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Canadians, like many other people, have recently been
changing their attitude towards the ethnic dimension in society. Instead
of thinking of the many distinctive heritages and identities to be found
among them as constituting a problem, though one that time would solve,
they have begun to recognize the ethnic diversity of their country as a
rich resource. They have begun to take pride in the fact that people
have come and are coming here from all parts of the world, bringing with
them varied outlooks, knowledge, skills and traditions, to the great
benefit of all.
It is for this reason that Book
IV
of the Report of the Royal Commission on Bilingualism
and Biculturalism dealt with the cultural contributions of the
ethnic groups other than the British, the French and the Native Peoples
to Canada, and that the federal government in its response to Book
IV
announced that the Citizenship Branch of the
Department of the Secretary of State would commission "histories
specifically directed to the background, contributions and problems of
various cultural groups in Canada." This series presents the histories
that have resulted from that mandate. Although commissioned by the
Government, they are not intended as definitive or official, but rather
as the efforts of scholars to bring together much of what is known about
the ethnic groups studied, to indicate what remains to be learned, and
thus to stimulate further research concerning the ethnic dimension in
Canadian society. The histories are to be objective, analytical, and
readable, and directed towards the general reading public, as well as
students at the senior high school and the college and university
levels, and teachers in the elementary schools.
Most Canadians belong to an ethnic group, since to do
so is simply to have "a sense of identity rooted in a common origin . .
. whether this common origin is real or imaginary."
[Report of the
Royal Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism.]
The Native Peoples, the British and
French (referred to as charter groups because they were the first
Europeans to take possession of the land), the groups such as the
Germans and Dutch who have been established in Canada for over a hundred
years and those who began to arrive only yesterday all have traditions
and values that they cherish and that now are part of the cultural
riches that Canadians share. The groups vary widely in numbers,
geographical location and distribution and degree of social and economic
power. The stories of their struggles, failures and triumphs will be
told in this series.
As the Royal Commission on Bilingualism and
Biculturalism pointed out this sense of ethnic origin or identity "is
much keener in certain individuals than in others." [Ibid. Paragraph 8.]
In contemporary Canadian society, with the increasing number of
intermarriages across ethnic lines, and hence the growing diversity of
peoples ancestors, many are coming to identify themselves as simple
Canadian, without reference to their ancestral origins. In focusing on
the ethnic dimension of Canadian society, past and present, the series
does not assume that everyone should be categorized into one particular
group, or that ethnicity is always the most important dimension of
people's lives. It is, however, one dimension that needs examination if
we are to understand fully the contours and nature of Canadian society
and identity.
Professional Canadian historians have in the past
emphasized political and economic history, and since the country's
economic and political institutions have been controlled largely by
people of British and French origin, the role of those of other origins
in the development of Canada has been neglected. Also, Canadian
historians in the past have been almost exclusively of British and
French origin, and have lacked the interest and the linguistic skills
necessary to explore the history of other ethnic groups. Indeed, there
has rarely ever been an examination of the part played by specifically
British - or, better, specifically English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh -
traditions and values in Canadian development, because of the lack of
recognition of pluralism in the society. The part played by French
traditions and values, and particular varieties of French traditions and
values, has for a number of reasons been more carefully scrutinized.
This series is an indication of growing interest in
Canadian social history, which includes immigration and ethnic history.
This may particularly be a reflection of an increasing number of
scholars whose origins and ethnic identities are other than British or
French. Because such trends are recent, many of the authors of the
histories in this series have not had a large body of published writing
to work from. It is true that some histories have already been written
of particular groups other than the British and French; but these have
often been characterized by filio pietism, a narrow perspective and a
dearth of scholarly analysis.
Despite the scarcity of secondary sources, the
authors have been asked to be as comprehensive as possible, and to give
balanced coverage to a number of themes: historical background,
settlement patterns, ethnic identity and assimilation, ethnic
associations, population trends, religion, values, occupations and
social class, the family, the ethnic press, language patterns, political
behaviour, education, inter-ethnic relations, the arts and recreation.
They have also been asked to give a sense of the way the group differs
in various parts of the country. Finally, they have been asked
to give, as much as possible, an insider's view of what
the immigrant and ethnic experiences were like at different periods of
time, but yet at the same time to be as objective as possible, and not
simply to present the group as it sees itself, or as it would like to be
seen.
The authors have thus been faced with a herculean
task. To the extent that they have succeeded, they provide us with new
glimpses into many aspects of Canadian society of the past and the
present. To the extent that they have fallen short of their goal, they
challenge other historians, sociologists and social anthropologists to
continue the work begun here.
Jean Burnet
Howard Palmer |
