Vancouver, BC [July 30, 2021] – While a large proportion of Canadians continue to voice support for multiculturalism, the public is deeply divided when assessing the current state of affairs in the country, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative national sample, just over two-in-five Canadians (41%,) think race relations in Canada have improved over the past two years, down eight points since a similar Research Co. survey conducted in July 2020.
A similar proportion of Canadians (38%, +9) believe race relations have worsened since 2019.
Majorities of Canadians whose ancestry is South Asian (58%), First Nations (53%) and African (also 53%) feel race relations have improved since 2019. The numbers are lower among respondents of Southeast Asian (43%), East Asian (41%) and European (34%) origins.
Almost half of Canadians (47%, +6) think Canada should be a mosaic, where cultural differences within society are valuable and should be preserved.
Conversely, just over a third of Canadians (35%, -11) prefer the concept of the melting pot, where immigrants assimilate and blend into Canadian society.
Almost three-in-four Canadians (73%, -1) think the policy of multiculturalism has been “very good” or “good” for the country, while 16% (-2) consider it “bad” or “very bad.”
“Support for multiculturalism is highest among women (75%), Canadians aged 18-to-34 (79%) and British Columbians (81%),” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “The concept is endorsed by majorities of Canadians who voted for the Liberal Party (84%), the New Democratic Party (NDP) (79%) and the Conservative Party (66%) in the 2019 federal election.”
Almost half of Canadians have personally experienced racism on social media (49%) and on day-to-day social interactions (49%), while fewer say they have endured racism at school (41%), at work (40%), during interactions with police or law enforcement officers (35%) or during interactions with the health care system (32%).
Just under three-in-five Canadians of First Nations descent (59%) say they have endured racism during interactions with the health care system—along with 62% of South Asians and 68% of Africans.
More than seven-in-ten Canadians of African descent (72%) have experienced racism on social media, along with at least three-in-five of their counterparts of First Nations (68%), South Asian (61%) and Southeast Asian (60%) origins.
More than half of Canadians say they have witnessed racism on social media (58%) and on day-to-day social interactions (53%). More than a third have also perceived racism at school (47%), at work (43%), engaging with police and law enforcement officers (42%) and dealing with the health care system (36%).
Methodology: Results are based on an online survey conducted from July 9 to July 18, 2021, among 2,000 adults in Canada. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in Canada. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 2.2 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490 [e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca