Essay Sample about Canadian Identity

Since WWII, Canada has made multiple attempts to make an identity for itself, separate from Great Britain. The 60s was a time of social reform for Canada - separating from Britain, differentiating itself from the USA and forming its own interests in arts and culture (Carroll 2018). Today, Canadian identity is many things; maple syrup on pancakes, an ice-cold beer while watching hockey, an excessive use of the word pleasantries on a daily basis and most importantly the idea of freedom and accessible healthcare (Government of Canada 2022). These factors make up how Canada presents itself on a global scale, and in turn, is the pride of each citizen. However, there are flaws, and from the time Prime Minister Trudeau inked the Constitution (1982), Canada has failed to keep up the identity it made for itself as a “just society” (Tikkanen 2022). The post-war period (1945-present) shows how hypocritical it is of Canada to identify itself as an accepting country globally through the lack of diversity in its national sport, the unequal treatment of each gender and the clear opposition of multiculturalism by the people of Canada. 

We see this hypocrisy first and foremost in hockey. Hockey is the national winter sport of Canada (National Sports Act 1994); making it a big part of Canada's identity as a country (Government of Canada 2020). If hockey is Canada's sport, and Canada is a diverse country, then that should be represented in the National Hockey League. Interestingly enough, according to Sports Reporter Terrance Doyle, “less than 5 percent of the league’s players are Black or people of color, and it has hired only one Black head coach — out of 377 total coaches — in its 102-year existence” (Doyle 2020). This - when compared to the percentage of BIPOC players in the NBA (80.7 percent), MLB (42.5 percent), and NFL (90.7 percent) - is rather pathetic (Tower 2018). The NHL has the most Canadian players, and thus, by default, should have more BIPOC representation. Not only is diversity a problem in the NHL, but it is prevalent in Canadian broadcasting as well. Hockey Night in Canada is something many Canadians have grown up with, and yet the representation of people from the BIPOC community in its broadcasts are almost non-existent (Zarum 2019). Aside from that, the broadcasting languages only included English and French until mid-2021. A play-by-play had been done in Punjabi prior however got cancelled (despite large viewerships), only brought back after mass protest (Houpt 2021). Canada’s perfect image of being  just society starts to crack here, with the diversity they are proud of not being reflected in their national sport.

Another defining factor of Canadian identity is equality - equality that should extend to women. However, Canadian’s see the sixth-largest gender pay gap in the world - tied with the United States (Delfino 2018). This means that women - on average - earn 18.2 percent less than men in Canada (Delfino 2018). Again, this goes against all Canadian values, especially after the Canadian Employment Standards Act, that prohibits discrimination due to a persons sex (StatCan 2019). Another problem Canadian society tries to ignore through it’s open identity, is the alarming sexual assault statistics. One out of every five sexual assault cases go unfounded - Canadian police does not believe the women who report being assaulted (Doolittle 2017). Adding to this, as covered earlier in the essay, hockey is something many Canadians take pride in. Recently, two separate sexual assault cases were filed against certain players from the 2018 and 2003 Canadian World Junior teams. Hockey Canada knew about these incidents when they happened and tried to cover up the cases by using “boys will be boys” as an excuse (Westhead 2022). Overall, none of this reflects well for the people in positions of power in Canada, furthering the identity crisis Canada has been going through since the end of WWII.

Social reform is an important part of any country trying to establish itself. Canada’s big step towards building its identity was in 1988, under PM Pierre Trudeau. Canada had become the first country to pass the Multiculturalism Act (Berry 2020). This Act was passed on the claim that it “[assures] the cultural freedom” of all Canadians (Berry 2020). This shows another contradiction between the words and actions of the Canadian government and Canadians as a whole due to the continued mistreatment of minority groups. According to the Canadian Government, “the protection of human rights and cultural diversity [shapes] our country” (Government of Canada 2022). This however, is not reflected in the 68 percent of Canadians that want immigrants to try harder to assimilate into Canadian society (Liu 2016). Canadian society, that allegedly provides the right for everyone to embrace their cultural background. For context, only 53 percent of Americans believe minorities should increase efforts to assimilate into American society (Liu 2016). This is staggering as Canada prides itself in being accepting, yet falls short as a society when compared to the USA. Furthermore, this anti-multiculturalism is showcased in the hate crimes against First Nations peoples, specifically women. Over 580 Indigenious women have been reported missing or murdered from the 1960s till 2010 (CFOJA 2020). It's not just First Nations peoples, according to Statistics Cansada there is an “increase in hate crimes from 2014 to 2015, with 83 percent motivated by hatred of race, ethnicity or religion” (Ansari 2017). After the Multiculturalism Act, these rates have continuously increased - showing that Canada as a whole does not embrace the concept. 

To sum up, Canadian identity is many things; maple syrup on pancakes, an ice-cold beer while watching hockey but it is also the mistreatment of minorities and the inequality in its society. Not everything in Canada is perfect, and much like an adolescent going through the motions Canada is ever-growing and ever-changing. A still young country establishing itself - away from the British identity - and learning to deal with its shortcomings on the way. Acknowledging the hypocrisy in Canadian identity is the first step to achieving the Canada of the books. This essay brings to light the flaws of Canadian identity through an examination of the postwar period, showcasing the racism in hockey, the unfair treatment towards women and the hate-crimes against people of different ethinic backgrounds to prove how unjust Canadian society still is.