Douglas Todd: Iranian-Canadians find road to integration is a rocky one

2016/01/11 Leave a comment

While largely anecdotal in nature, interesting piece on Iranian Canadians by Douglas Todd, focussing on Vancouver but including Toronto.

My sense is that most Iranians integrate reasonably well. NHS 2011 data shows 55 percent of working age adults (25-64) are university-educated, 77 participate in the workforce, although unemployment is higher at 9.7 percent than non-visible minorities. Median employment income is about $50,000, comparable to those of Canadian ethnic origin. 73 percent have Canadian citizenship.

Like other groups, of course, Iranian Canadians tend to concentrate in a number of neighbourhoods, as any drive in North Vancouver or north of Steeles on Yonge St in Toronto will attest:

“There is little or no incentive for some recent immigrants to integrate into mainstream Canadian society,” says Ahmadian.

“Immigrants who do not want to get a university degree (in Canada) have little or no incentive to learn English fluently. For recent immigrants from Iran, there are Iranian brokers, Iranian financial advisers, Iranian salespeople and Iranian physicians.”

This creates something that sociologists refer to as an ethnic economy. “Iranian immigrants who do not know the rules and regulations in Canada have no choice but to trust the service providers. And when there is no need to master the English language, some people take the easy route of staying in their ‘own community’,” said Ahmadian.

The social pressure among Iranians to communicate mainly in Farsi has recently been on display among the thousands of Iranians in Metro who attend events devoted to the poetry of the Persian mystic, Jalaladin Rumi. An outcry recently ensued when some Iranians suggested the city’s Rumi events occasionally be switched from Farsi to English.

Language barriers are most noticeable among immigrants who arrive in late adulthood, says Karimaei, a building developer who is also founder of The Iranian Calligraphers Association of North America, which is centred in the North Shore cultural centre.

“They have nothing to do,” Karimaei said. “They say they are not good over here. They don’t want to integrate. They’re just involved in the Persian events.”

Despite inevitable difficulties learning English as a second language, Esmaeilpour said it is the responsibility of new Iranian immigrants to do so.

“If you are a guest in a house, the first thing you should do is learn their language. That is out of respect for the host.”

Religion’ role

While Iran is often portrayed in the Western media as a country full of rigorous Shia Muslims, many Iranian-Canadians say they have gone a different path.

“You don’t even need to go to the mosque to be spiritual,” says Esmaeilpour.

Although some among the most recent wave of immigrants are devout Shia Muslims, Karimaei estimated only 15 per cent of Iranians in British Columbia regularly go to mosque.

Rohani, a member of the Baha’i faith that has been persecuted in Iran, believes only a tiny portion of Iranian-Canadians are religious hardliners.

Indeed, Rohani said many Iranians are like most other Canadians; open to secularism and alternative spiritualities.

That’s why, he says, evangelicals on the North Shore and elsewhere have recently had success in starting Christian congregations specifically designed for Iranians.

Source: Douglas Todd: Iranian-Canadians find road to integration is a rocky one

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The Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism Asks Iranian-Canadians “Why Are You Here?” | Susan Khazaeli

2015/02/09 Leave a comment

While the commentary goes a bit too far in its arguments that this language creates two classes of citizens, subconsciously it may reflect this belief.

And people come to Canada for both economic objectives and living in a country that respects political and human rights:

A Conservative Toronto MP, Chungsen Leung, recently attended an event organized by the Association of North American Ethnic Journalists and Writers. During the meet-and-greet, Mr. Leung was asked about the increasing difficulties faced by Iranians attempting to obtain a Canadian Visa. Emotions apparently ran high. At one point, in a heated exchange, Mr. Leung asked a member of the audience, “If you like Iran so much then why do you come to Canada?”

He then demanded to know: “Why are you here?” Some audience members were so offended by his comments and his dismissive attitude — which one attendee characterized as “arrogant” — that they decided to leave the event.

Mr. Leung is also the Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism. It kind of sounds like a bad joke, doesn’t it?

According to a CTV report, Mr. Leung’s office claims that the exchange was a “miscommunication.” His email apology expressed regret for the misunderstanding. Perhaps Mr. Leung’s comments were off-the-cuff, but they were, by no means, innocuous.

Even if unintentional, Mr. Leung’s comments were discriminatory and hostile. The subtext of the messaging is: “Why don’t you go back where you came from?” They betray an underlying attitude that many non-white Canadians encounter when expressing views critical of government policy. This attitude becomes even more pronounced when that non-white Canadian comes from a country that, like Iran, is on the outs with Canada.

The Parliamentary Secretary for Multiculturalism Asks Iranian-Canadians “Why Are You Here?” | Susan Khazaeli.

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