grown up in Kuwait for my whole life of 15 years, I could hardly believe my sister’s words. Going to Canada! I had only been out of the country twice, each time just to vacation and visit family in the Philippines where both my parents are from. I had always imagined what life would be like outside of Kuwait, and now it was finally going to be real. My 15-year old self was devastated - We were leaving the only home I had known for 15 years. It did not take long for my sisters’ excitement to die when we realized that we would be leaving our friends and everything we’ve ever known and not returning for a long time. Life in Kuwait for 15 years was comfortable and we were more than financially stable. Moving to Canada without a job offer in place meant that we would have to start from the beginning all over again. Goodbyes were hard but my parents encouraged us to see the joys of moving to a place where we could start over and become accepted citizens of a country. Arriving in Canada, I experienced the biggest culture shock of my life. Vancouver, BC was cold, wet, and loud. I had thought adjusting would be relatively easy; I spoke English with a slight accent but I was very shy that it confused some of the other kids to think I couldn’t speak English. I did not understand the culture, which took a
Since confederation, Canada has been a nation that is completely different to the rest of the world. Citizens embrace different cultures, religions and ethnicities as their own. When a civic nation is born there are always going to be discrepancies; not everyone is united under one idea. Therefore, loyalties begin to contend with each other which has resulted in the Canada we live in today. Separatists are amongst the majority. Quebec, The Maritimes, Cascadia, The West, all want to be independent from the government run within Ontario. As citizens we must ask ourselves, if the confederation in 1867 was offered to us today, would we accept?
Our family’s immigration to Canada started with my auntie. She is the first person came to Canada in my family, and then my uncle, my auntie’s family, and finally my family. She works as a nurse in Saskatoon. She has been here for fourteen years. My uncle arrived after her. Soon after, my uncle started to apply immigration for my family. Our application of immigration was a long process. We started to apply when I was grade 3, and the application was approved when I was in grade 3 of senior high school. (grade 9 in Canadian high school) In fact, my parents did not willing to immigrate to Canada. They were satisfied with the life in China. Canada was a totally strange country to them, different language and culture. My uncle told my parents
Have you ever glanced at a person who appears to be different and immediately averted your gaze to avoid eye contact? Of course you have, we are all guilty of this. Was this based on the person’s race? The way the dressed perhaps? Or maybe it was neither of these, but yet for some reason you felt as though you could not trust them. This concept of trust is the motivating factor for this paper. You will find that there are numerous ways that you interact in situations which require societal trust without even knowing. It begins at the very top, with our governments and policies, and then funnels through every network of the public sphere down to the diverse individuals whose identities are determined by differing levels of trust. Multiculturalism is found at the very centre of this. The appreciation of others and respect for other cultures is the premise of multiculturalism and is intended to prevent racial divides and conflict from arising. When executed correctly, it has the power and ability to allow for trust among one another, which is pivotal for a cohesive and ethnically diverse society.