What is Canada’s Social Cohesion Advantage?
Canada’s history of recognizing and institutionalizing diversity contributes to its social cohesion advantage. Indeed, Canadians may be more welcoming of diversity, because, as a country, Canada was originally founded on the multiple identities of Aboriginal, French and English. Moreover, Canada has since welcomed several waves of international migration – all of them contributing to population growth and diversity. While early immigration policies showed a preference for migrants from Britain and Western Europe, by the mid-1950s, Canada had become a destination of choice for Eastern European immigrants. By the 1970s, Canada’s in-migration flowed primarily from Asia, the Caribbean and other developing countries.10 Historically, Canada has supported the needs of its diverse population through the enactment of separate laws, constitutions, provisions, and government departments. Ethnic diversity is supported through the Canadian Multiculturalism Act; federalism and bilingualism through t
