Questioning Ethnicity: Q and A on Ethnic Identity and the Census of Canada

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Questioning Ethnicity Q and A on Ethnic Identity
and the Census of Canada

• Jack Jedwab
• Executive Director of the Association for
  Canadian Studies

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The Ethnic Origin Question

• The census has collected information on the
  ancestral origins of the population for over 100
  years to capture the composition of Canada's
  diverse population.  
• 17.What were the ethnic or cultural origins of
  this person's ancestors? (An ancestor is usually
  more distant than a grandparent.)      
• For example, Canadian, English, French, Chinese,
  Italian, German, Scottish, East Indian, Irish,
  Cree, Mi'kmaq (Micmac), Métis, Inuit (Eskimo),
  Ukrainian, Dutch, Filipino, Polish, Portuguese,
  Jewish, Greek, Jamaican, Vietnamese, Lebanese,
  Chilean, Salvadorean, Somali, etc.      
• Specify as many origins as applicable using
  capital letters.      ________________ (Source
  2006 Census of Canada)

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Background and Importance of Ethnic Origin
questions in the Canadian Census

• Multiculturalism Act declared as a policy that
  all federal institutions shall collect
  statistical data in order to enable the
  development of policies, programs and practices
  that are sensitive and responsive to the
  multicultural reality of Canada (section 3.2.d)
• Canada has included a question on ethnic or
  cultural origins of Canadians in every
  post-Confederation census except 1891 (1871-2006)
• Over time, the ethnicity question has changed and
  become more complex, allowing for more than one
  origin and the existence of multiple group
  identities

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Question Is ethnic identification relevant to
Canadians?

• Answer
• The 2002 Ethnic Diversity Survey conducted by
  Statistics Canada with the cooperation of the
  Department of Canadian Heritage revealed that
  three-quarters of Canadians rated ethnic identity
  as important.

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Question Do strong ethnic identities undercut
attachment to Canada?

• Answer The Ethnic Diversity Survey reveals that
  there is no contradiction between strongly
  identifying with ones ethnic origins and having
  a strong sense of attachment to Canada. Despite
  opinions to the contrary, you can feel a strong
  sense of belonging to Canada and to your ethnic
  origins.

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Question Dont most Canadians feel that the
information on ethnic origins is not practical
and in any event Canadians have little interest
in and familiarity with their cultural heritage
and ancestry?

• Answer According to a September 2003 Environics
  survey nearly two-thirds of respondents deemed it
  important to collect information on ethnic
  origins, less than 60 on visible minorities and
  just over four out of ten on the religion. In the
  case of ethnic origin results were consistent
  across all demographic groups with rare
  exception. As to interest and familiarity with
  cultural background 82 say they are interested
  in learning more about their cultural heritage
  and more than three quarters say they are
  familiar with their cultural heritage and
  ancestry.

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Question Does the question oblige people to
define themselves on the basis of ethnic identity
even if they have no real group attachment?

• Answer The question asks respondents to list
  their origins and there is a possibility of
  giving up to four answers hence the strength of
  group identification is not measured and any
  assumptions made around such attachments are
  risky. Other surveys like the EDS provided such
  information and the census data was essential
  towards the construction of any such
  questionnaire.

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Question Dont governments use the census
information on ethnicity to distribute group
entitlements and thus foster inequalities and
barriers to integration? Doesnt the emphasis on
ethnic origin as a basic principle for shaping
society result in ghettoization and, ultimately,
in dangerous balkanization?

• Answer Stressing those things that unify
  Canadians does not require that citizens dismiss
  their origins and backgrounds.
• Canadian society is not organized on the basis of
  ethnicity but does not take notice of the
  multiple identities of the population and
  recognizes that ethnic origins are part of the
  fabric of our society.
• This question invites debate about the notion of
  integration and how it relates to ethnic
  attachments. In fact collecting information on
  ethnic origins significantly enhances our
  understanding of the process of economic, social
  and linguistic integration.
• In democratic societies, citizens possess
  multiples identities and attachments.

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Question Since declaring ethnic origins is a
form of self-identification, is the information
less reliable?

• Answer The notion that ethnicity is a function
  of self-identification with imagined communities
  neglects that, to varying degrees, all group
  identities require some form of
  self-identification.
• Community formation along ethnic lines is by no
  means uncommon and, indeed, ethnic identification
  has been and continues to be an important
  dimension of such organization and generally an
  important predictor of civic engagement.
• Clearly not all persons who identify themselves
  in the Census on the basis of ethnicity are
  involved in communal activity. This is also true
  for other identity based respondents in the
  census such as religion, visible minority status
  or language.

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Question If we would just all describe ourselves
as Canadians wouldnt we be dismissing our ethnic
origins by eliminating an obvious source of
division?

• Answer Very often the failure to recognize
  difference and accommodate them where necessary
  undermines cohesion. We are all Canadians,
  whether we value our ethnic origins or not.
  Reporting that we are Canadian on the census
  question on ethnic origins does not make us more
  Canadian than those who report that their
  origins are Chinese, French, African, Jewish,
  Greek, etc.
• A January 2006 Ipsos survey reveals that 74
  agree Canadas multicultural make-up is one of
  the best things about this country
• 64 disagree that It is better for Canada if
  almost everyone shares the same customs and
  traditions
• 47 say immigrants from different cultures have
  made our culture stronger (37) or much stronger
  (10), compared to 28 percent who say they have
  had a neutral effect and 23 percent who say this
  has made our culture weaker.

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Question Cant other census questions give us
all the information required to address issues of
diversity?

• Answer Indeed, there are other questions on the
  Census that address a variety of issues that are
  relevant to our origins. They include data on
  visible minorities, place of birth, languages,
  religion, etc.
• However, these very essential questions do not
  adequately address all the issues that may arise
  from Canadas diversity. Moreover, the
  information on ethnic origins rather than
  fostering stereotypes very often clears them up.

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Question If more of us reported ourselves as
Canadian, wouldnt it strengthen national unity,
and wouldnt it be good to urge all Canadians to
respond that way? Doesnt the question oblige
people to define themselves as something other
than Canadian?

• Answer In fact, between 1991 and 2001 there was
  a substantial increase in the number of people
  giving Canadian as a response to the question on
  ethnicity (including the majority of the Quebecs
  population that previously described their
  origins as French). Despite this, support for
  federalism in that province has remained
  unchanged. Thus, the relationship between ethnic
  identification and national unity is not causally
  related despite the contention of some observers.
  Paradoxically, some observers have argued that
  Canadas presumably strong emphasis on ethnic
  identity is designed to undercut Quebec identity,
  while others contend that it undercuts Canadian
  identity. Theyre both wrong.

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Question Should information on ethnicity be
collected by the communities themselves and not
by the State?

• Answer Few communities have the resources to
  collect such information. In recognition of this
  the Canadian Multiculturalism Act declares it to
  be the policy of the Government of Canada that
  all federal institutions shall collect
  statistical data in order to enable the
  development of policies, programs and practices
  that are sensitive and responsive to Canadas
  diversity.

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Question Is it true that researchers can no
longer use the data on ethnicity due to continued
changes in the formulation of the question, the
increased number of multiple declarations and the
growing number of persons who identify themselves
as ethnically Canadian?

• Answer Measuring identity is complex and
  examining the impact of ethnic attachments
  presents several challenges. While it is harder
  to compare results from one Census to the next,
  other identity-based questions on the Census have
  also been modified to adapt to changing
  realities.
• Still research on ethnic ancestry and identity is
  socially relevant and when employed in
  conjunction with other identity markers via the
  census or opinion surveys can yield valuable
  information to policy-makers.
• The results have been modified somewhat by
  several factors, including changes to the
  question, the confusion of some as to how to
  answer and the growing number of respondents who
  answer Canadian. Despite the increase in
  Canadian responses to the ethnic origin
  question, persons of backgrounds other than
  British or French have not given this answer to a
  substantial degree rendering comparisons
  feasible. As in other areas of the Census, the
  data needs to be used and interpreted with the
  appropriate cautions.

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