Contemporary Realities and Future Visions: Enhancing Multiculturalism in Canada‪.‬

ABSTRACT/RESUME The purpose of this article is to highlight the success and failure of multiculturalism in Canada and to present policy suggestions for enhancing its future. While multiculturalism is a defining characteristic of Canada's contemporary national identity, the reality of multi-culturalism is both complex and problematic. Based on previous empirical evidence and several social surveys as well as the 2001 census, it is shown that there are significant inequities among ethno-racial groups, most of which are experienced by visible minorities and recent immigrants. Although there is some evidence of lower civic society participation among ethno-racial minorities, this is limited to the formal political arena. Nevertheless, it has been shown that visible minorities possess a "warm feeling" toward Canada alongside similar feelings for their own ethno-racial communities. Ultimately, it is argued that the contradiction between ideologies rooted in individualism and collectivism can be viewed as an explanation of why multicultural policies have shown limited success in addressing ethno-racial inequities.