i realize this uses softer language than I normally use. This is because i had to post this for one of my proffs. Don't worry, I haven't lost my rage filled tone. it will return
In "The Melting Pot" of the usa, affirmative action is required to attempt to ensure a greater blending of minorities in to the culture. In the Canadian multicultural system we need more than to only ensure equal opportunity. As Canada was/is a country built by minority groups from the hundreds of first nation's to the French and English settlers, and the Loyalists fleeing the usa, we have no one majority culture. We some times think of the Christian Anglo-Saxon as the majority in Canada, but this view (borrowed heavily from American media) ignores the reality of a nation that's so deeply fragmented that our house of commons is dominated by The Bloc.
Our constitutions show this fundamental difference. In the USA, they use strong words declaring "we hold these truths to be self evident". While our constitution has much more lenient phrases, "as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic...". Even the BNA act has a form of affirmative action built in to it creating two official languages so that a minority could still have law and government in their own language.
Canadians ought to be proud of our policies of inclusion. We have many nations living peacefully under one flag. We may have regional disagreements, but we have developed a system to work with the perpetual tension.
Those who argue against inclusionary or corrective policies tend to focus on what they think they are loosing. They believe that by promoting one minority we must be demoting the minority they belong to. I don't feel this is true. It is the same people who feel the the inclusive "happy holidays" greeting must be diminishing Christmas because it doesn't expressly say Christmas in it. This is like saying that by using gender neutral language in our papers is some how diminishing men.
From the very basis of Canada as a political entity, it was founded on inclusion. This means at times we may have to develop policies to maintain the idea of inclusion against exclusionary trends. Inclusion, by its nature, makes the groups being included stronger. Exclusion does the opposite.
