Majority believes Canada coddles minorities
Poll reveals deeply divided attitudes toward immigration
BRIAN LAGHI
From Thursday's Globe and Mail
April 17, 2008 at 4:04 AM EDT
OTTAWA A majority of Canadians say their country bends too much in trying to make visible minorities feel at home, even as voters pat themselves on the back for being a welcoming society.
Results of a new survey for The Globe and Mail/CTV News also show substantial national fault lines on immigration, with urban Canadians more likely to support the growth of visible minority groups than their rural cousins are.
According to the poll, 61 per cent of those surveyed believe that Canada makes too many accommodations for visible minorities. In Quebec, 72 per cent of those surveyed feel that way.
At the same time, 88 per cent of Canadians believe that their community is welcoming to members of visible minority groups.
Poll results (pdf) Popup
As the Conservatives move to amend Canadian immigration laws to clear a backlog, the party's base is apparently less positive about the increasing numbers of newcomers who call themselves visible minorities.
“On the one hand, there's a bit of self-satisfaction in terms of our record,” said Peter Donolo, a partner with the polling firm the Strategic Counsel. “But there's also this kind of anxiety that's most pronounced in certain groups.”
Mr. Donolo said some of the unease might stem from a spate of recent issues.
They include whether Islamic sharia law should be recognized and a Tory proposal during last year's Ontario election to extend public funding to all faith-based schools.
In Quebec, the government called public hearings into the “reasonable accommodation” of immigrants.
The poll also found that 45 per cent of those surveyed believe new Canadians hold on to their customs and traditions for too long, only two percentage points below those who feel newcomers integrate into Canadian life at a natural and acceptable pace.
Mr. Donolo noted there were substantial differences among Canadians on the issue, depending on their age, their education, the size of their community and other factors.
For example, on the matter of whether accepting new immigrants of diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds is an enriching part of the Canadian identity, 65 per cent living in cities of more than one million agreed, compared with 53 per cent of Canadians in communities of fewer
than 30,000.
And on the matter of whether new Canadians hold on to their customs for too long, 54 per cent in small communities said they felt they did, while 42 per cent in the large centres said they did not.
“People who tend to feel strongest about this are people who live in the smaller communities, where there would be less contact with members of minorities,” said Mr. Donolo. “Whereas, the intensity of this feeling is much reduced in larger communities.”
Supporters of different political parties also had differing views.
When asked to characterize the fact that five million Canadians are visible minorities, 55 per cent of Liberal supporters said it was a positive development, compared with 38 per cent of Conservative backers.
By contrast, 53 per cent of NDP backers, 56 per cent of Bloc Qubcois backers and 59 per cent of Greens found the numbers a good thing.
Asked whether, at 16 per cent, visible minorities make up too much of the nation's population, 55 per cent of Canadians said it doesn't matter.
Only 9 per cent said the proportion was too large, while 10 per cent said it was too small.
Mr. Donolo said some of the poll's results might help to explain policy decisions made by various governments.
For example, the Conservative initiative to ban face veils at voting booths may stem from the fact that 82 per cent of Bloc Qubcois voters believe the country has yielded too much in making accommodations.
“They understand that there's some potential, particularly with switching Bloc voters,” he said. “At the same time, though, they have to be on guard because there's a history or tendency of the media to brand them as outside the mainstream on these issues.”
He added that Conservatives want to grow their base, and have made efforts to court visible minorities.
The poll of 1,000 Canadians was conducted from last Thursday to Sunday, and is accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
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Canadians' opinions on newcomers
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Latest census: Five million Canadian citizens are members of visible minority groups.
Do Canadians view this as positive or negative?
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CANADA HOUSEHOLD INCOME AGE
Less than $50,000$50,000 to $99,000$100,000 and over18-3435-4950+
POSITIVE48%40%52%61%54%51%41%
NEGATIVE 9%10% 7% 5% 5% 6%14%
NOT SURE42%48%40%32%39%40%44%
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Visible minorities now comprise 16 per cent of Canada's population. Do Canadians feel the proportion is too small or too large?
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CANADA AGE
18-3435-4950+
TOO SMALL10% 8%12%11%
ABOUT RIGHT22%18%22%25%
TOO LARGE 9% 5% 8%13%
DOESN'T MATTER55%69%55%46%
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Is accepting new immigrants of diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds a defining and enriching part of our Canadian identity?
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CANADA AGE
18-3435-4950+
WEAKENS SENSE OF NATIONAL IDENTITY30%20%33%35%
STRENGTHENS SENSE OF NATIONAL IDENTITY61%75%61%53%
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Do Canadians feel new immigrants hold on to their customs and traditions for too long?
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CANADA AGE HOUSEHOLD INCOME
18-3435-4950+Less than $50,000$50,000 to $99,000$100,000 and over
HOLD ON TO CUSTOMS TOO LONG45%37%42%52%52%43%34%
INTEGRATE AT AN ACCEPTABLE PACE 47%55%51%40%41%51%59%
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We make too many accommodations to visible minorities in Canada.
Do Canadians agree or disagree with this statement?
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CANADA AGE HOUSEHOLD INCOME
18-3435-4950+Less than $50,000$50,000 to $99,000$100,000 and over
AGREE 61%53%60%68%69%58%51%
DISAGREE 36%47%37%28%29%39%48%
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Percentages do not include Don't know, Not available, Refuse to answer. Percentages might not add to 100 because of rounding.
SOURCE: THE STRATEGIC COUNSEL, POLL FROM APRIL 10-13 COMMISSIONED BY THE GLOBE AND MAIL/CTV
