Chapter 8 Flashcards
Why are scare quotes used around the term “race”?
“Race” was first applied to humans during European colonial expansion in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Use of the term reflects beliefs about biological superiority and inferiority in the context of colonial power.
Race does not exist as distinct biological entities among humans.
There is difficulty defining how many races there are.
Differences within supposed races often outnumber those between races.
It has been established that there is only one human race.
Understanding “Race” as a Social Concept
While the idea that the world’s human population can be separated, biologically, into different “races” has been disproven in science, “race” persists as a social concept, primarily in the form of racism.
When judgments are formed about others based solely on the colour of their skin, this perpetuates the idea that people who share physical characteristics can be viewed as a social group.
Race as a Social Construction
“Race” is a social construction of a set of behaviours assumed to be somehow related to skin colour and other features.
“Race” is the mental product of social practices called racialization.
Racialization and Its Impact
Racialization is a social process in which human groups are viewed and judged as essentially different in terms of their intellect, morality, values, and innate worth due to perceived differences in physical appearance or cultural heritage.
A visible minority is defined as “persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour; (minorités visibles)”
The Racialization of Visible Minorities in Canada
The master narrative is the story a nation tells about itself to celebrate its past and present.
It evolves over time, reproduced and refined in schoolbooks, museums, government propaganda, and popular culture.
Often glosses over or omits unpleasant events that complicate national self-identity.
Master Narratives and Buried Knowledge
Racism is often downplayed or omitted in the master narratives constructed about a country’s history.
Historical mistreatment, exploitation, and destruction of minorities are excluded from textbooks and other narratives.
Colonialism is reframed as peaceful co-operation between Indigenous peoples and settlers.
These events become what Foucault (1994) called buried knowledge.
Example: The exploitation of Indigenous people or the repression of ethnic or religious minorities may be excluded via the Doctrine of Discovery.
Indigenous Peoples in Canada
The racialization of the Indigenous population of the Americas began in the sixteenth century in Europe.
They were viewed as different because of their way of life, language, and approach to religion.
Indigenous people have lived in what is now Canada for at least 14,000 years.
93% of Canadian history is Indigenous alone.
Indigenous people have often been studied not as founders, but as problems (Larocque, 1993).
Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Indigenous Status
Indigenous peoples are defined by a complex system of legal statuses that separate them from non-Indigenous peoples and from each other.
Legal designations include:
Registered Indian
Bill C-31 Indian
Band member
Reserve resident
Treaty Indian
Métis
Eskimo
Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Indigenous Status
(Indian Act)
Legal differences arise from the Indian Act (1876) and are administered by Crown-Indigenous and Northern Affairs.
The Indian Act enshrined a sexist definition of “Indian”:
Any man of “Indian blood” reputed to belong to a particular band
Any child of such a man
Any woman married to such a man
Until 1985, only men were recognized as “registered Indian”; women’s status depended on their husband, and children’s status on their father.
Indigenous Peoples in Canada: Indigenous Status
Bill C-31 (1985)
Bill C-31 (1985): Allowed individuals who lost Indian status through marriage or their mother’s marriage to apply for reinstatement.
Inuit: Have lived in Canada for a shorter time and primarily occupy Arctic regions.
Métis: Descendants of French fur traders and Cree women.
Black Communities in Atlantic Canada
Black communities have been present in Nova Scotia since the British Proclamation of 1779, which promised freedom to enslaved people who left their American masters to join the British during the American Revolution.
These communities faced significant hardship and prejudice.
Viola Desmond (1914–1965) became a symbol of resistance to racial discrimination.
Segregation in Nova Scotia was legally abolished in 1954.
The Black One Thousand: Black Settlement in Alberta
In the late 19th century, many Black Americans migrated west seeking freedom from prejudice and discrimination.
The federal government granted Harrison Sneed, a minister from an all-Black town called Clearview, land in a remote area of northern Alberta, where white settlers did not want to farm.
In 1909, Sneed returned to Alberta with 194 men, women, children, and all their possessions.
A second group of 200 Black settlers followed soon after.
By 1914 , the immigration had resulted in the settlement of “The Black One Thousand” as they were known , has ceased because Wilfrid Laurier made a declaration that prohibited “any immigrants belongings to the Negro race from settling in Canada”
The Black Population in Canada Today
The Black population in Canada has experienced several declines over time:
1792: Nearly 1,200 Black Loyalists left for Sierra Leone.
1871–1911: A slow decline from 21,500 to 16,900.
1941–1951: A drop from 22,200 to 18,000.
In the 1970s, the Black population began increasing steadily, rising from 34,400 in 1971 to 239,500 by the decade’s end.
By the 2016 census, nearly 1.2 million people in Canada identified as Black.
Asian Canadians
As of the 2016 census, two-thirds of visible-minority Canadians were of Asian ancestry.
South Asians and Chinese Canadians are the two largest visible-minority populations in Canada.
Asian Canadians do not always encounter the same barriers to success as other racialized minorities.
Chinese immigration to Canada’s west coast began in the mid-19th century.
Motivated by poverty and political upheaval in China, many sought work in British Columbia.
Estimates suggest between 7,000 and 15,000 Chinese immigrants settled during this period.
Head Taxes and Restrictions on Chinese Immigration
Chinese immigrants were viewed by the predominantly white European settler population with suspicion verging on disgust.
To stall the influx of undesirable immigrants, the federal government, in 1885, imposed a $50 head tax on any Chinese migrant entering the country.
By 1900, the head tax was $100.
By 1903, it increased to $500.
The new tax had a dramatic effect on Chinese immigration:
Chances of marrying a
Chinese woman were greatly reduced.
The 1911 ratio of Chinese men to Chinese women in Canada was roughly 28 to 1
Limited population growth among Chinese Canadians.
