Report of the Canadian Task Force on Mental Health Issues Affecting Immigrants and Refugees
1988

Background - Executive Summary - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2-6 - Chapter 7-9 - Chapter 10-11 - Chapter 12 Conclusion & Appendices

In Canada, as elsewhere, new settlers encounter obstacles in pursuing the goals which they and other Canadians value. Too often, newcomers, stigmatized because of their immigrant status, feel barred from what they perceive to be the mainstream of Canadian society. Alienation and frustration may result in poor mental and physical health. In recognition of these problems, and in response to the concerns of a number of national organizations, the Multiculturalism Sector of the Department of the Secretary of State, and Health and Welfare Canada, formed a Task Force to investigate mental health issues affecting immigrants and refugees in Canada, this "country of immigrants".

The Task Force, formed on April 1, 1986, included psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses and social workers. Some were academics, others "front line" providers of services to immigrants. Members, who included native-born Canadians as well as others who had emigrated from Argentina, El Salvador, Hong Kong, Jamaica, the Philippines, South Africa and Vietnam, came from almost all parts of the country - from Atlantic Canada to British Columbia. The Task Force was complemented by a full-time Research Coordinator. Two organizations were responsible for administration: the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) and the Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia (UBC). Staff from Secretary of State - Multiculturalism, Health and Welfare, and Employment and Immigration Canada lent expertise and help.

The two-year mandate of the Task Force was straightforward:

1. to prepare a summary of relevant background and research literature dealing with mental health issues affecting immigrants and refugees;

2. to conduct national hearings to determine the environment for the mental health needs of newcomers, to understand patterns of settlement and adaptation, and to define the availability of and accessibility to care-giving organizations as well as the characteristics of caregivers; and

3. to prepare a final report and recommendations.

Completing the tasks proved far more complex than defining them. Working evenings and weekends, the group began its task by searching the research literature and reviewing unpublished reports. Members of the Task Force prepared analyses of topics within their areas of expertise. These materials were integrated at the offices of the Chairman at UBC to become the first report to the sponsoring ministries. This background paper, Review of the Literature on Migrant Mental Health, summarizes the Canadian and, to a certain extent, world literature on mental health and resettlement.

In preparation for the national hearings, the Task Force contacted more than 700 service agencies, ethnic organizations, immigrant and refugee selfhelp groups, universities and training institutions. The letters advised that a Task Force had been formed, described its nature, and invited oral and/or written submissions addressing mental health concerns of immigrants and refugees. Although the response to the invitations was gratifying, we could invite only a sample of agencies and individuals to make oral submissions.

On April 10 and 11, 1987, the Task Force received presentations by 19 Western Canadian organizations in Vancouver. The following month, on May 6 and 7, Task Force members reassembled in Toronto, where we heard from 20 organizations in central Canada; in Montreal onMay 8 and 9, we received 15 submissions from Quebec and the Atlantic provinces.

The public hearings were remarkable. Briefs were submitted on behalf of groups ranging from small, isolated ethnic associations to umbrella organizations representing large segments of our most populous cities. Submissions came from established social service and health agencies struggling to meet the needs of clientele they found difficult to understand, from institutions experimenting with new training programs for providers of care, and from self-help groups that lacked resources but not ideas. Since people who are busy delivering services typically have no time to write about their work, the opportunity to hear them describe innovations evolving throughout Canada proved particularly valuable. The insights derived from these experiences provided an important lesson. While it will not be necessary to create a new system of services to meet the mental health requirements of immigrants and refugees, existing resources can and must become more accessible and responsive.

Other meetings took place outside the formal hearings. During one evening in Toronto, we convened an open public forum attended by about 100 persons. Some came because of personal interest, while others represented groups who had not been able to make a formal presentation at the hearings.

The Chairman also met with representatives of provincial ministries responsible for social, health and resettlement services in Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec and New Brunswick to hear of government-sponsored initiatives to meet the mental health needs of newcomers.

A flood of written submissions was received, describing the problems migrants encounter in adapting to life in Canada, as well as creative attempts by community and government agencies to understand how best to meet the needs of newcomers and to develop programs to put this new understanding into practice.

Complex studies usually have a unique vocabulary which requires definition: one peppered with terms like "mental health," "immigrants," "refugees" and "mental health services" is no exception.

Ironically, the term "mental health" has come to mean both mental disorder and positive mental health.

Mental disorders cover phenomena ranging from serious illness for which people are hospitalized to the unrealistic fears or inconsolable episodes of sadness which interfere with people's ability to work and to love. At times, the term has also included the personal effects resulting from difficulties people experience when faced with life changes, such as puberty or bereavement, or when they look to the mental health professions for help with marital problems. Official nomenclatures such as the International Classification of Diseases (ICD), Mental Health Section, or the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) not only describe these problems but define them as the legitimate province of the mental health field.

A large percentage of the general population - research places it as high as 15 to 20 per cent - suffers, in varying degrees, from emotional disorders of the types described in the ICD or the DSM. Their commonness should not blunt our sensibilities to the enormous toll these conditions take in individual suffering and the cost of providing care. Some authorities suggest that 30 per cent of all medical care contacts are for mental health related problems. Thus, emotional distress creates enormous costs to societies.

Like everyone, migrants may suffer distress of different types, of different intensity and for different periods of time. A large body of theory suggests that, because resettling in a foreign country is undeniably a source of stress, immigrants and refugees will have more mental disorders than the host country populations. Many of the studies in our survey of the world literature on migration support this belief. However, an approximately equal number suggest the reverse; immigrants either have the same rates of disorder as the host country population, or, in some cases, lower rates. While this might suggest that scientists who conduct this type of research are hopelessly confused, reviews of these carefully designed and well-executed studies lead to a more interesting conclusion.

Migration is a condition of risk for developing mental disorder. But risk is not destiny. Some migrants, under certain conditions, become mentally ill. However, differences in personal characteristics or in the social situations in which migrants find themselves arc more powerful predictors of mental health outcome than migration per se. Rather than asking whether migrants have more mental disorder than others, we need to understand under what conditions migrant populations experience higher or lower rates of emotional disorder than native-born groups.

While the Task Force was concerned about mental disorder, we felt that our scope must go beyond the boundaries of illness to encompass health in a positive sense. Trying to encompass positive health is a bit like chasing mercury; it is easy to sense the phenomenon but hard to capture the substance. Scientists have long debated the meaning of health. The World Health Organization (WHO) produced a definition making the important point that health refers to more than the absence of disease. The rhetorical appeal of the rest of the WHO definition, "a complete state of physical, psychological and social well-being," however, is difficult to translate into concrete terms.

While scientists and professionals continue their struggle to define health in its positive sense, the Task Force adopted a concept which probably accords with that of the proverbial man and woman on the street. To the extent that people are happy, have a sense that they are fairly well in control of their lives and feel that they are valued, productive members of society, they are mentally healthy. The Task Force concluded that in addition to trying to understand the factors which make migration a riskinducing situation for mental illness, we also had to identify the forces which promote the optimization of human potential.

"Immigrant" and "refugee" are two more terms requiring definition. We admit people to Canada under the Immigration Act predicated on economic, social and humanitarian concerns. People may enter in one of three categories: family class, Convention refugees and independent immigrants.

Under the terms of family class, any Canadian or permanent resident who is at least 18 years of age can sponsor close relatives by signing an undertaking to provide for lodging, care and maintenance of his or her family members for a period of up to 10 years. The independent class of immigrants includes assisted relatives, retirees, entrepreneurs, investors, and others applying on their own initiative. Applicants in the independent class are assigned points based on education, vocational training, experience, personal stability, and having relatives in Canada. In order to be admitted in this category, an applicant must receive at least 70 points out of a possible 100. A bonus of 10 points is awarded to persons with relatives in Canada who can and will act as guarantors.

Canada's definition of refugee is based on the United Nations Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees A "Convention refugee" is "any person who by reason of a well-founded fear of Persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion (a) is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, by reason of such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country, or (b) not having a country of nationality, is outside the country of his former habitual residence and is unable or, by reason of such fear, is unwilling to return to that country. "

Many persecuted and displaced persons who do not qualify as refugees under the U.N. definition can be admitted as specially designated classes for humanitarian reasons. In recent years, the federal government has admitted, in the designated class category, persons from Southeast Asia, Poland and some Latin American countries.

At times, we use the terms "migrant" or "immigrant" in this report to cover persons in all categories: family class, refugees, designated class and independent immigrants. The term does not, however, include foreign students or temporary workers, people who were not included in the Task Force's mandate.

The numbers of persons entering Canada has varied over the past decade from a low of 84,331 in 1985 to approximately 152,000 in 1987. As Figure 0.1 shows, just over 17 per cent of these immigrants have been admitted as refugees, 40 per cent have arrived in the independent class, and almost 43 per cent in the family class.

Finding one's way in a new society is a bewildering experience. Whether a person comes to Canada in the hope of carrying on a business, to reunite with a relative or to escape political persecution, adapting to the host country and its ways creates common problems. Many new settlers, whether immigrant or refugee, speak neither of Canada's official languages. Many come from societies dominated by values that differ from those most Canadians share about such things as health care. Language, the compatability of cultures, and attitudes towards health care are major concerns for a multicultural society. They also affect the mental health of newcomers. While immigrants and refugees share many common problems, they also differ in ways which have important mental health implications. People usually choose to become immigrants, whereas they are forced to become refugees. This increases the risk for emotional disorder. Many refugees have experienced the loss of home and possessions, the deaths of friends and family, internment in refugee camps, and perhaps torture, which breaks minds as well as bodies. To add to the trauma of their past, when refugees arrive in a country of asylum, they are usually poor and are cut off from Families and other sources of social support. Most refugees are admitted to Canada from abroad. However, recent years have witnessed an increase in refugee claimants, persons who appear on Canadian soil claiming refugee status under the Geneva convention

While there have been well-publicized abuses of this system, many claimants ultimately qualify as bona fide refugees and are permitted to stay. The desperation which prompted their decisions to appear in Canada and then apply to stay, coupled with the long delays which invariably precede a hearing of their cases, generate stress for claimants awaiting judgements. Ironically, until their refugee status is established, this high-risk group is not eligible for health care benefits.

Understanding mental health needs and the factors affecting these needs constituted an important part of the Task Force's work. It was equally important to study how Canada is responding - and with what kind of success. We frequently heard about the "mental health care system." We even used the term ourselves, recognizing that in doing so, we were perpetuating a convenient fiction. There is no monolithic "system" to cure and rehabilitate the mentally ill or to promote the well-being of Canadians.

Instead, there are hospitals, clinics and private practitioners offering various services, sometimes working together, sometimes not. Moreover, not all the counselling and curing of the emotionally disturbed, and even less of the health promotion, happens in these places. A great deal of it transpires informally, in physicians' offices, in second-language classrooms, in immigrant and refugee service agencies, in neighbourhood settlement houses and among the participants in ethnic self-help organizations.

Schools and pre-school programs also play a role in the "mental health care system." Children learn more than basic skills at school and in pre-school programs. The attitudes immigrant children encounter in these settings help forge developing identities. This, in turn, affects their parents. Many immigrant families make their adjustment to a new country through their children's experiences and aspirations.

The term "mainstream, " referring to organizations seen to be central to the Canadian way of life and endorsed by most Canadians, was frequently used as a contrast to "ethnic services," connoting institutions which play a more marginal role in our country. This is ironic. In our multicultural society, discourse which implies that some of our institutions are more central than others has no place. All social and cultural institutions, whether large or small, whether supported by groups who have been in Canada for generations or for just a short while, are important and central to our way of fife. "Mainstream," which suggests an image of a central channel towards which tributaries will flow to mingle and be absorbed is a misleading metaphor.

The central image of a multicultural society is a mosaic - a pattern built of identifiable units. For these reasons, we have attempted to avoid the term " mainstream, " substituting instead phrases such as " larger society " or " host society " or "general community" institutions.

Most Canadians, if they are not first-generation immigrants themselves, have a parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, cousin or friend who came to Canada from another country. Some of these Canadians said: "Yes, times were hard, but I (or my relative) overcame all that trouble without any help from the government. We made it on our own in this country Why do we need special inquiries and special programs now?" It's a legitimate question, and one based on incontrovertible evidence.

In 1988, one in six Canadians is foreign-born. It is remarkable that, as Figure 0.2 illustrates, the ratio of foreign-born to Canadian-born has, ever since Confederation, never been less than one in six, and sometimes as high as one in five. Obviously, during the 120 years of this nation's history, most new settlers have, through hard work and perseverance, " made it" and contributed to the Canadian way of life.

The need for a new and special examination of mental health factors affecting immigrants and refugees arises from two sources: the changing face of immigration in Canada, and the expanding range of our knowledge about factors affecting the way in which new settlers adapt.

Recent immigrants to Canada do not come from the same places as their predecessors. As Figure 0.3 demonstrates, early migration to Canada was dominated by movements from Europe. During the last two to three decades, the proportion of immigrants from that part of the world has shrunk, while the numbers from Asia and, more recently, Latin America, have expanded. Early generations of migrants, coming predominantly from northern Europe, had to adapt to new climates and new customs, without much preparation and without much help. Later settlers, from places like Poland, Ukraine, Greece, Italy and Turkey suffered the additional stress of not speaking one of Canada's official languages. The most recent migrants, particularly those from areas such as Southeast Asia, India and Eritrea, often speak languages whose roots are entirely different from those which evolved into the tongues spoken by European-origin migrants. They also hold ideas about the place of family in one's life, about religion, and about how society should be organized that are vastly different from those of most Canadians.

If we accept the idea that unfamiliar surroundings compound the stress involved in starting life over - and our data overwhelmingly support this concept - the character of our current immigration patterns dictates a new attention to resettlement and to the factors which facilitate it. Fortunately, we know considerably more now than we used to about what makes resettlement difficult and how the difficulties can be cased. It is incumbent upon us to apply this new knowledge to optimize the newcomers' sense of well-being and ability to contribute to society. Anything less would be a disservice, both to Canadian society and to the individuals who have been invited to join it.

In recognition of the fact that it is best to prevent problems from ever developing, the report begins with a section devoted to policies and practices which help prevent mental distress and which promote well-being among immigrants. Separate chapters address Canadian attitudes towards newcomers and the social support available to them, language education and employment opportunities.

Even with the most effective preventive programs in place, remedial services will always be required for those who, as a result of a combination of personal predisposition and adverse circumstance, develop mental disorders. Our section on remedial measures examines the relationship between immigrants and Canada's mental health care system. One chapter examines formal mental health services and another addresses actual and potential sources of care which exist outside of the formal mental health service network. The issues of training for mental health practitioners and licensing of immigrant mental health professionals are also included in Part III: Remedial Measures.

Particular categories of immigrants are at higher risk for emotional problems than are others. In Part IV, the special needs of these immigrants - children and youth, women, seniors, and victims of catastrophic stress - are addressed with regard to both preventive and remedial measures. Each chapter of the report defines the specific issue addressed and analyses the policies and practices affecting it. This information summarizes the knowledge and understanding gained from the scientific literature and from community submissions. Each chapter includes recommendations.

In many ways, Canada's treatment of immigrants is a model for the rest of the industrialized world. Admiration for our humanitarian response to the world refugee crisis received indisputable expression in the form of the 1986 United Nations Nansen Award, the first time this recognition had been accorded to an entire nation. The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and our new Canadian Multiculturalism Act speak of a national policy of fairness and equity, both for citizens and landed immigrants and refugees.

Canada's birthrate has fallen in recent years, despite a national goal of maintaining, if not increasing, the population. Our commitment to providing asylum and facilitating immigration is, therefore, based not only on the humanitarianism of which Canada is justifiably proud, but also on enlightened self-interest. Canada benefits from the labour, the capital and the creative

potential of new settlers. Because there is no reason to believe that the century-long pattern of admitting settlers will change, this report is prepared in the hope that its findings will help us to provide a more effective welcome to the strangers to whom we shall continue to open our doors.

Chapter 1: Attitudes of Canadian Society

Chapter 2: Settlement and Social Support

Chapter 3: Official Language Education

Chapter 4.. Employment

Canada's health care policy, described in Achieving Health for All: A Framework for Health Promotion (1986), defines prevention as an overarching goal. While Canada can do little to reduce stresses occurring prior to migration, research and experience repeatedly demonstrate that what happens to people after they enter a country of resettlement has profound mental health consequences. Since we can alter post-migration conditions for newcomers, it is important to delineate and understand factors which affect mental health during resettlement. Drawing on the testimonies of migrant groups and resettlement agencies, as well as research literature, this section deals with four significant areas: attitudes of Canadian society towards newcomers; settlement and social support; official language education; and employment opportunities.

While Canada's immigration Act recognizes an important role for migrants in developing this country, and our Canadian Multiculturalism Act affirms the value of cultural diversity, Canadians do not share a uniformly welcoming attitude towards newcomers, particularly those with visible minority origins. The report of the All-Party Parliamentary Special Committee on Participation of Visible minorities in Canadian Society, published under the title Equality Now! (1984), documents the alarming finding that 15 per cent of Canadians exhibit blatantly racist attitudes and an additional 20 to 25 Der cent have racist tendencies.

Racism violates our assumptions about the kind of people we are. Efforts to enhance mutual respect and to celebrate differences are important for the mental health of native-born Canadians as well as newcomers.

In recent years, we have become increasingly aware that individual well-being depends on having meaningful ties to other individuals. People require a supportive social group in order to reaffirm their self-esteem. Testimony presented to the Task Force reveals that group memberships are threatened during resettlement but community development programs can help restore the sense of belonging which promotes mental health.

Inability to speak the language of the host country is a severe handicap because it leads to alienation and emotional disorder. Language acquisition, therefore, forms an important component of this report.

Studies of unemployment in the general population suggest links with increased rates of suicide, hospitalization for psychiatric disorder and threats to general well-being. Often the last to be hired and the first to be fired, migrants experience higher rates of unemployment than the indigenous population. They often find themselves in situations where they are cut off from buffers to stress such as social support, which offset the effects of unemployment on mental health.

Persons who are alienated from the majority culture, cannot speak its language or find work and who, at the same time, are deprived of their customary sources of social support do not belong anywhere. Their risk of developing emotional disorder is great. Without the help of preventive programs, they become marginal rather than full participants in Canadian society. Through this process, they may become one of the country's mental illness statistics.

Most migrants have proven resilient even in the face of risk. Most have overcome hardship to make great contributions to Canada. Their success provides important guidelines for ways in which the relatively small group who become casualties of resettlement might be helped to adapt more quickly and more easily.

There is evidence that the migrant with the best chance of maintaining a sense of well-being is probably the one who has the most options - the person who is able to maintain links with his own ethnic community but who is also welcome in the larger society and able to participate fully in it.

There will always be a need for remedial health services. However, the search for ways to prevent illness and suffering and to promote well-being, now barely begun, must be encouraged.

Chapter 1: Attitudes of Canadian Society

The reception afforded immigrants by the host society affects their mental well-being. Government policies which foster integration and pluralism, and public support for cultural and racial diversity, allow newcomers to participate in the larger society without having to give up their historical and cultural identifies. The ideology of multiculturalism accords well with mental health. People with options - to wholeheartedly embrace a new culture, to preserve their own or to combine the two - are likely to maintain their mental health. Curtailing options through forced assimilation or isolation jeopardizes health and well-being. While Canada's policy of multiculturalism should help create optimal conditions for immigrant adaptation, the way in which these policies are implemented and the climate of popular opinion compromise this potential. The gap between "ideal" policies and "real" behaviour must be narrowed.

In Canada, we are guided by a Multiculturalism Policy (Government of Canada, 1971) and the new multiculturalism legislation. These documents, supported by a number of parallel provincial initiatives, define us as a society respectful and welcoming of diversity. Canadians are encouraged to maintain their heritage languages, customs and beliefs, and to project the multiculturalism reality of Canada in their activities at home and abroad.

Canada's multiculturalism policy should be conducive to immigrant mental health. However, the manifest attitudes and behaviour of many Canadians towards newcomers often deviate from the ideals to which the principles subscribe. All Canadians must become aware of and fully appreciate the principles of multiculturalism. To quote one submission, "(we) must mainstream Multiculturalism" (Surrey School District 36, B.C.).

Canada, in recent years at least, has earned its reputation as a humanitarian nation. A number of recent studies, however, reveal that a substantial and perhaps growing proportion of Canada's population displays morbid dislike of foreigners and displays racist attitudes.

A report released by the Canada Employment and Immigration Commission (CEIC) in 1985

documented xenophobic attitudes harboured by many Canadians. Many people felt that Canada's culture - perceived as deriving from northern

Europe - was in danger of being overwhelmed by non-European immigrants unwilling to assimilate. Immigrants were also seen to pose an economic threat. They were indicted for taking jobs and thus driving up unemployment among Canadian-born persons and, conversely, for failing to find work and thereby becoming a drain on the country's welfare system. As several submissions to the Task Force noted, the perception that immigrants jeopardize our economy is particularly acute in depressed regions of Canada where "chronic unemployment encourages a resentment towards immigrants who are viewed as competing for jobs and draining the economy. (Submission: Association for New Canadians)

Many Canadians place ethno-cultural groups on a scale of acceptability. Anglo-Celtic, French and northern Europeans occupy the top end of the scale, southern and eastern Europeans the middle, and Asian and Caribbean groups the bottom (Berry, Kalin and Taylor, 1977). Members of groups at the bottom of the scale, Canada's visible minorities, experience rejection every day - on the job, in housing, in education, in the media and on the street. While research has yet to establish causal links between discrimination and mental disorder, it is hard to imagine that the relentless experience of rejection does not jeopardize one's mental health.

Community submissions and academic studies suggest three broad strategies for modifying Canadian attitudes towards immigrants to reflect the goals of Canadian policies.

Education through school curricula provides a highly effective means of improving inter-ethnic relations, but its ultimate success will be seen only in the long term.

A number of school boards, schools and individual teachers across the country have been, and continue to be, intent on promoting cross-cultural understanding in the classroom. Their experience suggests, and research confirms, that multicultural curricula are most effective when they are:

C first introduced in early childhood;

C oriented towards inter-cultural activities; and

C facilitated by teachers who themselves have been educated in cross-cultural awareness.

Professionally guided multicultural activities, especially among younger pupils, serve a dual purpose regarding immigrant mental health. They enable majority group children to accept and value others, and to grow up with fewer racial biases. They also foster the self-esteem of minority group children (Chapter Nine).

Public education is a potentially productive way of improving the welcome extended to immigrants. There have been commendable efforts to describe the mutual benefits of immigrant-host country relationships and to further an understanding of the cultural background of migrants. For example, newspaper headlines such as 'Immigrants Create Jobs" emphasize the economic benefit of our immigrant policies, while film footage on the plight of asylum seekers reinforces the humanitarianism underlying acceptance of refugees. But are these messages reaching anyone other than the already converted? One journalist suggested that "until [the Minister of State for Immigration I and his department abandon their wilful disregard of the scope of racism among Canadians, it is unlikely that their advertising program will have a discernible impact on public attitudes towards immigration" (Malarek, 1987, p.79). Stated more positively, research findings need to be combined with good marketing techniques to produce effective public education.

Policy and legislation at provincial, municipal and community levels can block harmful actions resulting from negative attitudes.

While public behaviour can be legislated, feelings can only be influenced. Several submissions to the Task Force noted that a school race relations program, a municipality's fair housing policy, or a decision by the Human Rights Commission all help improve the treatment experienced by immigrants. Ideally, policies guiding behaviour should be complemented by educational programs designed to ensure that the spirit as well as the letter of the law is understood and accepted. The race relations policies adopted by the Province of Ontario and School District 36 in Surrey, B.C. are examples of this constructive legislation. For the most part, however, efforts at modifying behaviour have not incorporated attitudinal change.

The federal government has a limited but essential role to play in modifying behaviour towards immigrants through provincial and municipal policies. It can facilitate the research on which sound policy decisions, as well as effective public education efforts, should be based. As a working paper of the Ford Foundation (1983) concludes, "Until basic studies are conducted on these matters and until the results of those studies are widely disseminated, it will be difficult to frame and gain acceptance for appropriate policies."

The federal government can become a model for desired behaviour through policy decisions made within its own jurisdiction - by, for example, . providing equal employment opportunity. Policies which prove successful at one level of government provide solid examples for consideration at other levels.

Federal input to national bodies such as the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunication Commission, and to ' joint federal-provincial bodies such as the Conference on Educational Resources, can present immigrant perspectives on any issue. Where federal funding or matching funds agreements are at stake, Ottawa has a clear mandate to address the concerns of all Canadians - whether native-born or foreign-born.

Among the many factors determining whether migration will be a negative or positive experience, the orientation the host society displays towards newcomers is among the most important. Attitudes of government and the general population establish the emotional context in which immigrants see themselves and act. Perceived hostility may only breed further hostility, both in the immigrant and host communities, with a consequent Me in mental health problems for all. If the governing factors can be identified, assessed and managed, then the goal of a culturally pluralistic society, a celebration of diversity, can be attained.

Those of us already here learn from and respond to newcomers. In the process, we and they change. Migration creates adaptive strew for members of the host society as well as for newcomers. Because adapting to newcomers may be stressful, the host society may react by becoming hostile. The unwelcoming climate which results increases the risk of frustration and mental illness among migrants, which may in rum make the backlash in the larger society more intense. For these reasons, any public policy or program concerned with mental health needs of immigrants and refugees must also concern itself with the needs of the general population. This is an interactive view of how people negotiate their way in a plural society. It draws attention not just to the mental health needs of immigrants adapting to a new society but also to the needs of Canadian-born persons adapting to a changing society.

The needs of the host population for understanding and acceptance of the changes immigration entails may be met in part through public education and school curricula. In both cases, educational objectives should include:

a) the benefits of the pluralistic nature of Canadian society, and the federal and provincial policies of multiculturalism designed to maintain this pluralism;

b) the historic role of immigration in building Canadian society and the contributions of people from different cultures;

c) the humanitarian values and respect for human rights which underlie Canada's policies;

d) the problems typically experienced by immigrants and refugees both before and after migration;

e) the awareness that all people have a potential to express prejudice and to act in discriminatory ways even if they do not necessarily intend to do so; and

f) the understanding that prejudice damages both the victim and the perpetrator.

Such information and understanding would aid Canadians in adapting to immigrants, and would, therefore, exert a positive impact on the reception experienced by immigrants. The Task Force recommends that CEIC, Ministry of Communications, and Secretary of State increase public education regarding the benefits of cultural pluralism, the contributions of immigrants to Canadian society, the difficulties faced by newcomers, and the effects of prejudice on both victim and perpetrator. An interministerial committee comprising senior staff from the respective ministries should, in consultation with ethno-cultural community groups, make recommendations for increased funding, facilitate the introduction of new public education programs, and monitor progress.

Immigration will continue to be a part of Canadian policy, and immigrants a part of Canadian life. If today's school-aged population understands and accepts its immigrant peers, it will help ensure a positive welcome for newcomers arriving years from now. The curricula of preschool, elementary and secondary schools should pay more attention to the same themes identified as objectives for public education. provincial ministries of education should provide direction in this regard, with the encouragement and support of CEIC, Health and Welfare, and Secretary of state.

Positive changes in attitudes towards immigrants will come slowly among adults and will come to fruition among children as they become adult members of society. On the other hand, positive changes in public behaviour can be directly affected, particularly among children. It is recommended, therefore, that Secretary of State, in cooperation with provincial ministries of education, encourage and support boards of education to adopt multiculturalism and race relations policies similar to those that have already proven successful in Canada. This

recommendation should be placed on the agenda of the Federal/provincial Conference on Educational Human Resources for implementation.

The success and cost-effectiveness of race relations policies and educational programs depend on accurate assessments of the problems they are designed to address. While the Task Force agrees in general on the need for education and policies to facilitate a positive reception of immigrants, it also acknowledges a need for more information about how attitudes and behaviour can be most effectively modified. The abolition of racism is in itself a worthy goal for a truly pluralistic society. However, the Task Force's mandate concerns the mental health of newcomers. While it seems inconceivable that prejudice is not damaging to mental health, the empirical evidence linking the two is inadequate as is an understanding of how discrimination may result in mental ill-health.

Funds for a substantial research program should be allocated by CEIC, Health and Welfare, and Secretary of State to discover the level, nature and sources of prejudice in Canada. Research should also address, the link between prejudice and discrimination and the mental health of immigrants and refugees in Canada.

With accurate information, programs and policies can be developed to enable host Canadians to adapt to newcomers and to welcome them. The Task Force affirms the belief that such efforts will result in mutual benefit. As Dr. Hung-Tat Lo stated in his submission, "An environment where discrimination and xenophobia give place to mutual respect and cultural diversity can only be a healthier environment for all."

Next

Background - Executive Summary - Chapter 1 - Chapter 2-6 - Chapter 7-9 - Chapter 10-11 - Chapter 12 Conclusion & Appendices

Virtual Library		Updated February 09, 2004