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Canada’s old age security (OAS), a flat-benefit public pension, is internationally lauded as an accessible and effective safety net for seniors. This paper explores discrepancies in OAS uptake using Canadian Census data from 1996 to 2011. Our findings demonstrate disparities in OAS uptake based on immigration status, language proficiency, and visible minority status, disputing claims of “universal” OAS provision. Multivariate analyses confirm a strong “immigrant effect,” with being in Canada for 20 years or less leading to lower rates of OAS utilization. They also confirm that those not proficient in Canada’s official languages are less likely to receive OAS benefits. However, the influence of racialized minority status is found to be spurious; after controlling for immigration status and official language proficiency, many racialized minority senior groups have higher odds of receiving OAS than White Canadians. We conclude with a brief discussion of the tradeoffs involved in considering a potential removal of OAS eligibility barriers for immigrants in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Although other nation-states have denounced multiculturalism, Canada continues to declare it is a fundamental characteristic of its national identity. However, there is no consensus about how multiculturalism should be defined or how it is implemented in Canada. This paper draws on an analysis of interviews conducted with members of the second-generation Sri Lankan Tamil diasporic community in Toronto, as well as online comments posted in response to articles on protests staged by this community about the end of the Sri Lankan ethnic conflict. This paper argues that there are cleavages among Canadians with respect to how multiculturalism is understood. The diverging perspectives of the multicultural discourse in Canada illustrate that while the diaspora sees multiculturalism as a means to maintain their dual identities and engage in homeland politics, non-Sri Lankan Tamil Canadians conceptualize this form of activism in homeland politics as being disloyal to Canada, thereby questioning their Canadian identities. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this paper, we compare the community engagement of minorities as measured by group recreational activity in Canada and the Netherlands--two countries with high immigration intake and high levels of ethnocultural diversity. Using logistic regression, we ask questions concerning the determinants of recreational participation, focussing on the degree to which differences are a product of minority status or of more general socioeconomic status. We also compare rates of participation in the two countries to see if there is an underlying difference, which can be explained by socioeconomic and demographic status. We find that sociodemographic characteristics are generally much stronger predictors of participation than characteristics associated with minority status, regardless of country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives:Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that affects nearly over three million Canadians, including immigrants. The timing of the first onset of diabetes has been linked to several other severe diseases. Yet, there is a dearth of empirical studies that examine the timing of the first onset of diabetes among Canadians, in general, and among immigrants and ethnic minority populations within Canada, in particular. Design:Applying event history techniques to the 2013 Canadian Community and Health Survey, we address this research void by examining factors that contribute to the first onset of diabetes among immigrant and visible minority populations in Canada (N = 8905). Given the gendered patterns in the epidemiology of diseases and the differences in risk factors for men and women, gender-specific models were estimated. Results:Results showed that South Asian, Black and Filipino women developed diabetes earlier, compared to women from the UK. Similarly, South Asian, Chinese, Filipino, Black, South East Asian and Arab men developed diabetes earlier than men from the UK. A significant and important finding of this analysis was that the risks of developing diabetes vanished completely for Black and Filipino women, after accounting for lifestyle factors. For South Asian women, however, there was significant attenuation in their risks after accounting for lifestyle factors. The findings were strikingly different for immigrant men. Specifically, their risks of developing diabetes increased after accounting for lifestyle factors. Conclusions:These results suggest the development of gender-specific and lifestyle interventions, targeted at specific immigrant groups with increased risks of developing diabetes earlier in the life course. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The primary purpose of this article is to demonstrate how immigrant/refugee women's access to health services is influenced by both immigration and health policies. The author argues that the wheel of health care must revolve along with the wheel of immigration. The application of health immigration policies that existed preconfederation, as well as health care interventions based on Eurocentric principles, limit minority women's accessibility to health services. An integrated dialogue between all levels of government, health care professionals, policy makers, researchers, and immigrant groups is critical to provide equitable access to health care to foster immigrant settlement in Canada's smaller communities and rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]