Ethnic diversity of Toronto vs. elected representatives

[lordmandeep]

I drove on Royale York from the LAke up to Weston and on Weston up to Finch.


Its a huge transformation of the city and ethnicity.

You go from a very rich part of the city to one of the poorest (Weston/Finch)

 

[roch5220]

our new motto....

"welcome to Toronto, the chocolate city with a marshmallow center and a graham cracker crust of corruption. It's a Mallomar, I guess, is what I'm describing, is a Mallomar. It’s a seasonal cookie"

-modified stephen colbert quote.

Well, thats if you agree with the initial assumption. Appears that the chinese make up a significant composition of downtown.

http://www.brocku.ca/maplibrary/Atlas2001/Toronto/chinese.pdf

In addition, the composition of non-CDNs in Toronto by census tract does not point to an identifiable trend.

http://www.brocku.ca/maplibrary/Atlas2001/Toronto/citizenship.pdf

I fail to see how Toronto is white in the centre. Maybe, too many people equating the white collar workers that commutte from the rich suburban areas to the financial district as living where they work. I wouldn't say its very diverse, but its definately not a white centre, more like scrambled eggs, mixing the yoke with egg whites.

 

[doady]

^ What exactly does being Canadian have to do with being white or non-white? I am born in Canada and have always been a Canadian citizen but I am not white.

 

[roch5220]

So what, just because my dog is small, doesn't mean that all dogs are small.
The 2nd map was only meant to compliment the first map as add on information, hence I never refered to it in my assumptions, hence, I only made assumptions on chinese. Ie. the egg example, with whites and asian.

And the 2nd map does compliment it because immigrants are coming to canada not in one overdominate ethnicity. Hence, if you make the further deduction that the non-CDNs are going to be a mix, there is no pattern to where they are settling in Toronto. To me, it counters the 'assumption' that whites are located in the center and a mix on the outside. I would have guessed that most would assume that non-CDNs would be significantly comprised of immigrants, and because immigrants come from everywhere, and it wouldn't have to be spellled out.

 

[Admiral Beez]

I drove on Royale York from the LAke up to Weston and on Weston up to Finch.


Its a huge transformation of the city and ethnicity.

You go from a very rich part of the city to one of the poorest (Weston/Finch)

In Cabbagetown we've got almost entirely white, mostly DINK, hip and gay folks living in nicely restored Victorians. Cross Gerrard St southward and you're in one of the poorest non-white areas in the city.

It's no wonder that as soon as non-whites make their money, that they flee to Brampton to buy their big house. They've seen urban Toronto from the dirty side of the fence, and don't want to stick around.

 

[syn]

In Cabbagetown we've got almost entirely white, mostly DINK, hip and gay folks living in nicely restored Victorians. Cross Gerrard St southward and you're in one of the poorest non-white areas in the city.

It's no wonder that as soon as non-whites make their money, that they flee to Brampton to buy their big house. They've seen urban Toronto from the dirty side of the fence, and don't want to stick around.

Yet they all buy condos and come back...

 

[doady]

So what, just because my dog is small, doesn't mean that all dogs are small.

Fine then, all other Canadians are white then, I am just an exception. You win.

 

[EnviroTO]

It is a free country and the people elected will be based on the people who run and the people who vote. I find that city council is more white than the MPs and MPPs. Perhaps when chosen to represent a party a member of a minority group has a better chance at success because name recognition and being well known become secondary to what party is being represented. In Trinity-Spadina Adam Vaughan replaced Olivia Chow... Adam won because he had name recognition, nothing to do with being white. I think that the groups which tend to follow politics in the news, in the ridings, and at the polls will end up with more political power. In riding association meetings I have been to there were mostly white people there... it was an open meeting that anyone could attend in a riding which is very multicultural. I find that to be the case with other events as well. The Ride for Heart for example was predominantly white with some asians but very little blacks and south asians. In federal politics it has always seemed that south asians were pretty involved with the Liberal party and there have been a number of south asian MPs because of that. Groups which follow politics less or get involved in politics less are sure to be under represented.

People complaining about not feeling Canadian is something that really irked me when reading the Toronto Star around Canada Day. I can't understand people who take offense to not feeling like part of mainstream Canada after making no effort to take part in community events, follow national and local news, participate in the political process, call police when they witness crime, attend public schools, etc. To feel more Canadian you need to participate. Sitting back and waiting for an invitation is pointless... take initiative. I also wonder what "feeling Canadian" actually feels like and whether or not "feeling Canadian" is more of a conscious decision to pledge allegiance and participate in building a better Canada rather than an actual feeling one gets from another person. Most of my friends are visible minorities but all of them feel Canadian... but they lived Canadian... they played sports, went to school here, watched Canadian TV, and many of their childhood experiences are identical to mine. If they were to have grown up in a cultural enclave, didn't participate in similar events, etc then I imagine they might feel differently.

 

[Prometheus The Supremo]

Well, thats if you agree with the initial assumption. Appears that the chinese make up a significant composition of downtown.

http://www.brocku.ca/maplibrary/Atlas2001/Toronto/chinese.pdf

In addition, the composition of non-CDNs in Toronto by census tract does not point to an identifiable trend.

http://www.brocku.ca/maplibrary/Atlas2001/Toronto/citizenship.pdf

I fail to see how Toronto is white in the centre. Maybe, too many people equating the white collar workers that commutte from the rich suburban areas to the financial district as living where they work. I wouldn't say its very diverse, but its definately not a white centre, more like scrambled eggs, mixing the yoke with egg whites.

i wasn't making an assumption. i was making a joke based on some else's assumption, that the center is white and outer is not. one of stephen colbert's quotes came to mind when i read that.

personally, i don't waste my time worrying about how many "what" people live "where".

 

[Chuck]

Check out some of these statcan maps:

http://geodepot.statcan.ca/Diss/Maps/ThematicMaps/cma_e.cfm?name=Toronto

 

[lordmandeep]

true South Asians have gotten quite involved in politics and there are now like 7 south Asian MPs across the country.


Come on people! rights and powers like these aren't just given to you, you have to fight and work for them.

 

[lordmandeep]

with those maps i was wrong a little.

Downtown Toronto is very multicultural but South Etobicoke and Yonge Street or Mid to Up town Toronto are not as much.

 

[jeicow]

Downtown Toronto is very multicultural but South Etobicoke and Yonge Street or Mid to Up town Toronto are not as much.

I sorta agree with you. Most of the areas you mentioned are just lacking "visible minorities" but that doesn't really equal culture. Russian, Polish and Ukranian people are "white" but I'm willing to bet most people would say they don't have the same culture. Southern Etobicoke is much more Russian/Polish/Eastern European-ish while it lacks in other categories.

 

[lordmandeep]

yeah your write there is a lot of Polish people in that area.

 

[Admiral Beez]

I sorta agree with you. Most of the areas you mentioned are just lacking "visible minorities" but that doesn't really equal culture. Russian, Polish and Ukranian people are "white" but I'm willing to bet most people would say they don't have the same culture. Southern Etobicoke is much more Russian/Polish/Eastern European-ish while it lacks in other categories.

I remember being lost in NYC in 2006, and drove around a few spots looking for directions. Well, I was surprised to find that a lot of the plain looking white folks I asked for directions working at car shops or doughnut shops were Russians with an extremely limited command of English.