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It's kinda amusing how Canada became the discussion piece for a topic like this. It's like the least divided country as far as ideology goes. And gay-marraige? Seriously? Canada is about as gay-friendly as any spot on this planet could be. If Canadians say they are no.2 on tolerance Idk which other people would dare claim no.1.
I think every country has a clear class divide. More equal countries (the Nordic countries, the Netherlands etc.) are much tamer in this regard, but in most countries, life of the poor/underprivileged would be vastly different from that of the rich/privileged. It's also the origin of regional disparities such as north vs. south in Italy and the racial tensions in the US.
I have met Americans who think everything is American, including apple pie, which it's not.
Please forgive us as we are fed this crap from the cradle. There's even a saying that goes; "as American as Apple Pie". When you grow up hearing stuff like this your whole life...
Another thing is that Canada has a reputation for being a "world in one country" multicultural paradise. Where for example the didjeridoo is accepted as a "totally Canadian" musical instrument the minute someone steps off the plane in Toronto with one of them in his hands.
Quebec in particular isn't really like that at all, and while it is certainly open to immigration and different cultures, has a much higher bar in terms of integration expectations for newcomers.
The idea that there is no mainstream culture here and that all cultures of the world are "local" is a total non-starter in Quebec.
Even though Canada has a reputation for being a so called Multicultural paradise, and seen as more racially tolerant than its neighbour, racism tends to be more hidden in Canada and done in a more passive way, such as getting a job, or applying for a house. If you pay attention to this process you will notice it. Yet in the US people racism tends to be less hidden.
It's kinda amusing how Canada became the discussion piece for a topic like this. It's like the least divided country as far as ideology goes. And gay-marraige? Seriously? Canada is about as gay-friendly as any spot on this planet could be. If Canadians say they are no.2 on tolerance Idk which other people would dare claim no.1.
I think every country has a clear class divide. More equal countries (the Nordic countries, the Netherlands etc.) are much tamer in this regard, but in most countries, life of the poor/underprivileged would be vastly different from that of the rich/privileged. It's also the origin of regional disparities such as north vs. south in Italy and the racial tensions in the US.
Yes it is amusing, but if one HAD to choose 2 groups in Canada, it's always going to be English and French.
I'm not saying there aren't difference, just that on the important stuff, we mostly agree.
I think English Canadians and French Canadians are more alike than some want to admit
Please forgive us as we are fed this crap from the cradle. There's even a saying that goes; "as American as Apple Pie". When you grow up hearing stuff like this your whole life...
It does exist in Canada but it's not really common and not widespread. Usually stupid stuff like " we invented the zipper ". We didn't.
Even though Canada has a reputation for being a so called Multicultural paradise, and seen as more racially tolerant than its neighbour, racism tends to be more hidden in Canada and done in a more passive way, such as getting a job, or applying for a house. If you pay attention to this process you will notice it. Yet in the US people racism tends to be less hidden.
There is certainly racism in Canada including institutionalized. It may be more hidden but I don't know if it really changes the outcome from the perspective of are blacks less victims of racism in the U.S Vs Canada. You also have to take into account that the black population in absolute and representative terms is quite different and far higher in the U.S. By numbers you get more of everything including representations of success in the black community, but also of blight and poverty. The concept of segregated black ghetto's in many urban cities in the U.S isn't nearly as stark in Canada. I think the biggest reason behind this is that Canada's income inequality isn't as high as the U.S.
We do have large black dominated areas of the city such as in Toronto (the largest population of blacks in Canada), but there is also a fair bit of integration among those blacks with so many cultures/ethnicities/races. My apartment building is a veritable united nations of residents (including many blacks) and this isn't that uncommon in the Greater Toronto Area or other Canadian cities with fair sized black populations.
Well, your post did insinuate that Quebeckers have some magical way of distinguishing things, that the ROC doesn't. That comes across as " superior ".
Our fellow poster when mentioning Hakka in Toronto was responding to a thread comparing Texas to Canada. I took his point to mean that Toronto has better Hakka than what you would find in Texas, not that Hakka was somehow Canadian. That poster isn't stupid.
Which does insinuate that Canadians outside of Quebec somehow don't consider Thai food Thai, but somehow Canadian.
I think ANY Canadian that tries to cast such a wide net to include everything as Canadian is rare. I've never met one. I have met Americans who think everything is American, including apple pie, which it's not.
Anyway in the end I do not believe Quebeckers have a very different ideology than the ROC.
I love AJ but I identify more with what you have posted in this thread (no big surprise lol). I would never consider Bami goreng (an Indonesian dish I love) and eat here in T.O as 'Canadian' - lol.. I don't think anyone in Toronto would say i'm going to Little Sister (an Indonesian resto here) or Rasta Pasta (Jamaican resto) etc etc insertcuisinehere for some Canadian food hahaha.. As much as AJ has been to Toronto - I don't know if he has Beeeeeen to Toronto if ya know what I mean. Toronto is not a good representation of native homegrown stuff because a huge percentage of the population just hasn't been here for a long time.. You have immigrants who have been here maybe 1 or 2 gens and a lot of domestic migrants. I'm one of the few T.O posters in here who actually has multiple gens of being native Torontonian - I assure you not just in the CD forum but in my own city - we are ENORMOUSLY outnumbered.
Now you could say, you've never beeeeeen to Vancouver even though I've been there - and you may indeed be right
As far as the obvious language and cultural differences between us (QC and R.O.C) but and not just English and French Canada either (Alberta and B.C come to mind)- I really do agree that what unites us on the most important national issues goes beyond what divides. The threat of separatism can never be dismissed, but for awhile now it is more docile than it has been in a long time. We support one another a lot more than we really give credit for.
btw - you are bang on about what I meant regarding Hakka in Toronto and Texas and it has more to do with the size of the East/South Asian communities here - that food culture is just way more pronounced and deep in T.O/environs. Hey - I gave due credit to Texas BBQ blowing ours away though a resto called Barque here is pretty damned good - even Bobtex (if he was around) might agree lol.
There is certainly racism in Canada including institutionalized. It may be more hidden but I don't know if it really changes the outcome from the perspective of are blacks less victims of racism in the U.S Vs Canada. You also have to take into account that the black population in absolute and representative terms is quite different and far higher in the U.S. By numbers you get more of everything including representations of success in the black community, but also of blight and poverty. The concept of segregated black ghetto's in many urban cities in the U.S isn't nearly as stark in Canada. I think the biggest reason behind this is that Canada's income inequality isn't as high as the U.S.
We do have large black dominated areas of the city such as in Toronto (the largest population of blacks in Canada), but there is also a fair bit of integration among those blacks with so many cultures/ethnicities/races. My apartment building is a veritable united nations of residents (including many blacks) and this isn't that uncommon in the Greater Toronto Area or other Canadian cities with fair sized black populations.
That is true that the US has far more Blacks as representative of their population than the USA. Also they have far more poverty issues. Yet Canada also has social problems and poverty issues with a lot of its natives. Yet it the same case as the native people here in Australia. Anyway here in Australia areas where there are few if any native people, the locals there tend to have a more positive prospective of them, compared to the locals living in areas that have a great deal of natives. I have seen it travelling in different regions of Australia and can imagine it the same as in Canada.
I not sure with a lot of Canada politics, yet in Australia the politics are much divided. The present government has a very harsh methods against illegal refugees, and send them to detention centres, and they can live there for years. The government has also stated they want to reduce the amount of African refugees, but meanwhile the government has recently announced on fast tracking program to bring White South African farmers to move to Australia and they can be accepted as genuine refugees. The opposition main party is not as blatant on immigration policies.
Even though Canada has a reputation for being a so called Multicultural paradise, and seen as more racially tolerant than its neighbour, racism tends to be more hidden in Canada and done in a more passive way, such as getting a job, or applying for a house. If you pay attention to this process you will notice it. Yet in the US people racism tends to be less hidden.
A black friend of mine once told me that the difference between the U.S. and Canada is as follows:
U.S.: "We don't rent to no n-----s here!!!"
Canada: "I'm sorry honey. That apartment was just rented and is no longer available. Good luck now."
The government has also stated they want to reduce the amount of African refugees, but meanwhile the government has recently announced on fast tracking program to bring White South African farmers to move to Australia and they can be accepted as genuine refugees. .
Something like this would never, ever fly in Canada.
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