Revisiting 40 years of multicultural policy in Canada

The Association for Canadian Studies and the Canadian Ethnic Studies Association will host their 2^nd Joint Annual Conference in Ottawa, Ontario from Sept 30-Oct 1, 2011 on the theme of Revisiting 40 Years of Multicultural Policy in Canada. Regrettably, there are few sessions related to the impact of multicultural policy on children. However, here is the preliminary program, fyi. I’ve included links to where I thought they might add value. Question to organizers: is there a hashtag for tweeps attending?
Fri Sept 30/11 9-10:30 am Concurrent sessions
Multiculturalism and the Social Network

Chair: Anne B. Denis, University of Ottawa
Tieja Thomas and Vivek Venkatesh, Concordia University, Digital media and immigration: Limits and possibilities.
Raluca Bejan, University of Toronto, A Step further: How to improve a mentoring program to fully advance the labour market inclusion of internationally trained professionals.
Ceta Ramkhalawansingh, City of Toronto (retired), By any name – From respect for cultural difference to re-distribution of wealth and status.
Carl  E. James, Danielle Lafond, Selom Chapman-Nyaho, York University, Getting to “know” police: Youth’s perceptions and experiences with police through summer employment.

Governance and Multiculturalism

Chair: Jean Teillet, Teillet and Associates
Augie Fleras, University of Waterloo, Rethinking multicultural governance in Canada: Toward a multiversal multiculturalism in  a globalizing world of  transmigration & transnationalism.
Malgorzata Kierylo Malolepsza, Queen’s University, Multiculturalism and the bureaucratization of ethnic consciousness.
Sinelka Jurkova, University of Calgary, Ethnic organizations – segregating or integrating effects?
Tara Gilkinson & Geneviève Sauvé, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Recent immigrants, earlier immigrants and the Canadian-born: Personal and social trust.
Zhang Jijiao, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Canadian multiculturalism policy: Experiences and lessons, and its implications to China.

Multiculturalism on the Prairies

Chair: Lloyd Wong, University of Calgary
David McGrane, University of Saskatchewan, Multiculturalism in Manitoba and Saskatchewan: An historical perspective.
Professor Emeritus Cornelius Jaenan, University of Ottawa, Belgian immigrants in western Canada.
Henry Chow, University of Regina, Bringing the world to Saskatchewan: Effects of national feelings, citizenship, and socio-political orientation on young Canadian adults.

Multiculturalism and National Identities

Sourayan Mookerjea, University of Alberta, Multiculturalism between empires.
Hijin Park, Brock University, Conceptualizing (Im) Migrant Asian women in multicultural Canada.
Pat McLane, University of Alberta, Canadian understandings of universalism and extremism.
Ashleigh Androsoff, University of Toronto, Immigration and identity in Canada’s insipient multicultural era: the Doukhobor case.

Friday, Sept 30/11 11-12:15 am/pm Concurrent sessions
Cities, Neighbourhoods and Multiculturalism

Heath McLeod, University of Calgary, Understanding unstable housing experiences of newcomer women in Calgary and Montreal – Considerations for policy.
Marilena Liguori & Bochra Manai, Institut national de la recherche scientifique – Centre Urbanisation, Culture et Société (Montréal), Multiculturalism in the city, reflections on ethnic neighbourhoods in Montreal and Toronto.

Cultural Multiculturalism

Chair: Sidd Bannerjee, Association for Canadian Studies
Melissa Templeton, University of California, Dance, race and national identity: Multiculturalism and federal support for Les Ballets Jazz.
Robert A. Kenedy, York University, Diasporic liminality from France to Montréal: Re-negotiating Jewish identity in intercultural and multicultural contexts.
Lloyd Sciban, University of Calgary, The Status of traditional Chinese medicine in Canada.
Rebecca Margolis, University of Ottawa, Yiddish and Canadian multiculturalism: A Marriage made in heaven?

Rethinking Multiculturalism: Tensions Between Ethnicity and Immigration

Chair: Judy Young Drache
Shibao Guo, University of Calgary, Immigration, integration & multiculturalism: Exploring the role of Chinese diasporic communities in Canada.
William Shaffir & Vic Satzewich, McMaster University, The informal settlement sector: Broadening the lens to understand newcomer integration in Hamilton.
Sinela Jurkova, University of Calgary, Ethnic organizations segregating or integrating effects?

Friday, Sept 30/11 1:45-3 pm Concurrent sessions
Slavic Marxists in Canada in the Twentieth Century

Chair: Christopher Adam, Carleton University
Mark Stolarik, University of Ottawa, Slovak Marxists in North America: Their hopes and disappointments.
Petryk Polec, University of Ottawa, The rise of Polish leftist culture in Canada.
Myron Momryk, Library and Archives Canada (retired), The Association of United Ukrainian Canadians and the ‘politics’ of multiculturalism.

Cultural Multiculturalism and Post-secondary Education

Janki Shankar and Eugene Ip, Norquest College, University of Calgary, Academic aspirations: Challenges and barriers of ethnic minority immigrant and indigenous students in a post-secondary education setting.
Dan Cui & Jennifer Kelly, University of Alberta, Too Asian? Media and multiculturalism from the Chinese Canadian youth perspective.

Multiculturalism Turns Forty: Reflections on the Impact of Multiculturalism

Chair: Susan Brigham, Mount St-Vincent University
Tamara Seiler, University of Calgary, Multiculturalism and the changing national imaginary: The Case of Canadian literature in English.
James Frideres, University of Calgary, Diasporas in society: Implications for Canada.
Lloyd Wong, University of Calgary, Anti-Multiculturalism and the implications for ethnic identity.
Madeline A. Kalbach, University of Calgary, The Impact of Canada’s multiculturalism policy and research data.

Research on Racialization and Racism at Canadian Universities: Preliminary Findings

Chair: Kamal Dib, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Carl James, York University, Strategies of engagement:  Racialized faculty members Negotiation of the university.
Frances Henry and Carol Tator, York University, Marginalization, exclusion and omission:  The Experiences of racialized  faculty.
Ena Dua, University of Calgary, Measuring equity: The Politics of data collection.

Friday, Sept 30/11 3:30-5 pm Concurrent sessions
Multiculturalism and Ethnic Media

Chair: Sidd Bannerjee, Association for Canadian Studies
Augie Fleras, University of Waterloo, Ethnic media and multiculturalism in Canada: Partnership or opposition?
April Lindgren, Ryerson University, News that’s not fit to print? Portrayals of other ethnic and racialized groups in the Greater Toronto Area’s ethnocultural newspaper.

Multiculturalism and Education

Johanne J. Jean-Pierre, McMaster University and Fernando Nunes, Mount Saint Vincent University, Multiculturalism policy turns 40: Reflections on its impact on education.
Sarah Smith, Université de Montréal, The Multicultural textbook and the coloniality of difference.
Thomas Ricentro, University of Calgary, Multiculturalism and the monoglot ideology: Incommensurate worlds?

Unpacking Multiculturalism in the Classroom

Ratna Ghosh, Mariusz Galczynski, and Vilelmini Tsagkaraki, McGill University, Unpacking multiculturalism in the classroom.

Religion and Multiculturalism in Canada: 40 Years Later

Chair: Kamal Dib, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Paul Bramadat, University of Victoria, Back to the future: Canadian approaches to recent and anticipated controversies involving religion.
Lori Beaman, University of Ottawa, Beyond accommodation: Multiculturalism and deep equality.
Benjamin Berger, Osgoode Hall – York University, Trying religion: Multiculturalism, religion and law in Canada.
Solange Lefebvre, Université de Montréal, After Bouchard-Taylor: Religion and interculturalism in Quebec.
David Seljak, University of Waterloo, Christianity, citizenship and multiculturalism norms in a post-secular society.

Taking the Nation to Task: Reflecting on the Cultural Dimensions of Multiculturalism

Carrianne Leung, Ontario College of Art and Design, The Passage of fortune: Writing heritage, history and race in the nation.
Lynn Caldwell, University of Saskatchewan, Static possibility: Race, nostalgia, and Saskatchewan as a national space.
Sam Tecle, York University, I’m not Black, I’m Eritrean: Being Eritrean/learning Blackness.
Meaghan Frauts, Queen’s University, Canada’s racialized spaces: The Politics of race and temporality of space during National Aboriginal Day.

Nouveau arrivants et intérgration scolaire en milieu linguistic et culturel minoritaire au Manitoba

Nathalie Piquemal, University of Manitoba
Boniface Bahi, Faculté Saint Jean – University of Alberta
Mahsa Bakshaei, Université de Montréal, La politique canadienne de multiculturalisme assure-t-elle l’égalité de chance de la réussite scolaire des élèves immigrants au secondaire québécois ? Le cas des élèves sud-asiatiques au secteur français.

Sat Oct 1/11 9-10:30 am Concurrent sessions
Black Canada and Multiculturalism: After Colonialty

Rinaldo Walcott, OISE – University of Toronto
Andrea Fatona, Ontario College of Art and Design
Katherine McKittrick, Queen’s University
Mark Campbell, University of Guelph

The Evolving Practice of Multiculturalism: from Food and Drink to Social Transformation

Chair: Ceta Ramkhalawansingh, Former Corporate Diversity Manager, City of Toronto (retired)
Herman Ellis Jr, Program Director, Scadding Court Community Centre
Antoni Shelton, Co-ordinator of Operations, Canadian Union of Public Employees Ontario
Linda Koehler-Moore, Supervisor, Toronto Parks Forestry and Recreation
André Goh, Manager, Diversity Management Unit, Toronto Police
Nadira Pattison, Manager, Arts Services, Toronto Culture

Immigrant Social and Political Participation

Chair: Phil Ryan, Carleton University
Philippe Couton, University of Ottawa, The Immigrant third sector: Recent evidence.
Marie-Michele Sauvageau, University of Ottawa, Immigrant political activism in Quebec.
Halyna Mokrushyna, University of Ottawa, Social and political engagement in the Ukrainian diaspora.

Mixed Race and Identity

Chair: Minelle Mahtani, University of Toronto
Danielle Lafond, York University
Leanne Taylor, Brock University
Karina Vernon, University of Toronto
Renisa Mawani, University of British Columbia

Sat Oct 1 11-12:15 am/pm Concurrent sessions
Multiculturalism and Suspect Minorities: Possibilities of Conflicting Identities

Chair: Lori Wilkinson, University of Manitoba
Kalyani Thurairajah, McGill University, Tamils in Canada and Sri Lanka: Competing identities and loyalties in the shadow of terrorism.
Morton Weinfeld, McGill University, Competing identities and loyalties among Canadian and British Jews.

Interculturalism

Chair: Susan Brigham, Mount St-Vincent University
Celine Cooper, OISE – University of Toronto, The Rise of interculturalism in Quebec: How can the emergent approach to language, identity, ethno-cultural diversity and social integration in Quebec help us reflect upon multiculturalism and forms of nationalism(s) in Canada?
Darryl Lerroux, Saint Mary’s University, considering Quebec’s interculturalism as a response to multiculturalism.

Author Meets Critics: Us, Them and Others: Pluralism and National Identity in Diverse Societies

Chair: Minelle Mahtani, University of Toronto
Elke Winter, University of Ottawa
Catherine Frost, McMaster University
Harold Ramos, Dalhousie University
Leslie Seidle, Institute for Research on Public Policy

Youth, Generational Issues and Multiculturalism

Chair: Kamal Dib, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Emanuel de Silva, University of Toronto, Making and Masking Difference: Multiculturalism and sociolinguistic tensions in Toronto’s Portuguese-Canadian market.
Yunliang Meng, York University, A Spatial and temporal analysis of  youth’s socioeconomic outcomes in ethnic enclaves in Toronto.
Fernando Mata, Canadian Heritage, Prevalence and generational persistence of lone parent status among ethnic groups in Canada: A Look at census data.

Sat Oct 1/11 1:45-3:30 pm Concurrent sessions
Multiculturalism, Human Rights and Canadian Identity
Multiculturalism has been a cornerstone of Canadian society for 40 years. It is premised on the concept that all citizens are equal, and they can maintain their identities, take pride in their ancestry and do so without undercutting their sense of belonging to Canada.  Public opinion surveys generally reveal that Canadians are supportive of the principle of multiculturalism.  However the nature and depth of this support is often the object of debate. Also there is often some uncertainty around how the theory of multiculturalism is applied when it comes to issues of human rights and discrimination.
This panel discusses the impact of multiculturalism on human rights from the perspectives of four institutional champions of Canadian human rights. More specifically, the panel will  address: the relationship between multiculturalism and human rights; the difference between multiculturalism and interculturalism; how to accommodate multiculturalism within a framework of common values.

Chair: Ayman Al-Yassini, Canadian Race Relations Foundation
Gaetan Cousineau, Commission des droits de la personne et de la jeunesse, Québec
Judge David M. Arnot, Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission
Barbara Hall, Ontario Human Rights Commission
Maxwell Yalden, former diplomat and senior public servant, and author

Challenges of Multicultural Discourse

Chair: Kamal Dib, Citizenship and Immigration Canada
Elke Winter, & Marie-Michele Sauvageau, University of Ottawa, How to recast national identity and on whose terms? Media representation of the new Canadian citizenship guide.
Chedly Belkhodja, Université de Moncton, La critique du multiculturalism ou Québec: les nouveau intellectuels de droite.
Karen Bird, McMaster University, WTF is the ethnic vote? Critical reflections on multiculturalism and electoral politics in Canada.
Dominique Riviere, OISE – University of Toronto, Scratching our “Great National Itch”:  narratives of multiculturalism in 12st-century Canada.

Multiculturalism and Immigrant Integration: The Experience of Smaller Cities and Rural Areas

Chair: Howard Ramos, Dalhouise University
Lori Wilkinson, University of Manitoba, An Examination of identity and experiences of discrimination among newcomer youth living in mid-sized Canadian cities.
Evangelia Tastsoglou and Sandy Petrinioti, Saint Mary’s University, Does ‘place’ matter? multiculturalism and the forging of identities by Lebanese youth in Halifax.
Madine VanderPlaat, Saint Mary’s University, The Role of family in the decision to migrate and settle.

Multiculturalism and Mental Health

Chair: Nehal El-Hadi, University of Toronto
Avril Aves, Multicultural Outreach, KW Counselling Services, Kitchener, Ontario, Multiculturalism and Mental Health: An Outreach strategy for counselling agencies.
Professor Emeritus John Berry, Queen’s University, Intercultural relations in plural societies: Research derived from multicultural policy.

Examining Multiculturalism, Ethnic Identity and Intercultural Communication Competence Through the Social Construction of Food

Jaya Peruvemba, University of Ottawa, Examining multiculturalism, ethnic identity and intercultural communication competence through the social construction of food

Sat Oct 1/11 3:30-5 pm Concurrent sessions
Multiculturalism and immigrant Integration: The Experience of Smaller Cities and Rural Areas II

Chair: Evangelia Tastsoglou, Saint Mary’s University
Laura Lee Howard, University of Prince Edward Island, Reaching out and welcoming in: Increasing newcomer parental engagement in the Garden of the Gulf (PEI).
Yoko Yoshida and Howard Ramos, Dalhousie University, Who are rural immigrants?
Ather Akbari, Saint Mary’s University, Economic integration of immigrants in small urban centres: Some evidence from Atlantic Canada.
Susan Brigham, Mount St Vincent University, Talking back to Canada’s multicultural policy: Internationally educated teachers’ negotiation of space, place, identity and belonging in Maritime Canada.

Ethnic Communities and the Creation of Canada’s Multicultural Policy
Ethnic communities were instrumental in creating Canada’s Multiculturalism Policy. Their contribution in the development of the policy is not well known or documented. Representatives of ethnocultural organizations appeared before the Commission on Bilingualism and Biculturalism pointing out that many Canadians who helped build the country were of non-French and non-English origin: hence, the implementation of “A Policy of Multiculturalism within a Bilingual Framework.” The panel will provide an opportunity for members of the Canadian Ethnocultural Council and representatives of community organizations to reflect on the development of the policy over the past 40 years, reflecting how it has shaped the role of ethnic organizations, been an instrument for social cohesion, and has facilitated nation building while strengthening Canadian identity.

Chair: Anna Chiappa, Canadian Ethnocultural Council
Can Le, Vietnamese Federation of Canada
Gita Nurlaila, Indonesian Canadian Congress
Diane Dragasevich, Serbian National Shield Society of Canada
C. Lloyd Stanford, Le Groupe Stanford Inc.

Author Meets Critics: Creative Subversions: Whiteness, Indigeneity, and the National Imaginary

Chair: Minelle Mahtani, University of Toronto
Margot Francis, Brock University
Renisa Mawani, University of British Columbia
Rinaldo Walcott, University of Toronto
Jeff Thomas, Independent Photographer and Curator

Developing and Measuring Effectiveness of Cultural Intelligence and Diversity in the Canadian Forces: Challenges and Considerations

Chair: Karen Davis, National Defence Canada
Jack Jedwab, Association for Canadian Studies
Daniel Lagacé-Roy, Royal Military College
John Berry, Queen’s University
Lloyd Wong, University of Calgary