Analyzing Multiculturalism and National Unity in Canada Today

This essay examines the impact of multiculturalism on national unity in Canada, tracing its origins from the 1960s and the adoption of the Multiculturalism Act. It discusses the initial intentions of fostering inclusivity and protecting minority rights, highlighting the roles of provincial policies and governmental initiatives like the Canadian Consultative Council on Multiculturalism and Bills C-93, C-37, and C-63 aimed at ensuring equality and preserving heritage languages. The essay argues that multiculturalism, intended to promote social integration, has instead led to a focus on American values and political demands from ethnic groups, contributing to social unrest and a lack of a unified national identity. It critiques the government's approach to historical injustices and the preservation of ethnic identities, suggesting that these efforts may inadvertently create divisions and language inequalities, ultimately hindering national unity. The essay concludes that the unplanned evolution and conceptual deficits in Canada's approach to multiculturalism have negatively impacted its national unity, evidenced by social, political, and racial unrest.

Running head: MULTICULTURALISM AND CANADA
Multiculturalism and Canada
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Canada is a country resided by people from different countries, languages, cultures
and communities which has given it an essence of Multiculturalism. Multiculturalism
essentially refers to the coexistence of people from different milieu with attribution to
cultural pluralism and protection of the minority group from exclusion, repression and
inequality (Berry, 2013). It believes in the acknowledgement and welfare of those from the
minority group in all aspects of social life. The concept came into Canada during 1960s as
opposed to “biculturalism”. Canada is resided by a mixture of people from different cultures
and ethnicities which has earned it the name “the mosaic”. In 1917, the prime minister of
Canada, Pierre Elliot Trudeau, accepted the multiculturalism policy and in 1988 the
“Multiculturalism Act” came into being (Berry, 2013). The circumstances that played an
important role for Canada to include Multiculturalism was the unacceptance of the British,
Indigenous and Asian population within their territory. First and Second World War also
influenced the process of multiculturalism in Canada. The following work is aimed to
examine whether Multiculturalism has enhanced the National Unity of Canada and also it
will view the role of Government and the policies towards it.
The Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism in 1969 first proposed that
Canada, which is now in its post-multicultural era, should accept the ‘cultural mosaic'. The
multiculturalism policies were adopted first at the provincial levels. Quebec, Nova Scotia,
Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario are the first ones to accept the agendas with different
approaches. While Ontario acknowledged the understanding, acceptance and promotion of
the diversified cultures, Quebec focused upon maintaining the uniqueness of each culture
(Bloemraad & Wright, 2014). The pragmatic illustrations of the concept are the Government
policies and agendas, implemented to guard the minorities. In 1972, the federal government,
set up the Canadian Consultative Council on Multiculturalism. In 1988, Bill C-93 was
included which ensured the racial and cultural equality across the country with the force of

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law. The bill also rooted a multiculturalism secretariat to take care of the implementations.
The Bill C- 37, accepted in 1991, propounded to preserve the heritage of the minority
languages. In October 1996, the parliament, under the Bill C-63, aimed to eliminate racism
and racial inequity and funding of $24million were made (Guo & Wong, 2015). Further the
Directorate’s initiatives have stimulated the ethnocultural diversions. All this have, over the
period of time, contributed to Ethnic Studies.
However, the present profile for Multiculturalism promoting social integration can be
termed as a ‘failure’. The outlook of the concept ‘multiculturalism' was the inclusion of
people of all the communities and minorities from all over the world but gradually it changed
to a culture with American values. Moreover, the ethnic groups have always perceived to be a
valuable social impetus with logical political demands but the country is recently observing
to deal with multiple issues of racism and people from religious minorities are seen to be
claiming reservations which are, of course, dominantly, political in pursuit (Kymlicka, 2015).
Further, The Canadian government, in the multiculturalism attitude, promotes a sense of
‘historical injustice’ which states that the past experienced by the individuals were of
inequality and therefore they will be treated as one in the country. But Canada offers separate
clubs and entertainments which reinstates the diversity of culture among them. To preserve
the ancient languages and rituals, the Government of Canada has further established the
concept of ethnic identity. (Bantica & Kymlicka, 2013).
Further, Canadian Government has kept English as their dominant language and
culture and the other dialects are often seen with the need to be preserved which invokes a
sense of language inequality among the habitats and actively negate unity of the country.
Therefore it can be argued that as compared to United Nations the latter has a better approach
to cultural assimilation with the notion of ‘one country, one culture’, but Canada is a country
without any national identity of its own which is very confusing and contradictory to its

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propositions (Lipset, 2013). Moreover, identifying oneself with one’s own culture evokes a
sense of antipathy towards the cultures of others instead of being respectful towards them
which thus establishes the fact that cultural relativism stands ideally and conceptually
opposite to cultural pluralism which is Canada's essential feature and signifies the failure of
the country in providing a unified national identity. Furthermore, the Multiculturalism Act,
practised by the country which states accommodation to all irrespective of their previous
social setup, is exposed to legal dilemma since people of different societies are habituated
with a different legal structure. Therefore they would want to preserve their constitutional
rights as well which can pose difficulties for the country since they would need to revise their
constitutional setup which, again may upset the people already residing (Modood, 2014).
This has further caused a social unrest among the people. The Canadian government is now
seen to be divided into two, one in support of further multiculturalism and for the other, in
against, regard the aborigines as a means of national relationship and are reluctant to give
them Canadian citizenship.
Another point of argument is that concept of Multiculturalism in Canada came as a
counter to Biculturalism. However, the contemporary government bodies are promoting the
biculturalism within the country with French and English as their two dominant languages
which then denies the true essence or value of Multiculturalism (Smith, 2013). Further, the
country does not pose any national identity or explicit goal which is essential to promote the
sense of belongingness or national unity. The concept of Multiculturalism was introduced as
a way to breakdown the cultural impediments, change the discriminatory approaches towards
others, creative encounters, exchange of ideas and opinions, personal growth and finding
unity in diversity, however, the strategies or policies taken to ensure these stands in the stark
opposite to the plans (Murphy, 2013). A country with already diversified ideologies, if
welcomed with more diversities, will establish a sense of diversity among the habitats instead

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of unity which is harmful to a country's national unity. The approaches taken by Canada to
deal with the evolution of Multiculturalism over time is therefore unplanned and certainly
deficits conceptual, ideological understanding (Taylor, 2016).
Therefore, from the above arguments, it can be concluded that over the period of time
the concept and outlook of Multiculturalism has changed and the government mostly because
of the government policies. The breakage and differences of opinions that have generated
within the political groups have further modified the outlook to Multiculturalism and is
contributing negatively towards the national unity. The social, political and racial unrests
within the country are examples that negate the concept of national unity in the country.

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