https://lheylah.wordpress.

com/2008/02/01/what-barriers-do-immigrants-facewhen-they-come-to-canada/

What barriers do immigrants face when they come

to Canada?
The story Newcomer by Mehri Yalfani is an example of a language barrier, a
common obstacle that immigrants face when deciding to live in Canada. She was
silent because she could not speak English properly and knew she didnt want to be
embarrassed. They may have access to ESL support but it is frequently the case that
lack of funds can lead to lower educational outcomes, lack of basic literacy skills,
inability to gain knowledge and attend training programs to pursue further education.
Language affects access to care for immigrant children. According to a recent graph
of the percentage of the population that have problems communicating with doctors:
48% usually had interpreters during a health care visit, 70% only fully understood
what the doctor was saying, and 16% did not fully understand their doctor or ask any
questions.
[Source:http://www.mmc.edu/www.meharry.org/Fl/Access_to_Health_Care/Barriers_to_
Care_for_Immigrants.html, Retrieved February 1, 2008] There still exists rampant
racism and discrimination because of one person who has an accent or cannot speak
English properly. There are many terrible sad stories Ive heard and witnessed
because of immigrants who have limited English-speaking skills end up feeling
frustrated. Despite all this, I believe the system of bringing newcomers here to
Canada is broken.
The barriers extend far beyond language. Canada is traditionally a service based
country and professional opportunities are very small, so nepotism plays above all. If
you dont have any personal relationship, then all of your qualifications are worthless.
Some obstacles I can think of that immigrants face are lack of professional networks
with employers and social contacts, difficulty obtaining Canadian professional work
experience, difficulty of unwelcoming workplaces, costs of training to each individual
for their learning skills in order to progress, inadequacy of career counselling and
information about how Canadas economic factors work, insufficient knowledge of
employment opportunities and requirements, and most importantly, lack of
international education, training and previous work experience. Youth unemployment
is significantly high than of the general population. They may face racial
discrimination, language barriers, culture shocks and lack of Canadian experience
that gets in the way of them entering the labour market smoothly. Also immigrants
are sometimes prevented from working at a specific organization because they

cannot produce the required documentation about their foreign educational

credentials.
Himani Bannerjis story The Other Family is about seeing herself different because,
like her, I am becoming increasingly aware of my physical racial identity. The
predominance of other ethnic groups can be difficult for other immigrants if they do
not belong to the same ethnic group. For example, I am a Muslim and because of
recent times and politics, it is now a targeted group. Whats ironic is that I have
learned more about being a Muslim here, than back in Dubai. Here, they are more
serious about the faith and religion we have in order to connect with other Muslims
our age to see what living here is like. Yet most teaching of religion in high schools in
Canada has mainly focused on Christianity. I think courses like word religion should
be expanded. We also have to deal with issues on sexuality, lifestyles and marriage
within our own Muslim community as we have to take pride in preserving our
religious identity from a western country.
[Source:http://www.muslimcanadiancongress.org Retrieved February 1, 2008]
I think new immigrants feel the need to stick together because we are all going thru
the same thing. In Canada, jobs may be plentiful but they are not the glamorous jobs.
We might not find the same high paying job that we used to have back home or live
in an equally fancy neighbourhood or have friends who weve known throughout our
childhood, but we need to learn to adopt and look at things that matter like family,
new friends, and succeeding in what we want to achieve during our stay in Canada.
Isabel Vincents story Finding a Nationality that fits is a story about how they are a
Portuguese family who tried to Canadianize themselves in order to be accepted in
society. Women are often the target of discriminatory behaviour in various industry
fields. We often are left on our own to find ourselves in Canada. After a period of time
living in Canada, may lose his/her family traditions, beliefs and values and it changes
a person. Now, I see more young teens that came here with such innocence being
involved in things that they shouldnt be, just because they want to take part in the
in-crowd.
I believe that if we all help each other and socially integrate among other
immigrants, we can find opportunities and learn how to establish ourselves here.
Therefore we can make our networks and amalgamate in the society. I hope Canada
becomes a country of hope, not of shattered dreams.