I plan on traveling to Canada, but I do have this worry.
To be more specific, I’m not kinda black, my skin’s somehow white, but I have black relatives, which means I got wavy hair and some other things.
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Yes. If you are from the United States, you might not get welcomed as warmly as you once were. There is an occasional racist, but overall, Canadians are very welcoming.
Remember… “planning on traveling to Canada” is like saying you’re planning on traveling to Europe… it’s a BIG place that spans four time zones and has all sorts of people.
So you’re likely to spot some bigots, but there’s also plenty of welcoming people. Part of it depends on where you go. In general, cities are more multicultural and a little of more rural areas used to be very white, with indigenous reservations in the most unexpected places.
Beside that, Alberta is “Little Texas” and BC isn’t that different from Washington and Oregon states. Manitoba is really friendly, Quebec tends to be welcoming in the cities and culturally insular in many of the rural areas. All the east coast provinces tend to be really friendly. The territories are very sparsely populated, so other people are treated like a gift OR like something the person is trying to avoid — race doesn’t tend to come into it.
6 time zones
Call it 5.5
I was debating on calling it 5.5 but just because Newfoundland.
Can you give me more opinions on more states/regions racism chances?
Generally, in cities you won’t have really any problems. My fiancee is Turkish and we live in the prairies and she’s never had anything happen. Folks stumble on her name sometimes but it’s not really racism.
If you go rural, you always up your chances of encountering more racism. Rural PEI/NB will be accidentally racist, rural AB/SK will not care if they’re racist. Generally this is true unless you’re camping/hiking, when you wrap back around to people who are generally just happy to see fellow outdoorsmen.
Much of North American racism isn’t from individual people but in systems. My fiancee’s experience is that European systems are more likely to be equitable but the people will be racist. In general, if you visit Canadian cities from Vancouver to Montreal, I wouldn’t expect you to have any racist encounters.
We have provinces, not states, and it really depends on what you are wanting to see.
Not really; racism in general isn’t the issue. Canada’s been multicultural from the beginning. Bigger issues are things like cultural sovereignty— indigenous and French mostly. Skin colour really doesn’t come i to it.
Might help to know what you’re comparing it to though.
Also, it might help to watch “Race Across The World Series 3” if you’re from the UK — and a good interview is here: https://www.canadianaffair.com/blog/canada-advocate-q-and-a-trish-and-cathies-race-across-the-world-adventure
That show did a pretty good job of capturing the highs and lows of interpersonal relations in Canada.
If they’re not, you let me know. I’ll thump 'em a good one for you.
I only speak for most Canadians, but we’re the greatest fucking country in the world, and we love all colours, sizes, types…
ymmv, eh!
Seriously, though, there are assholes everywhere but you’re unlikey to encounter them. We’re an extremely polite, helpful, accomodating and accepting society, so carry on!
Yes. If you’re out east, there’s a ton of black people. Out west, less so. Either way people will be friendly.
Lol as a minority that’s born here and lived in cities across the countr: Canada definitely has racism still. We are very diverse; especially in the bigger cities of Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver.
I recently travelled to NB and witnessed some racism. Wasn’t anything too bad. I’ve had worse. But you’ll find more ignorance than hate. Hate looms it’s ugly head depending on where you go and what minority you are. I think for the most part, you’ll be okay, you might get weird comments here and there, but most people will be nice as a general rule of thumb.
Canada is very welcoming and people are friendly. After living abroad for a decade I can say it pretty confidently. Nowhere is perfect but the level of racism in Canada is very low compared to the things I’ve seen in Europe and Asia.
Not sure how it is where you’re from but don’t get caught thinking because Canada is safe that you can be careless with your stuff, don’t let your guard down with personal belongings. Don’t leave your things unattended in cafes or shops, don’t leave your mobile phone on the table, and especially don’t leave anything in your car if rent a car. Canada is safe but there is still a lot of petty theft… you won’t get mugged but someone might try to swipe your backpack at a cafe when you aren’t looking.
Racism seems to be getting worse in Canada, but right now it’s mostly directed at Indians (or south Asians in general).
I’ll add that over the past few years the homeless situation has gotten out of hand. For my small town (pop 46k) this is the source of our rise in crime. Garbage, abandoned tent encampments, vandalism, B&E, etc.
We get tourists to the beach near us but very few international tourists.
Canadians are generally more passive in their racism.
I would say Canadians are more polite than friendly. Too polite to be really friendly a lot of the time.
I hear this all the time. What does friendly mean in this context? When you’re meeting complete strangers for a very brief time (like in an elevator or a coffee shop) do you want them to be close and intimate like a friend? I would think the best you can and should be is polite.
In Toronto you’ll find Canadians that are all sorts of colours names and sizes, and a restaurant somewhere that serves your home country’s cuisine. Most people in the city don’t care.
The closer to the urban centre you are the less you are likely to be judged for looking foreign, though that chance is very small to begin with. If something racist gets shouted at you in public here, people are going to look down and walk away, look with disgust at the person making that remark, or tell them off.
Outside of the city, bigots are still the vast minority, but there may be more subtle ways you could be looked at differently, well-intentioned but largely due to the unfamiliarity with outside cultures.
Thanks buddy
Depending on where you’re coming from, you might have a different idea of what friendly is. While nearly all Canadians will treat any foreigners with kindness and respect, we don’t tend to go out of our way to talk to and be hospitable towards strangers as much as people in a lot of other countries do. Especially in big cities.
I’d say generally yes. Of course, there are still assholes like in any country.
Cities are generally quite multicultural with people from everywhere. Every major Canadian city I’ve visited has seemed to be quite friendly.
I’ve seen people say to avoid Alberta in this thread. Generally, unless you are going to Middle of Nowhere, Alberta where their yearly tourism consists of a single person stopping by to get gas, you’ll be perfectly fine.
My friends who live in Alberta get racially profiled all the time, they are natives. Alberta is the most conservative province, still happens outside that province but not as extreme. You will have to learn Québécois(French Canadian) if you move to Quebec.
My parents will say it behind your back, and be very racist/transphobic, if you are not white and straight. But not everyone is like that. It saddens me, but they are in their 60’s. But usually no one will be racist to your face, from my experience living in Ontario.
You will be just fine. Enjoy yourself here.
Stay away from Alberta and you should be safe.
Not all of us are jerks :(
The majority are though. I didn’t feel safe when I last went there.
Do they dismiss entire provinces’ worth of people as jerks based on a single experience? Because that would be a pretty awful thing for them to do, yeah.
buddy I grew up in Alberta. and there’s 2 things to sum up the people.
During mask mandates I was in the Carstairs post office, and saw a woman with no mask picking up 2 boxes labeled cristianbooks.com
the second is everyone in Alberta thinks being compared to Texas is a compliment.
these are two light hearted examples, with many more in the memory bank.
there’s jerks everyone. My worst bit of transphobia was in Toronto.
But Alberta does seem to have the highest concentration of jerks. at least as far as my experience has gone.
During mask mandates I was in the Carstairs post office,
Carstairs is a rural town with a population of 4900.
the second is everyone in Alberta thinks being compared to Texas is a compliment.
Oh, everyone?
I happen to be Albertan and the notion of being compared to Texas fills me with anger. I’d like you to back that up with some kind of poll or statistic, please.
if your taking things that literally on the internet, I can’t help you.
but what I can say is I didnt know anyone who understood it’s an insult was until I moved out of Alberta. So everyone I met while growing up, yeah.
for the record I grew up in Calgary.
OP is being warned to “stay away” specifically from Alberta because we’re apparently not safe to be around, how am I supposed to be taking this? So far the only solid reasons that have been given are:
- Alberta produces a lot of oil.
- Someone in a small town post office didn’t wear a mask while picking up a box of books related to Christianity, which I might add is far more widely practised in Canada’s eastern provinces.
- Apparently “everyone” in Alberta thinks being compared to Texas is a compliment. Based on the fact that you personally didn’t know anyone who thought otherwise, in your particular social bubble.
So yeah, I’m rather offended. I think OP would have a perfectly fine time coming to visit Alberta.
On the anger about Albertans being painted as lunatics and compared to Texas, I mean come on, you don’t need stats or polls to see how that is. Not when the press focuses in, rightfully, on our premier who has both a pick-me complex, and insists on (loudly) representing the most grossest, fringest interests, which are wildly xenophobic, authoritarian, science denying, treasonist and corrupt in it’s wildest extremes. Which is baffling when you consider that it’s a pretty small number of our overall population that actually is represented by this nonsense. That only have power because of our distorted ways that we vote for representation, and weird ass governments that completely rug pull and stand for mandates they refuse to acknowledge at election time, because their wackadoodle party keeps getting hijacked and controlled by these fringe unelected people.
So don’t be confused or have shocked Pikachu face or anything when people outside (or inside) the province paint us with these brushes. It’s deserved, because we keep allowing it to happen. We keep allowing these people to abuse us and control the narrative about who we are.
Oh yes, I know why people have picked up a distorted and prejudiced view of Albertans.
Should I go “oh, okay then, carry on believing that and propagating the stereotype?”
It’s true that we’ve got a terrible premier. It is not true that it’s “unsafe” for tourists to visit. It’s not true that “everyone in Alberta thinks being compared to Texas is a compliment.” And so I will call those falsehoods out when they’re propagated.
I mean look at what the government is doing and how most albertans support them. They have the largest emissions per capita in North America.
what the government is doing
Which is?
how most albertans support them.
Let’s hear those specifics, I think you’ll find that the population’s not as supportive of whatever you’re imagining they’re supporting. And in particular the large cities, which are NDP strongholds.
They have the largest emissions per capita in North America.
This is why you think a tourist wouldn’t be safe here? Because we’re an oil-producing province?
Better advise OP not to visit Norway either, they must be monsters over there.
Better advise OP not to visit Norway either, they must be monsters over there.
The cops don’t carry guns there and the population is more accepting of other people groups.
But their emissions!
I’m not gonna pretend everything is fine and dandy here. Not an Alberta native, and a lot of things still shock me even after 3 years here (how dominant religion is in some segments of the population, all the fucking trucks everywhere all the time, people keep on voting conservative despite, well, everything they’re actually doing…). But I don’t think it’s as big of a majority as one would think. FPTP politics will distort reality and make the place look more conservative than it really is. All that to say - I get the negative image, and the reality on the ground will vary based on where you are and who you meet. Hopefully we can get the place into a state where people feel safe coming here.
alberta politics is awkward but people are friendly in larger communities. Some remote small communities may be awkward but not always.
I was frequently harassed and the rest just stood by and did nothing. I won’t be going back.
I would actually say Alberta politics are insane, but disregarding that, people here are still usually friendly enough. Yes racism and bigotry is still (baffling) a universal experience, something you could possibly come into contact with, well, just about anywhere in the world.
Are you going to get a sideways look somewhere? I mean maybe, can’t say for sure you won’t. But are you going to get run out of town by people bearing pitchforks and torches? Well no. I can almost say for certainty that won’t happen anywhere in our country. A Canadian, even the goofy ass hillbilly ones that shout at clouds and vaccines on Facebook, would file that under something pretty god damn weird. And we collectively largely ignore those ones. Behind their backs we point and laugh at them too, so fear not.
Come see our country OP. It’s beautiful, and almost universally welcoming and accessible. Don’t forget your coat this time of year, it sure is beautiful but it’s also cold as shit in certain areas. Personally I think the atmosphere adds to the beauty.
Thanks, friend. Noted that down.
I would say that Canadians are friendly especially from other countries. But it depends, and it’s a massive asterisks on It Depends*.
In general Canadians keep to themselves and don’t like starting things. So we are either very friendly or at a bare minimum indifferent. Depending on the individual they may say things behind your back. (I’ve found some people here to be passive aggressive).
However the further away from cities you get, the more people who you’ll find that are not so friendly. They won’t be actively hostile towards you but you may feel unwelcomed. The company I work with has a multinational workforce that assist older people in rural communities. And while most will not say it to their face (I hope). The racist/sexists/homophobic phrases I’ve heard come out from their mouths was surprising to me and is disgusting. This is sadly true for both rural Southern Ontario and the Maritime Provence’s.
I can’t say much about the larger urban areas. From what I’ve heard, and seen blasted on social media, some people bring their baggage with them when they come to Canada. But outside of the rare aggressive/dangerous drivers in the cities, I haven’t witnessed it myself.
In general be respectful, be kind, and don’t go too far off the beaten tourist trail and you’ll be fine.
Thanks, buddy.
