It's Time to Recognize the Filipinos in Canada!
WRITTEN BY ABY PASION, LEO ALBEA AND FRANCESA JANA SANTIAGO
When it comes to representation in the west it’s the Filipino-Americans who are often credited for it, even when many of the Filipino celebrities we know and love like Shay Mitchell and Manny Jacinto are actually Canadian! But representation for our people isn’t only limited to media and entertainment because Filipinos are also at the forefront of business and healthcare, especially in Canada. Did you know the Filipino-Canadian population is higher than in the U.S.? This makes them the third largest immigrant group in the country! It adds on to the importance of recognizing the nearly 1.5 Million Filipino residents responsible for the successful multiculturalism of Canada.
Filipino migration to Canada dates back as early as the Spanish colonization however, even larger groups came in at around 1930. Back then, the first generation of Filipino-Canadians were made up of women taking up nursing and teaching. But the immigrant life is easy to no one and Filipino-Canadians find themselves going through cultural barriers, high-cost of living and of course, discrimination. But resilience is instilled in Filipino blood and even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the community continued to survive— Filipino-Canadians were even capable of sending $1 Billion worth of remittances back to the Philippines!
The outbreak of the virus also didn’t stop the mobilizations of their communities because even with Canada’s significant number of Filipino inhabitants, there is still a need for more visibility in the political area. This is why many young Filipino-Canadians are stepping up and leading movements to keep the community included such as through a youth leadership conference entitled Pinoys On Parliament. Filipino-Canadians have a strong sense of belonging and so they lift as they climb. And wherever Filipinos go, progress and multiculturalism follows.