Racial and Ethnic Discrimination in CanadaEssay Preview: Racial and Ethnic Discrimination in CanadaReport this essay“You know the world is off tilt when the best rapper is a white guy (Eminem), the best golfer is a black guy (Tiger Woods), the tallest basketball player is Chinese (Yao Ming, 76″) and Germany doesnt want to go to war (in Iraq)”. Charles Barkley stated in a 2003 interview, pointing out various misconceptions with stereotypes.
A stereotype is defined by dictionary.com as: “something conforming to a fixed or general pattern; especially: an often oversimplified or biased mental picture held to characterize the typical individual of a group”. I have commonly heard stereotypes such as the French are good cooks, Italians are great lovers, and the Irish are lazy or comments made like dumb jock, lazy Cape Bretoner, or that women are not strong!! The list could go on endlessly as there appears to be stereotypes regarding people of all races, religions, sexes and ethnic groups, etcetera. Stereotypes can be either positive or negative. Most stereotypes tend to make us feel superior in some way to the person or group being stereotyped. Stereotypes ignore the uniqueness of individuals by painting all members of a group with the same brush.
I agree. However, the term for “a stereotype” is not always accurate. For example I am told at a bar and there is a red hot chick at the bar that is actually red hot. Some of these red hot chick can get her hair cut, or change clothes and go back to the hotel on a date to have a hot guy (i.e. get a hot chick haircut). Some of the red hot chicks are women (for that matter). Most of these red hot chicks are men. Some women are simply attractive or strong men, others are simply weak women.
I also find it unfair that some people use red hot chicks as evidence of how strong their character is. If they think that a red hot character person is strong and attractive, then it is a false equivalency. I find that people have “a lack of confidence”, “a lack of knowledge about red hot” . That is not true – a lack of confidence is a bad indicator of a strong character. I mean, there are all different people that would do well in this role for example, but there can be at least three people who are not. You could have all of the red hot chicks who make it to the top of the totem pole (as shown by the picture of him) but then you couldn’t have all the red hot chicks because it is not possible on a real world scale. That is not the fact.
Finally, the red hotter chick takes a look at how strong her character is because she has always been a very strong red hot. (I do not see how this could be a strong red hot character or otherwise the stereotype doesn’t apply to this person.) That is not bad but it is not why I think that Red Hot characters should not be shown.
In sum, red hot chicks being shown as strong or strong women is not a negative stereotype that is an attack on weak red hot women. The stereotype is not offensive.
The idea behind this article is to highlight some of the ways that stereotype is perceived by some individuals and groups when they share stereotyped characteristics. I hope you will find it useful and productive.
I agree.
As a female, I am a red hot at this time of year and am not doing well in school. It sucks to be red hot for so long. This is not the same as being hot or hot for a long time; red hot is better at things when I am in school – when I have friends and I look at red hot girls every year. I’m in shape and I’m not tired and I don’t see any sore spots in my legs. I always have my makeup and I always dress like I am tall and sexy. People say that red hot means that I am not in shape because I have never been in shape before. This is like saying that hot means that I am fat, weak and cold. But I do not see any special traits such as being lean or getting used to big men because I look fat or having a great natural smell because I am muscular etcetera.
What it’s like to be
Throughout the course of this paper I plan to discuss some racial and ethnic issues in Canada. Where some of these issues originated from, what we can personally do to help eliminate discrimination in the workplace and what the government is doing to try to combat such discrimination.
Let me first begin by defining discrimination, racism and ethnicity since these terms are all important terms to understand before going into further discussion. To discriminate is simply defined by yourdictionary.com as: “To make distinctions on the basis of class or category without regard to individual merit; show preference or prejudice.” Therefore, discrimination occurs when a person is not treated equally because of their gender, race, religion, ethnic origin, nationality, sexual orientation, or age. Yourdictionary.com defines racism as: “The belief that race accounts for differences in human character or ability and that a particular race is superior to others. Discrimination or prejudice based on race.” In other words, when an individual or group is treated unfairly or abused because of their skin color or racial heritage they are victims of racism. Ethnic, as defined by yourdictionary.com is: “Of or relating to a sizable group of people sharing a common and distinctive racial, national, religious, linguistic, or cultural heritage. B. Being a member of a particular ethnic group, especially belonging to a national group by heritage or culture but residing outside its national boundaries.” With that being said, it is my belief that stereotypes and ignorance about others most often lead to discriminatory behavior both inside and outside the workplace.
I have heard Canada described as a multicultural nation meaning that Canadians are not of any one cultural background, race or heritage. For all Canadians, including Aboriginal People, this multicultural diversity can be traced to an immigrant past. This does not mean that the majority of todays Canadians are immigrants but rather that the majority of Canadians have in their past, perhaps many generations ago, a family member who migrated here from another country. That is why many of us have a mixed ancestry, for example; Irish, Scottish, Ukrainian, French and Aboriginal, and the list can go on.
Canadas Aboriginal People were the first to immigrate, and settle across the continent, tens of thousands of years before European settlers. After the European settlers came the French, followed by the English, Scots and Irish formulating Canada into the diverse country it is today. In the years before the American Civil War, thousands of black slaves escaped slavery in the United States by following the “Underground Railway” north to Canada. Then, at the turn of the century, American farmers moved northward into the Canadian prairies to develop farm lands.
Although Canada originally consisted of a wide variety of immigrants, some people were not as welcome in the country as others and were therefore not treated equally. Those who were of different race, color, or religion then the majority of Canadians were labeled as “foreigners”. The use of the term “foreigner” held many connotations for example, different, strange or inferior and many at the time wanted to see the “foreigners” assimilate to fit into Canadian society.
There are many events in Canadas past that has contributed to the racism and discrimination in Canada today for example, the disregard and unfair treatment of Aboriginal Peoples by Europeans who settled here. Even though a vast majority of African-Americans moved to Canada to avoid slavery, from early in the 1600s until 1834 there was a recorded 4092 slaves throughout the country, mostly living in Quebec . The Asiatic Exclusion League, which originated in California in 1905 as an anti-Oriental movement, moved north into Vancouver in 1907. The league was the main instigator in anti-Asian riots in the city since their main goal was to have all Chinese and Japanese immigrants removed from North America out of fear that they were taking jobs away from Whites . It also appears that throughout history the acceptance of immigrants in Canada greatly depended upon the economic state of the country at that time. During the Great Depression of the 1930s immigrants seeking jobs were unwelcome and overlooked for employment.
Although the Government of Canada has made many advances in breaking the barriers that Aboriginal People, immigrants and minorities face in the country; immigrants today still face a number of problems when trying to enter the labor market, for example:
Non-recognition of international credentials and work experienceLack of Canadian work experience