You're Canadian First

Wow, I actually agree with something a Liberal said, though I strongly disagree on why she came to Canada in the first place. Yasmin Ratansi, MP for Don Valley East Toronto told immigrants that they should not marginalize themselves. “You should not ever say (for example) I’m Indo-Canadian. No, you are not. You are a Canadian first. India is the country with which you have your heritage, yes, but you are Canadian first.” Ratansi is originally from Tanzania and immigrated to Canada in 1974.

Ratansi's words echo what I have said in the past. The so called Canadians of convenience who marginalize themselves by shutting themselves up in immigrant enclaves and never interacting with or contributing to society at large. I think this is why so many older immigrants feel resentful of newer ones. I remember a story my Grandma told my about my Granddad when they first came here in the 1950s. He was working a carpentry job (he was a carpenter by trade) when he commented that the method one of his buddies was using was not how they did it back in Britain. His friend turned to him and said something to the tune that this was Canada and this is how they do it here; and that he should adopt the Canadian way of doing things. Somehow this became lost in the foolish idea of "salad bowl" multiculturalism, which I feel has utterly failed. Few new immigrants rally behind Canadian identity beyond the occasional cup of Tim's. In the United State's, you're always an American first, and damn proud of it. We may mock them for that but maybe our Yankee cousins are onto something.

Source: CNEWS