From the recent discoveries of mass graves at historical residential school sites, to the murder of a Muslim family in Ontario, to a disturbing rise in hate crimes against Muslims, Asians, and Jews across the country, Canada is reckoning with the problem of racism in its past and present.
But does this mean that Canada is a systemically racist country?
Moderator Rudyard Griffiths hosts guests Shree Paradkar of the Toronto Star and Rupa Subramanya of the National Post on the Munk Debates podcast to discuss the motion.
Paradkar believes that these events showcase a broader, ugly reality about Canada. Racism, she believes, is embedded into the nature of this country and its culture, institutions, and media from the start. And rather than somehow resolving itself over time, this reality has been left unchecked and manifests itself to this day in oppressive ways.
“History is not something that’s a story that happened in the past, and that was magically resolved into some sort of equality today,” she asserts.
Subramanya disagrees. While there are ugly and unfortunate examples of institutionalized hate and racism that have occurred in this country, particularly towards Indigenous Canadians, the country has made remarkable progress in acknowledging its diversity and celebrating its differences, she argues.
Canada is a welcoming, tolerant, and diverse country, attested to by our high rates of immigration, well-regarded international reputation, and opportunities for all, regardless of race, religion, gender, or sexuality. Progress has been, and continues to be, made.
“We as Canadians continuously are working towards becoming more tolerant, inclusive, and welcoming to all people. This is a sign of a society moving in the right direction,” she says.
Isolated incidents of hate-crimes do not reflect the majority of Canadians, and the claims of systemic racism ignore our successes and may in fact undermine these efforts overall, Subramanya says.
