As we know every intellectual is mUch acquainted with conversant fact that'worl

d is becoming a global village'.Today,we are living in a society which comprises

of various ethnicities and cultures.It can be seen that people having different
origins and backgrounds are sharing the same place or city for living.Let's put
our heads together and dredge deeper into the topic and discuss about Benefits
of multiculturalism policy in Canada.
Multiculturalism has long been a debatable topic in Canada since 1971, w
hen the federal government implemented it as an official policy (Schaefer & Haal
and, 2009, p. 246). As more individuals in Canada have different ethnic backgrou
nds, the use of multiculturalism is intended to encourage racial and ethnic dive
rsity in Canadian life. This policy has its supporters, but also its critics who
question the effectiveness of multiculturalism as an official policy to deal wi
th racial and ethnic relations in Canada. Even though many critics argue that th
e Canadian official policy of multiculturalism has serious impacts on immigrants
and minority groups, the economic, political, and social advantages that this p
olicy provides outweigh those drawbacks.
Speaking about economic benefits multiculturalism helped to integrate vi
sible minorities into the labour market. Canada has experienced more participati
on of members of minority groups in different business sectors, such as transpor
tation, communications, and banking. The increased participation is the result o
f the government's effort of providing a number of programs to ensure equality i
n the workplace. According to the Public Service Commission (2007, as cited in D
ib & Turcotte, 2008), the public service had an increase of minority employees f
rom 1% in 1986 to 8.6% in 2006. One of the programs implemented by the federal g
overnment is the Employment Equity Act that serves to maintain equal opportuniti
es in the work force for women, Aboriginal people, and visible minorities (Dib &
Turcotte, 2008).
Similarly , there are benefits in politics.Multiculturalism helps integr
ate visible minorities into the labour market. Canada has experienced more parti
cipation of members of minority groups in different business sectors, such as tr
ansportation, communications, and banking. The increased participation is the re
sult of the government's effort of providing a number of programs to ensure equa
lity in the workplace. According to the Public Service Commission (2007, as cite
d in Dib & Turcotte, 2008), the public service had an increase of minority emplo
yees from 1% in 1986 to 8.6% in 2006. One of the programs implemented by the fed
eral government is the Employment Equity Act that serves to maintain equal oppor
tunities in the work force for women, Aboriginal people, and visible minorities
(Dib & Turcotte, 2008).
Nevertheless, social life is also influenced by multiculturalism.The mul
ticulturalism policy has contributed to the growing intermarriage rates. There h
as been a growth in the trend of marriages among different ethnicities, races, a
nd religions. Statistics Canada 2001 census reported that there was an increase
of 35% of mixed unions from 1991 to 2001 and this number represents 3.1% of the
total unions in Canada. This trend is more common in major unban cities, such as
Toronto and Vancouver which in 2001 the average intermarriage was of 30% (Dib &
Turcotte, 2008).Last but not least, multiculturalism has encouraged the sense o
f mutual acceptance and integration into the society. Compared to any other West
ern country citizens, Canadians are more likely to view immigrants as essential
to their identity. Most Canadians are proud of the diversity in the country and
proof of this is the increased support for multiculturalism from 74% in 1997 to
85% in 2003 (Kymlicka, 2008). As a result of this acceptance, Canadians respect
other religions more than people in other countries.
In conclusion, it has been shown above that multiculturalism as an offic
ial policy for races and ethnicities in Canada provides a large number of advant
ages for both the visible minority population and native-born Canadians. Despite
of some drawbacks that this policy might bring, the society in general is benef
ited from all the economic, political, and social benefits.