canadian identity

On the surface, the contrast between Canada and the United States on immigration is sharp. U.S. President Donald Trump was recently warning of an “invasion” by a group of migrants crossing Mexico on foot, even going so far as to send troops to the border in a theatrical flourish just ahead of the mid-term elections.

No socio-cultural change in North America has been more consequential over the past century than changes in attitudes and expectations related to the role and status of women in society.

Maxime Bernier has argued that multiculturalism is a divisive policy that encourages Canadians to identify with their own “tribes” at the expense of their wider society.

An estimated 25,000 people have crossed into Canada from the United States at irregular crossings, seeking refugee status and reportedly fearing deportation by the Trump administration to dangerous home countries.

The survey was the first to ever ask Canadians about how they see their place in the world, and that of their country – not simply what they believe their governments should be doing: What do they see as the top global issues, and how do they orient personally to the world outside of the national borders, in terms of their interests, travel and personal connections?

Cultures have their own myths, institutions and trajectories. Some things have changed in America, as in other societies: slavery was abolished, women got the vote, same-sex marriage was allowed. 

Darrell Bricker and John Ibbitson - in their February 10 Globe and Mail commentary - get it half right when they say the current tsunami of populism in western countries is largely an expression of cultural, as opposed to economic, insecurity.

In early 2007, former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani led the pack of would-be Republican nominees for president – but some worried he was “too metropolitan” for heartland voters.

As icons of masculinity, it would be hard to find a more vivid contrast than that between US president Donald Trump and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau.

Migration levels are now at an all-time high worldwide, due in large part to massive numbers of refugees fleeing conflict in such countries as Syria and Iraq. Many are seeking a safe refuge in European countries, where governments are implementing new border controls, and the number of attacks against immigrants is on the rise.