oceanMDX

Yes, why don't you just follow your own advice and "just let it lie"?

I wonder what qualifies you to suggest who should post to this forum? Do you own this website or what? You seem to think that for someone to post here, they need to be a Johnny come lately from Britain. I know more than a little about the topic - Canada. I've corrected so many factual errors and misconceptions about this country over the months, that it is beyond count. That is why I started posting here in the first place, I couldn't believe some of the inaccuracies that I was reading.

Yes, Britons are a minority in Canada - surprise, surprise.

love_it_here

I felt compelled to say something because you were all ganging up on her. I thought the idea of this web site is to provide support, share experiences and offer helpful advice to people from Britain who are either thinking about moving to Canada, going through the process or already here. I didn't realize it was for half a dozen people to gang up on one person, decide that she is a racist (even though you do not know her) and pump up your chest with self righteousnesses. Your arrogance is staggering and you should be ashamed of yourself.

Velouria

i dont think anyone is being self-righteous here. when i first read the post, i was also taken aback by the comments. yes, people do come here for helpful advice and support, but when you make statements such as:

what do you expect people to say? sure we do not know her, but as far as first impressions go - zilch in my book.

i find the naiveté of some people emigrating quite fascinating really. do they expect their destination country to be exactly like the country they left behind? are they really that insular and naive?

and what about the chinese posters on here? i would have personally taken offense to that if i was of chinese descent. jesus, i take offence as a canadian! there is nothing wrong with a non-white majority group anywhere in the world. what's wrong is perhaps those white people who have gotten used to being the majority for the longest time.

and if being a foreigner gets you down - then maybe the best choice was not to emigrate at all? its not bloody rocket science. leave the xenophobia back in britain, thank you very much

if you put your thoughts down, especially ones like those, on a public forum, then you open yourself up to all kinds of responses. people have a right to respond. just like they will to this post!

<puts soap box away>

oceanMDX

I don't know her, so I can only judge her by what she said on this thread, and based on that, in the literal sense of the word, her statement was racist. I'm not known to follow the politically correct line myself, so I wasn't condemning her. Rather, I wanted her to know how her comments would be construed - right here and now - by many (if not the majority) of Canadians. So in that sense, those who criticized her statement on this thread were really doing her a favor because it's better to understand Canadian attitudes here and now, rather than in the real world where her words could do damage to her reputation. She need not worry what others think of her here in cyberspace.

I'm sorry, but this time, I don't think my statement was 'arrogant'. Candid or frank yes, arrogant not really. I would say however, that your statement to me was the height of arrogance, and it is you who perhaps ought to be ashamed. After all, who are you to tell a Canadian what to say regarding a matter involving his own country?

Glaswegian

Out of curiosity, what were your expectations? You stepped off the plane in the UK with a single preconception of what the country would be like?

Canada shows a "white" face to the world nothing more than that ... that's my interpretation for what its worth.

This is really a pointless, over debated topic that really doesn't have an answer ... similar to any thread that compares life in Alberta with life in Ontario ... it's all down to personal experience, prejudices and expectations.

Maybe we can get back to talking about issues regarding Canadian lifestyle?

Velouria

where exactly does canada show this white face? im curious....

Glaswegian

I take offence at blasphemy ... you probably don't see the world the same way as I do ... if you did, you might be more sensitive in your use of language ... why be so sensitive about issues that are somebody else's to deal with?

Velouria

fair enough, i apologise for the use of jesus

im sensitive because i have seen both sides of the coin. ive spent time in the uk where ive heard people complain about the constant influx of immigrants or asylum seekers. it made me cringe everytime i heard it, because i was in fact an immigrant in the uk. its something i dont wish to encounter here.

whenever i was in the uk and used to complain about things, the natives would tell me to go home. well, i did. and i give the same advice to those here who think they have it so bad.

its a shame that people have to classify other people according to race. its also a shame that people feel uncomfortable around people 'not of their kind'. but then, i suppose that says a lot about the person.

Glaswegian

Look at the thread about Canada News ... it's a Canadian government sponsored "newspaper" for potential UK immigrants ... I remember it being full of stories of nice white people from the UK finding lives in Canada.

I asked a serious question earlier ... are there really no non-european mounties?

I've never seen a photo of a mountie who wasn't obviously european.

Glaswegian

Thank you, I appreciate that

I'm a Scot who lived in England for fifteen years ... we've been told to "***** off back to where you came from and stop taking our jobs" in England ... nobody in Canada has told me that yet, it's a much more tolerant place.

There seems to be an element of English society that has a problem with race ... I don't think they would feel very much at home in Canada.

Perhaps this thread does have a use after all.

oceanMDX

I would be shocked - especially in Canada's larger urban areas - if anyone ever said that to you.

Glaswegian

After three years of living in Canada, I would be too ... England is a different issue ... there are elements of society that detest everything non-English ... that includes the Irish, Scots & Welsh ... I find it amusing that Canadians don't see the divisions in the UK ... nobody has called me a Jock in three years and I'm getting to like it.

oceanMDX

The term 'Jock' in Canada refers to an athlete. In high school, we especially referred to football players (Canadian football that is) as 'jocks'. The term is not considered offensive in North America, and it has absolutely nothing to do with Scots. We have the Scottish Highland Games in Fergus, Ont. by the way - they even have a website.

Rhodes

I wholeheartedly agree with Velouria's comment.

I'd also have to say, and this might be where Vel and I diverge, that it is not necessarily racist to want to live in a community where you feel that you fit in and have something in common with your neighbours. That is why there are - in England and Canada and in many parts of the world - pockets of people predominantly fro one country. My mother-in-law's aunt lives in Little Italy in Toronto, and I don't think that she would feel comfortable living in a place with no one from an Italian background. Similarly, I don't see that it would be racist for an English person to want to live somewhere where he or she is at least able to commmunicate with his neighbours. There was a point ot this when I stated, but I've forgotten what it was, but I'm not going to delete this now I've typed it. I think one of the points was that one canot brandish the original poster racist on the basis of his or her message. It could have been worded rather more sensitively, though.

Rhodes

Ah, this expresses what I meant in my last post rather more eloquently than I managed.