Canadian Ethnic Identity: Formation and Development Essay

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Since the very beginning of its history, Canadian ethnic identity has been developing and shaping in the increasingly controversial and ambiguous social conditions. Canadian identity has come to exemplify the gradual formation of self-consciousness, political power, and individuality. It was probably due to political pressures and social constraints that the Canadian people has been able to realize the value of their own identity, and it is due to the negative experiences and events the Canadian people had to go through that the present Canadian ethnic identity comprises the features of cultural cohesiveness, solidarity, and transnational resistance.

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Traditionally, immigrant experiences result in the formation of the three distinct varieties of ethnic identity. First, some immigrants view themselves and their immigration as a kind of exile. Second, immigration results in the formation of the so-called transnational community; these identities are continuously torn between the cultural commitments of their old and their new country due to the fact that they view immigration as a temporary state. Finally, there is the type of ethnic community which is usually called “ethnic Americans”, who do not pursue any collective immigration goals; nor do they seek to identify themselves with any specific cultural form. In the context of the Canadian ethnic identity, the choice of the immigration topic is not accidental, for it was due to the immigration that the Canadians have come to exemplify the unique combination of resistance and alienation, which in turn united them in their new country (Arat-Koc, 32). The Canadian people obviously belong to the first type of ethnic identity, for whom immigration is equal to and is associated with an exile. This identity is usually characterized by “the expectation of returning to their place of origin” which may not be realistic, and which also distances their cultural commitments from reality and present tense and moves them into the future, where the Canadian people finally hope to find their home (Bergeron 98). Following Arat-Koc (32):

Beyond its embedded inequalities, another major problem of liberal multiculturalism, according to Bannerji (Ibid.), is its construction of nonwhite identities along ethnic, cultural lines. When ethnicity and cultural community become the main discourse of organization and representation available to Third World immigrants, they are encouraged to emphasize racist ascriptions of difference, and are excluded from the larger political community.

In many aspects, the formation of the Canadian ethnic identity is inevitably linked to the never ending cultural struggle – the struggle for individualization and self-realization. Simultaneously, and it is interesting to note, that the Canadian identity was not characterized by a sense of cohesion from the very beginning of the immigration processes. In reality, it was due to the social difference between middle and lower classes that the Canadian immigrants had to reconcile with the growing cultural cleavages in immigration (or exile). Surprisingly or not, but it was due to these differences between middle class and peasant immigrants that the Canadian identity gradually developed a sense of solidarity. This solidarity the Canadian people later expressed in their schools, churches, at workplace, and even in their relationships with their transatlantic compatriots.

Today, it is possible to speak about a single Canadian identity influenced by different national traditions but shaped by single history. By 1900, the process of formation for the Canadian ethnic identity in immigration was almost finished. While American Canadians successfully established themselves in the new land, the Canadian people in their native country fought against British domination. Again, and this is no longer surprising, this growing opposition paved the way to the creation of cohesive relationships between different social classes, and beyond cohesion, solidarity and unity became the distinctive feature of the Canadian ethnic identity. It should be noted, that while American Canadian immigrants used the Catholic Church as the reflection of their growing ethnic solidarity, those residing in Ireland viewed the Church as another motive to unite against Britain (Bergeron 98).

Before the merger of Canadian ethnicity and Catholic nationalism, Canadian identity is known to be claimed by Protestants. In addition, there are many people who supported Catholic nationalism. The research implies that Canadian identity has been claimed by both Protestants and Catholics on both sides of the Atlantic. These people returned from famine-ridden Ireland. The majority of these people showed the tendency to flood the US ports. The tendency was typical for the people who lived in the second quarter of the nineteenth century (Moss, 39). At present, there is a tendency among Canadian-Americans to associate their identity with Canadian descendants. Many of the people who belong to the group find it convenient to assume a Canadian identity. There are frequent cases when people who make assumptions like these have a large and rich historiography. The Canadian is one of the most wide-spread nations in the world. They exist everywhere and in large numbers. The survey of at least 45 million Americans today shows that all of these people have Canadian roots. However, even now about three major components of the diverse Canadian population remain to be largely unexplored. In other words, these factors remain to be overlooked by most historians including Protestants, antebellum (or pre-Famine) immigrants, and women. The major part of Canadian people represent Catholic post-Famine-era working-class people. The majority of Canadian people are known to leave their homeland for the New World. This thing can be told about generations of other Canadian people who joined homeland for the New World. As for Catholics and Protestants this group of people remained politically, culturally, and economically segregated (Parker 92). The enactment of the Act of Union in 1801 resulted in subordination of Ireland to Great Britain US colonies. The short-lived attempt of the United Canadianmen to consolidate the nation has brought almost no outcomes (Katerberg, 43). As a result, both Catholics and Protestants remained politically, culturally, and economically segregated. In the New World Canadian national identity belonged to Catholics alone. The tendency was evident for the New World. As for the Canadian Protestants, this group of people has shown the tendency to tie themselves to an Anglo-Canadian Ascendancy. This thing had a far-reaching outcome and eventually left Canadian national identity to Catholics alone (Katerberg, 43).

In sum, a single Canadian identity exists and is formed by national traditions of diverse cultural groups. The major part of mature historiographies is characterized by the prevalence of new and interesting models that shape the future behavior of the children. The same thing can be said about a useful contribution to this literature. In many cases, Canadian people are being viewed from a comparative perspective. That is the main reason why many Canadian-Americans have shown the tendency to become different from all other overseas Canadian groups. The same thing can be told about European economies, many of which were present in the nineteenth century. Many of the Canadian people who are living on the territory of the United States showed the tendency to differ from other ethnic groups in the country. Many of the studies that have been conducted in the state are characterized by the presence of a comparative approach.

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Works Cited

Arat-Koc, S. The Disciplinary Boundaries of Canadian Identity after September 11: Civilizational Identity, Multiculturalism, and the Challenge of Anti-Imperialist Feminism. Social Justice, 32 (2005), 32.

Bergeron, J. Francophone Minorities: From a Homogeneous Representation to the Construction of a Plural Identity. American Review of Canadian Studies, 37 (2007), 98.

Katerberg, W. H. Borderland Religion: The Emergence of an English-Canadian Identity, 1792-1852. American Review of Canadian Studies, 35 (2005), 43.

Moss, J. The Drama of Identity in Canada’s Francophone West. American Review of Canadian Studies, 34 (2004), 39.

Parker, R. D. How Canadians Communicate II: Media, Globalization and Identity. American Review of Canadian Studies, 38 (2008), 92.

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