Is Racism A Problem In Canada?

Ask most Canadians if racism is present in their country and you will get a swift denial of this type of social injustice. Canadians tend to see themselves as a tolerant people who desire equality and opportunity for all. Canada has two official languages, English and French. The country also encourages immigration and plans to welcome a quarter million new immigrants from all over the world in 2013. It is actively recruiting the immigration of skilled tradespeople to work in the construction, mining, and manufacturing sectors. Certainly discriminatory practices cannot exist in such a welcoming environment.

No, discrimination is not commonplace, unless of course, you are an aboriginal person, then your chances of experiencing blatant racism increase significantly. Afro-Canadians (black citizens) also notice a subtle racism leveled at them that most white Canadians do not acknowledge.

In the article “What it Means to be Black in Canada,” Senator Don Oliver, an Afro-Canadian states, “If you are a Black Canadian, studies continue to show that you are less likely than a member of any other ethnic group to get a job or a promotion. You are more likely to get pulled over for 'driving while Black,' or to be discriminated against in the courts.” Senator Oliver goes on to point out, that few Blacks receive promotions to top management positions in the private sector and Blacks in government jobs declined significantly over the past two decades."

While the government of Canada actively combats discrimination against its First Nation people with two significant pieces of legislation, nothing has been done to address the more subtle forms of racism directed towards people of color.

Senator Oliver believes the black experience in Canada has been largely ignored. For example, in Canadian history books, the fact that slavery once existed in Canada is seldom mentioned.

“Most Canadians don’t know that segregation was accepted in many parts of this country well into the 1960s. They believe the myth of a Canadian tradition of tolerance because most history books gloss over the overt racism that has afflicted Blacks in Canada throughout our country’s existence,” Oliver laments.

In 2009, the Toronto Star asked ten people if Canada is more racist than the U.S. All respondents agreed their nation was at least as racist as their neighbor to the South. Dwayne Morgan may have summed it up the best. “I think that it is much easier to navigate through life when you know exactly where you fit in, but as a Canadian person of color, I am made to feel like a foster child, desperately wanting to feel like a part of the family.”