Canada and Multiculturalism – is there a Canadian culture left?
Multiculturalism became incorporated into official policies in several nations in the 1970s for various reasons. In Canada, it was adopted in 1971 following the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism, a government body set up in response to the grievances of Canada’s French-speaking minority (concentrated in the Province of Quebec). The report of the Commission advocated that the Canadian government should recognize Canada as a bilingual and bicultural society and adopt policies to preserve this character. Biculturalism was attacked from many directions.
John Diefenbaker saw multiculturalism as an attack on his vision of unhyphenated Canadianism. It did not satisfy the growing number of young francophones who gravitated towards Quebec nationalism.
Why isn’t Canada a melting pot society where immigrants have to assimilate and conform to Canadian values and standards? Are we loosing our heritage?
The Liberal Party government of Pierre Trudeau promulgated the “Announcement of Implementation of Policy of Multiculturalism within Bilingual Framework” in the House of Commons on 8 October 1971, the precursor of the Canadian Multiculturalism Act which received Royal Assent on 21 July 1988. Symbolically, this legislation affirmed that Canada was a multicultural nation. On a more practical level, federal funds began to be distributed to ethnic groups to help them preserve their cultures.
Was it this mas fault that multicultralism is failing in Canada?
Typo “was it this mans fault”
Canada was never conquered by Spain and the French lost all claim to Canada in 1759 in the French Indian War.
