S ometimes when things change, they change quite quickly.
It was not that long ago Yorkton had a fairly homogenous population. Sure, it has always been a place for immigrants, but for decades those immigrants had a lot in common with existing residents in terms of race, language, culture and religion.
Recently, the immigrants coming to Yorkton have been a lot more visible and different. Even between the censuses of 2006 and 2011, the visible minority population almost doubled from 280 to 530. Most of that was an influx of Filipinos.
There are no reliable current numbers because 2016 census data on immigration and ethnocultural diversity will not be released until October 2017, but one only has to look around town and it is obvious the numbers have grown.
And they have been eager to share their unique cultures with the rest of us. For several years, the Filipino community has invited the community at large to celebrate Pinoy Fiesta, in honour of Phillipines independence.
Just two weeks ago, the growing Southeast Asian community put on a wonderful event with Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights, the Hindu equivalent of Christmas for Christians.
This is all very good for Yorkton and citizens of this city should be proud of how newcomers have been welcomed here, particularly in light of the growing anti-immigration sentiment in many parts of the world.
For some reason, or multiple reasons, it seems to work here. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact none of us are very far removed from our own family's immigration story that we tend to be pretty easy-going about accepting newcomers.
Scholars often note that Canada demands very little from immigrants except that they respect the rule of law, get along socially, contribute to the greater good and make their own way. In other words, only what we might expect from any resident.
In turn, they tend to integrate very easily into the community while still bringing new colour and flavour to the broader culture.
Canadian multiculturalism was once characterized as a mosaic. According to some analysts, this is the success of the Canadian approach, integration with retention of core cultural identity.
"Herein lies the great success of Canadian multicularism; a society which integrates newcomers not by force but through generosity, benevolence, and sincerity to its values and principles," wrote Murtaza Hussain, a Toronto-based analyst of Middle Eastern politics. "Given such a national character, it is unsurprising why Canadian immigrants of all backgrounds tend to become "Canadian" so enthusiastically, and it is for this reason that Canada has become an exemplar of social cohesion in an increasingly globalized world."
There are critics, of course, and many local individuals have no doubt faced some unpleasantness as well, but for the most part, we should all feel very fortunate that our experience here is not as it has been for large swaths of Europe and what is currently brewing south of the 49th Parallel.
This coming weekend marks the Sixth Annual Festival of Cultures at Sacred Heart High School. This event took off in its very first year and promises to be just as popular this year. Also, on Saturday, Yorkton Partners in Settlement and Integration will be handing out its Immigrants of Distinction Awards.
We should all take a moment to celebrate the growing diversity of our community.
