TORONTO, May 2, 2002 -- Canada’s policy of multiculturalism has always encouraged newcomers to retain certain customs and language, assuming that Canadian identity, culture and values come first. But globalization and its new technologies have created a more transnational style of immigration. Now newcomers maintain stronger ties to their countries of origin, and some experience a feeling of ‘permanent temporariness’ in their new homeland.
What does this mean for Canadian social unity and policies on the incorporation of immigrants and refugees in Canadian society? Scholars in Halifax, Québec, Toronto and Vancouver, led by Professor Michael Lanphier in the Centre for Refugee Studies at York University, will investigate this issue in a three-year study funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). The study will focus on the experience of refugees displaced by conflict, looking at a dozen different ethnic groups from four continents, and the impacts of government policy, community organizations, and the activities of homeland governments in shaping their incorporation.
"When people come to Canada to escape political turmoil, the way they approach their new life is radically different from those who come voluntarily," said Marc Renaud, president of the SSHRC. "They walk a fine line between retaining political and economic ties to their homeland, and integrating into a new society." Lanphier notes that while immigrants in the past maintained few ties to their countries of origin, the digital revolution has made contact more frequent and ties to the home country stronger, affecting their acceptance and level of integration in Canadian society. SSHRC is investing $563,000 in the study, to ensure Canadian policies and programs remain relevant.
Scholars of international migration say the global movement of populations will continue as the factors that lead to displacement are unlikely to end soon, and the social networks that migrants develop help perpetuate the process. "These networks are important not only for the chain migration of kin from the same region, they reinforce interests in the social development and political life of the homeland," said Lanphier. His study will analyze the multiple identities and transnational nature of immigrant incorporation today, comparing the experiences of refugees who have fled, with immigrants who have arrived in a more orderly process.
"We have to redefine incorporation and social cohesion in the context of globalization, so it takes into account the transnational identities of newcomers, as well as the extraterritorial policies of political organizations and nation states," said Lanphier.
He notes that certain elements of the refugee experience may contradict the current aims of social cohesion and incorporation, such as the inability to commit to being life-long residents of Canada, and the formation by exiles of overseas political organizations that are viewed with suspicion here. On the other hand, he says incorporation in Canadian society will involve continuing these exchanges with the country of origin so that greater interdependencies are formed both by individuals and the whole ethnic community that link newcomers simultaneously with the homeland and Canada.
"Newly established or reorganized governments depend on expatriates for financial support and expertise gained in Canada," said Lanphier. "Exchanges involve not only financial remittances, but social involvement and visits of family and acquaintances rotating between Canada and the former homeland."
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For further information, please contact:
| Prof. Michael Lanphier | Susan Bigelow | Doré Dunne |
| Centre for Refugee Studies | Media Relations | Media and Public Relations Officer |
| York University | York University | Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada |
| 416-736-2100, ext. 20563 | 416-736-2100, ext. 22091 | 613-992-7302 |
| lanphier@yorku.ca | sbigelow@yorku.ca | dore.dunne@sshrc.ca |
YU/043/02
