Abstract

Over the last three decades Canadian society has become increasingly diverse--welcoming immigrant and visible minority populations from around the world. With this, many communities, in particular those found in Canada's three largest cities, have witnessed an incredible demographic and cultural transformation. In response to this phenomenon, the Canadian government has, since 1968, encouraged the establishment of policies and initiatives aimed at recognizing the benefits of diversity and multiculturalism. Nevertheless, in spite of this reality, researchers have found that immigrant and visible minority populations tend to encounter greater hardship, reporting lower incomes and higher perceptions of inequality. Indeed, some such as Jeffrey Reitz and Rupa Banerjee, have gone on to suggest that perceptions and experiences of inequality play a fundamental role in undermining social cohesion within Canadian society at large. This research attempts to further explore this contention, focusing on the perceptions and experiences of immigrant and visible minority respondents according to the communities in which they live. More specifically, we look at economic experience, perceptions of discrimination and discomfort, as well as indicators of social integration as general measures of social cohesion. Results suggest that visible minority populations, regardless of their immigrant or generational status, are more likely to encounter difficulty. Moreover, we find that in cities where there is greater immigrant and visible minority heterogeneity, minority populations are more prone to report negative experiences and face greater hardship. We follow the results with a discussion on heterogeneity within the context of existing governmental policies.