9/11

2026/09/11 2 Comments

25 years ago, I was working in the LA consulate, waking up to the attack and glued to the TV to follow events, sending local staff hope while Canadian-based staff worked on various consular and related issues in a very uncertain context.

Driving to the downtown consulate, the 101 was deserted, a 10 minute drive rather than more typical 30 minutes or so.

And when air traffic slowly restarted, worrying about the few aircraft in the air.

Gradually, things “returned” to a new normal.

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with

Trump’s Census Overhaul Would Exclude Some Immigrants and Remove Questions on Race

2026/09/11 Leave a comment

Not surprising. The Harper government’s replacement of the Census in 2011 by the National Household Survey represented a similar tendency to reduce data-based discussions on equality and equity in addition to a general ideology against what it viewed of government intrusiveness:

The Trump administration on Wednesday proposed to no longer count immigrants without green cards in the 2030 census or ask about race and ethnicity, part of an overhaul that would redefine who counts as a U.S. resident in the eyes of the federal government.

The sweeping measures would upend a process that helps determine the allotment of congressional seats, billions of dollars in federal funding and policies to address systemic disparities.

The proposed regulation, published online on Wednesday, would not count noncitizens without green cards in the 2030 census, a significant departure from the process stipulated by the Constitution to occur every 10 years. Historically, the census has asked Americans about their race and ethnicity and counted all U.S. residents regardless of their immigration status.

The overhaul also would bar the U.S. census from asking Americans about their sexual orientation.

While the proposal is likely to face legal challenges, the changes would not only remove undocumented immigrants from the official population count used to determine congressional seats, but also immigrants who are in the United States legally and have yet to secure green cards or citizenship. As a result, areas with more immigrants, which tend to vote Democratic, could lose representation and federal funding….

Source: Trump’s Census Overhaul Would Exclude Some Immigrants and Remove Questions on Race

Filed under Multiculturalism, Trump administration Tagged with

PISA 2025 Results (Volume I) – Immigration Aspects

2026/09/11 Leave a comment

Most of the articles on the latest PISA have focussed, understandably, on on continuing decline in scores across most jurisdictions. This section contrasts immigrants and native-born, showing that immigrants outperform the native-born. Unfortunately, not able to access the relevant data tables:

A fair education system gives students with an immigrant background an equal opportunity to thrive at school and realise their full learning potential compared to those without an immigrant background. PISA defines immigrant students as students whose mother and father were both born in a country/economy other than that where the student took the PISA test. Non-immigrant students are students who have at least one parent born in the country of assessment. This section examines the extent to which the countries and economies that participated in PISA 2025 ensure that all students are on a level playing field, regardless of their background. 

Overall, the results presented in this chapter show that non-immigrant students tend to outperform immigrant students in all PISA subjects in many, though not all, countries and economies. However, this raw performance gap is rarely a function of immigrant status alone. Instead, these students often navigate intersecting layers of disadvantage (Bowleg, 2012[48]; Cerna et al., 2021[49]) In some countries and economies, students with an immigrant background are disproportionately likely to come from socio-economically disadvantaged families compared to non-immigrant students (OECD, 2023[3]). Furthermore, a significant proportion of these students face the additional challenge of navigating an education system in a language different from the one they speak at home, a challenge that is particularly acute for first-generation immigrants and for those who arrive to a new country/economy later on in their educational trajectories (OECD, 2023[3]).

Once socio-economic status and the language spoken at home are taken into account, the picture often changes. In many education systems, immigrant students actually outperform their non-immigrant peers, demonstrating remarkable academic resilience and a strong drive to succeed (Cerna et al., 2021[49]; OECD, 2023[3]). This reversal suggests that the educational vulnerabilities associated with an immigrant background are not inevitable, but are instead largely shaped by features of education systems, as well as linguistic barriers.

Moreover, several countries and economies combine a large share of students with an immigrant background (i.e. over 30% of students) with high average levels of performance (Australia, Canada*, Macao (China), New Zealand* and Singapore) (Tables I.B1.2d.1 and I.B1.2d.10). PISA results support the view that policies aimed at dismantling cultural and linguistic barriers – through targeted language support, intercultural education, and the promotion of inclusive school climates that value diversity – can improve the outcomes of immigrant students (Cerna et al., 2021[49]; OECD, 2023[3]; Tarozzi, 2012[50]). At the same time, these results should be interpreted in light of differences in immigrant student profiles across countries and economies. In some systems, immigration policies and selection mechanisms may shape the socio-economic background, language proficiency and other characteristics of immigrant populations, and may partly explain the positive outcomes observed among immigrant students.

Education systems around the world vary greatly in terms of how large their immigrant student population is (Table I.B1.2d.1). In almost half of the countries and economies in PISA 2025 (42 out of 87), the share of 15-year-old students with an immigrant background is small (less than 5%). But in 24 countries and economies, the share of immigrant students is higher than 15%; in 14 countries and economies it is higher than 25%; and in Luxembourg, Macao (China), Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, more than half of students have an immigrant background. On average across 29 OECD countries with available data, 18% of students have an immigrant background. The composition of immigrant student populations can also vary considerably within countries and economies, with students differing by country of origin, language spoken at home, socio-economic background, and cultural proximity to the host country. As a result, average outcomes for students with an immigrant background may mask important differences between immigrant sub-groups within the same education system.

Students with an immigrant background can be distinguished between first- and second-generation immigrants. First‑generation immigrants are students born outside the country of assessment and whose parents were also born outside the country of assessment. Second-generation students are students born in the country of assessment but whose parent(s) were born outside the country of assessment. The share of second-generation immigrants is 10% and the share of first-generation immigrants 8% on average across OECD countries in PISA 2025 (Table I.B1.2d.1).

These differences in the size and composition of immigrant student populations provide important context for interpreting performance gaps between immigrant and non-immigrant students across education systems.

Source: PISA 2025 Results (Volume I)

Filed under Immigration, Multiculturalism Tagged with

Olivia Chow opts out of antisemitism debate

2026/09/08 Leave a comment

Pattern:

…Moderator has criticized Chow

Tuesday’s debate was to be moderated by Jesse Brown, editor and founder of the Canadaland media outlet, who has publicly accused Chow of endangering the Jewish community. In a post to X in July, he wrote that she had “allowed this city to become a global capital of antisemitism,” and described her statements about not tolerating hate as “dangerous gaslighting that keeps Jews unsafe.” 

In a post after his role as moderator was announced, Brown said Chow would “be treated fairly” if she decided to take part.

Rezvany did not respond to a question about whether Brown’s participation was a factor in Chow’s decision, and the lawyers association declined to comment.

In an email, Brown told the Star that Chow’s team hadn’t asked for a different moderator, and if they had, he would step aside. “If she chooses not to attend, that’s between her and the Jewish community as a whole and it’s not something I’m willing to be scapegoated for,” he said.

“I just don’t think it’s acceptable to sit this one out,” he added.

Not unusual for candidates to skip debates

Unlike at the provincial and federal levels, there is no centralized group responsible for organizing municipal leadership debates in Toronto. Instead, individual organizations stage their own, often leading to a high number of debates each election season. It’s not unusual for candidates to turn down invitations. Chow has confirmed she will attend a Sept. 14 debate hosted by the Daily Bread Food Bank, which is also expected to include Bradford and Alexander and which the organization is billing as the first debate of the 2026 campaign.

However, Tuesday’s debate has political significance for Chow, who since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel has faced criticism from some for how she has handled local fallout from the conflict….

Source: Olivia Chow opts out of antisemitism debate

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Court orders Ottawa to release details about resettlement of Nazi war criminals in Canada

2026/09/08 Leave a comment

Long overdue:

The Federal Court has ordered the government to publish redacted portions of a report about the resettlement of Nazi war criminals in Canada through a secret CIA program after the Second World War.

The court ruling is the result of legal action by B’nai Brith. The Jewish organization had challenged Ottawa’s decision to keep secret some details of American efforts to help Nazi collaborators enter Canada, contained in a report written 40 years ago.

The cover of Alti Rodal’s report, Nazi War Criminals in Canada: The Historical and Policy Setting from the 1940s to the Present.SUPPLIED

Unless successfully appealed by the federal government, the ruling will lead to the removal of almost all the redactions in a report written by historian Alti Rodal for the 1985-86 Commission of Inquiry on War Criminals in Canada, headed by former Quebec judge Jules Deschênes. The commission investigated allegations that Canada had become a safe haven for Nazi war criminals.

Most of Ms. Rodal’s report had already been made public, with further declassified details released in 2024. The Federal Court judgment, issued Tuesday, relates to a section dealing with “irregularities in resettlement of defectors and former agents.” That portion has never been fully disclosed “despite its age and historical importance,” the ruling said.

Judge Simon Fothergill wrote that his considerations had included “the importance of the historical record” and ”the passage of time” in making his decision. …

Source: Court orders Ottawa to release details about resettlement of Nazi war criminals in Canada

For a detailed overview of the history and issues, see Nazi War Criminals in Canada: The known knowns and the known unknowns in Wesley Wark’s substack.

Filed under Antisemitism, Holocaust, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , , ,

Nicolas | L’absurde mathématique des générations

2026/09/08 Leave a comment

Would have thought she would understand the practical reality of generation data in terms of understanding economic and social outcomes and how well different groups and generations are doing. Of course, in her case, as in others, it is not simple given mixed ancestries which of course, become more mixed over generations:

Il faut avouer que, quand le terme « immigrant de deuxième génération » a fait irruption dans la campagne électorale cette semaine, ça fut pour moi, et pour un grand nombre d’entre nous, une étrange expérience. Par « nous », je veux dire celles et ceux que les mots concernent au premier chef.

D’abord, il était fascinant de constater que le terme même — « immigrant de deuxième génération » — ne frappe pas le gros bon sens de tous comme un oxymore. Si je suis née à l’hôpital de Hull, comment puis-je être une immigrante ?

Ensuite, j’ai compris qu’un glissement de sens et de vocabulaire s’opère sans même que la plupart ne le remarquent. La nation serait-elle en train de faire évoluer ses mathématiques ? Parce que moi, qui suis née ici, j’ai pensé toute ma vie qu’une personne qui venait vivre ici était un immigrant qui devenait Québécois. Et, donc, un Québécois de première génération. Et que les enfants de cette première génération de Québécois étaient des Québécois de deuxième génération. Tout comme on peut être Québécois depuis cinq, sept ou douze générations.

Parler d’« immigrant de deuxième génération » (ou, pire, d’« immigré »), c’est un vocabulaire beaucoup plus répandu en France. À droite, voire à l’extrême droite, on nous parle d’« immigrés de troisième génération » pour éviter de nommer comme Français des gens dont la famille est venue en France, pour la plupart, plusieurs générations après que la France elle-même les eut envahis chez eux.

Vous savez, la France n’est pas forcément extraordinaire en tout. Nous sommes tout à fait libres de choisir judicieusement ce qui nous inspire dans ce pays. Tout comme on laisse les Français s’imaginer que le deuxième étage d’un immeuble est en fait le premier, je crois qu’on peut tout à fait les laisser compter à leur manière et garder la nôtre sur un ensemble d’aspects de la vie sans que ça pose problème.
”

Source: Nicolas | L’absurde mathématique des générations

It must be admitted that when the term “second-generation immigrant” broke into the election campaign this week, it was a strange experience for me, and for many of us. By “we”, I mean those whose words concern in the first place.

First, it was fascinating to see that the very term – “second-generation immigrant” – does not strike everyone’s common sense like an oxymoron. If I was born at Hull Hospital, how can I be an immigrant?

Then, I understood that a shift in meaning and vocabulary takes place without even most noticing it. Is the nation changing its mathematics? Because I, who was born here, thought all my life that a person who came to live here was an immigrant who was becoming Quebecer. And, therefore, a first-generation Quebecer. And that the children of this first generation of Quebecers were second-generation Quebecers. Just as you can be Quebecers for five, seven or twelve generations.

Talking about “second generation immigrant” (or, worse, “immigrant”) is a much more widespread vocabulary in France. On the right, or even on the extreme right, we are called “third-generation immigrants” to avoid naming as French people whose family came to France, for the most part, several generations after France itself had invaded them at home.

You know, France is not necessarily extraordinary in everything. We are completely free to choose wisely what inspires us in this country. Just as we let the French imagine that the second floor of a building is actually the first, I believe that we can completely let them count in their own way and keep ours on a set of aspects of life without it being a problem.

Filed under Immigration, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Key government jobs, such as safety inspectors and intelligence analysts, being prioritized by race

2026/09/04 Leave a comment

Aristotle Foundation continues its critique of Canadian DEI practices without acknowledging the need for government to be more broadly representative of the population it serves. Most recent data highlights increases of visible minorities in particular, reflecting both the EE Act reporting requirements as well as these preferences.

No solid evidence regarding whether quality has suffered or not:

Applicants to some of the most critical jobs in the Canadian federal government, including safety inspectors and intelligence agents, are now being explicitly told that they might be rejected if they don’t fit within an “equity-deserving” identity category.

And in some key federal government departments, 100 per cent of new hires are being screened based on race and identity.

This is all according to a new report by the Aristotle Foundation for Public Policy.

Report authors analyzed 301 government job openings advertised between February and July, 2026. Of those, 42 per cent were subject to “explicit or potential prioritization based on group identity.”

“These postings go beyond signalling an inclusive workplace culture or encouraging applications from particular communities,” it read. “They explicitly disclose that certain groups may or will receive priority consideration in the selection process.” …

According to the Aristotle report, “the expansion of identity-based selection practices risks undermining both the integrity and perceived legitimacy of the federal staffing system.”

The new report is very similar to a 2025 analysis by the Aristotle Foundation that examined hiring practices at Canadian universities.

In that instance, report authors examined 489 university job postings, and found only 12 that didn’t make explicit mention of how identity would be a factor in candidate selection.

“In other words, 98 per cent of academic postings … directly or indirectly discriminated against non-minorities,” it concluded.

While the Government of Canada has tried to encourage the recruitment of women and minority candidates since at least the 1980s, it’s only been within the past 10 years that this has taken the form of mandatory hiring quotas based on race, gender and other “identity” characteristics….

Source: Key government jobs, such as safety inspectors and intelligence analysts, being prioritized by race

Filed under DEI, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Trump shares Christian group’s proposal allowing Canadian Jews facing antisemitism to flee to the U.S.

2026/09/04 1 Comment

Much as he prioritized white South African “refugees” compared to other groups:

As he finds new ways to poke Canada amid an ugly trade war, U.S. President Donald Trump has amplified a Christian group’s proposal to create a legal pathway into the United States for Canadian Jews facing antisemitism.

He shared on social media a news report about a letter written by the National Association of Christian Lawmakers (NACL), which urges Trump to establish an expedited method of entry into the U.S. for Jewish Canadians “who are experiencing persecution or who credibly fear for their safety because they are Jewish.”

It points to “an alarming climate of harassment, intimidation, vandalism, threats, and violence” that Jewish Canadian families have faced since the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, adding that “advocates working directly with these families report that more than 2,000 Jewish Canadians have expressed interest in relocating because of growing concerns for their safety.”

The letter continues: “Accordingly, we respectfully ask that you direct the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security to identify and implement lawful, secure, and appropriately expedited pathways for eligible Jewish Canadian nationals and their immediate family members who face persecution.”

“NACL founder and president Jason Rapert signed the letter, alongside state representatives and religious leaders, and it was sent to the U.S. president, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and several U.S. senators and representatives on Thursday.

Trump shared a link to the report on Truth Social on Sunday evening, but did not comment on the contents.”

Source: Trump shares Christian group’s proposal allowing Canadian Jews facing antisemitism to flee to the U.S.

Filed under Antisemitism, Trump administration Tagged with ,

Chait: The Apocalyptic Style in Woke Thinking

2026/09/03 Leave a comment

Good nuanced commentary and the need to recognize moral ambiguity:

…In an atmosphere that permits deliberation, rage may give way to reason. Liberal supporters of Israel may concede to the Free Palestine movement that Israel’s current government has no strategy other than endless use of force, that it has willingly enabled settlers to terrorize Palestinians in the West Bank, and that American policy has done too little to alter these choices. The Palestine activists might be made to acknowledge that the carnage in Gaza would not have occurred but for Hamas’s desire to murder as many Israeli Jews as possible, and that the group deliberately maximizes deaths among Palestinian civilians by embedding their fighters in schools and hospitals.

In other words, the Middle East is complicated. Bringing the moralistic fervor of Western progressives entirely onto one side of a generations-long conflict between warring religious sects claiming mutually exclusive historical and divinely granted rights to control a sliver of land is unlikely to result in peaceful coexistence.

Pro-Palestinian activists are correct to argue that American support has enabled Israel to pursue a one-state solution and to rely on military force in place of diplomacy. What they have yet to grasp is that the Western left’s inability to repudiate Hamas has had a pernicious effect on the conflict: reinforcing a co-belligerent in a cycle of violence. The American civil-rights movement is not, in fact, the proper moral lens with which to understand a terrorist group that murders not only Jewish civilians but also dissident Palestinians, and whose objective is not the right to vote and sit at lunch counters but to impose sectarian theocracy. An effective and humane Western form of activism would recognize that disregard for Palestinian well-being is a trait shared by Hamas and Israel, and would challenge both accordingly.

The American influence on this intractable conflict can be exercised more constructively. What Middle East policy cannot accomplish—what no reforms in any policy domain can accomplish—is resolving the existential angst caused by a political style that cannot tolerate moral ambiguity.

Source: The Apocalyptic Style in Woke Thinking

Filed under Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

Quebec election: Cette école déborde-t-elle en raison d’un «trop grand nombre de nouveaux élèves» issus de l’immigration?

2026/09/03 Leave a comment

PQ can’t help itself:

Quand le chef du Parti québécois (PQ), Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, a lié l’immigration et le manque d’espaces dans une école de la banlieue de Québec, samedi, il n’a fait pas de distinction entre les élèves tout juste arrivés au Québec et les immigrants de deuxième génération, qui sont nés ici.

« [Cette] école déborde en raison d’un trop grand nombre de nouveaux élèves qui viennent de l’immigration », a-t-il déclaré devant l’école secondaire Roger-Comtois, située dans le quartier Loretteville. Des propos qui ont fait sursauter plusieurs de ses adversaires politiques.

« Je trouve ça épouvantable », a lancé la solidaire Ruba Ghazal. « Ça manque de classe », a déclaré le libéral Charles Milliard.

Mais qu’en est-il vraiment ?

Située dans la circonscription de Chauveau, l’école secondaire Roger-Comtois a inauguré lundi son nouveau pavillon modulaire de 24 locaux. Destiné à accueillir « près de 500 élèves » et conçu pour demeurer en place « pour plusieurs années », il « vise à répondre à la croissance soutenue de la population scolaire de l’établissement », a expliqué par courriel le Centre de services scolaire de la Capitale (CSSC).

“Selon des données fournies par le CSS au Devoir, le nombre d’élèves immigrants fréquentant Roger-Comtois est passé de 83, en 2019, à 293, en 2026. Cela, sur un total de 2441 élèves pour l’année scolaire en cours. Les élèves immigrants constituent donc aujourd’hui 12 % de la population étudiante à Roger-Comtois.

Interrogé à ce sujet samedi, le Parti québécois (PQ) n’avait pas pu fournir de chiffres précis sur l’établissement de la Capitale-Nationale.

Citant des données du ministère, son équipe a tout de même souligné que le nombre d’élèves immigrants fréquentant des écoles du CSSC avait augmenté de deux fois et demie depuis l’année scolaire 2015-2016.

Le PQ n’a toutefois pas précisé qu’une partie de cette hausse (32 %) était liée à l’immigration « de deuxième génération », soit aux élèves nés au Québec d’au moins un parent né à l’étranger.

En élargissant la loupe à l’ensemble du Québec, il est possible d’observer que l’augmentation des élèves dans les écoles depuis 2015-2016 est davantage attribuable à l’immigration de deuxième génération (53 %) qu’à celle de première génération (47 %). En avril, le réseau scolaire québécois comptait donc, au total, 752 000 élèves « non issus de l’immigration », 265 000 immigrants de deuxième génération et 179 000 immigrants « nouveaux arrivants »….

Source: Cette école déborde-t-elle en raison d’un «trop grand nombre de nouveaux élèves» issus de l’immigration?

When the leader of the Parti Québécois (PQ), Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, linked immigration and the lack of space in a school in the suburbs of Quebec City on Saturday, he made no distinction between students who had just arrived in Quebec and second-generation immigrants, who were born here.

“[This] school is overflowing because of too many new students coming from immigration,” he said in front of Roger-Comtois High School, located in the Loretteville district. Words that startled many of his political opponents.

“I find it terrible,” said the solidarity Ruba Ghazal. “It lacks class,” said liberal Charles Milliard.

But what is it really?

Located in the district of Chauveau, Roger-Comtois secondary school inaugurated its new modular pavilion of 24 premises on Monday. Intended to accommodate “nearly 500 students” and designed to remain in place “for several years”, it “aims to respond to the sustained growth of the school population of the school,” explained by email the Centre de services scolaires de la Capitale (CSSC).

“According to data provided by the CSS au Devoir, the number of immigrant students attending Roger-Comtois increased from 83 in 2019 to 293 in 2026. This, out of a total of 2441 students for the current school year. Immigrant students now make up 12% of the student population in Roger-Comtois.

Asked about this on Saturday, the Parti Québécois (PQ) was unable to provide precise figures on the establishment of the Capitale-Nationale.

Citing data from the ministry, his team nevertheless pointed out that the number of immigrant students attending CSSC schools had increased two and a half times since the 2015-2016 school year.

However, the PQ did not specify that part of this increase (32%) was related to “second generation” immigration, i.e. students born in Quebec of at least one parent born abroad.

By extending the magnifying glass to the whole of Quebec, it is possible to observe that the increase in students in schools since 2015-2016 is more attributable to second-generation immigration (53%) than to first-generation immigration (47%). In April, the Quebec school network therefore had, in total, 752,000 “non-immigrant” students, 265,000 second-generation immigrants and 179,000 “newcomers”.

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with , ,

← Older posts

Newer posts →