Immigration: The United States v Canada

As a matter of national policy, Canada actively solicits immigrants and has done so for years. The public supports this and the default political assumption is in support of continued immigration. According to a recent poll, only a third of Canadians believe immigration is more of a problem than an opportunity, far fewer than any other country included in the survey. Rather, Canadians are concerned about "brain waste" and ensuring that foreign credentials are appropriately recognised and rewarded in the job market? Being an immigrant is also no barrier to being a proper Canadian; in parliamentary elections earlier this month, 11% of the people elected were not native. This warm embrace isn't just a liberal abstraction; 20% of Canadians are foreign-born.

It's well-known that Canada is an outlier among immigrant nations, but it is nonetheless interesting to consider in reference to the ongoing and heated debate about immigration in the United States. Why is Canadian public opinion so different from views in United States?

via www.economist.com

Comments

[Maximatanassov]

Very interesting analysis between the immigration stance in the two neighboring countries. As a new Canadian, I have to fully agree with the analysis.

[AH]

As a Canadian, I'd like to point out that it's easy to think you're pro-immigration, when your only borders are with the ocean and the USA.

Sure we actively solicit highly-qualified and educated people from abroad and then pat ourselves on the back for it, but Canada's immigration policy is way stricter than America's, and could be getting even tighter with regards to refugees. The recently elected conservative government ran campaign ads about the "clandestine immigrants who take advantage of canadian generosity," showing images of refugees arriving in Canada by ship.

Canadian public opinion is so different from America's because immigration is a much less visible issue here - it simply isn't something that the average canadiaan is faced with on a regular basis.

[Chris]

Thanks to you both for your comments. AH, you are totally right about how geography makes a comparison between American and Canadian immigration uneven. It's a significant difference.

I am a little surprised to hear that you see immigration a less visible issue in Canada than it is in the US. Admittedly, my impression of that is quite biased: my recent trips to Canada have been only to Ontario, and only to Toronto, Burlington, and Hamilton specifically--all places where immigration seems to be an incredibly visible issue, even more so than where I live.