New Diversity: Social Change as Immigration

<p dir="ltr">This chapter considers how immigration influences the contemporary evolution of Canadian cities. 97 per cent of immigrants arriving between 2001 and 2006 and 95 per cent of Canada's total foreign-born population live in urban areas. Given these numbers, it is not surprising that immigration is a major source of social transformation in cities across the country. But immigrants do not randomly distribute themselves across Canada's urban system. Complex and dynamic constellations of variables determine how immigrants settle into particular places and what will be the consequences of this settlement for cities and residents, both immigrant and native-born. Immigration is a long-term, complex process. Factors at all geographic scales - global, national, regional, and local - influence the origins, flows, and destinations of immigrants. The socio-spatial patterns that emerge at different points along migrants' journeys often extend across generations. We have organized this chapter along the three main stages of the immigrant's journey: arrival, settlement, and integration. For each stage, we explore the experiences of immigrants and their contributions to both continuity and change in Canadian cities. We conclude with a spatial overview of the Canadian geography of immigration presented as the culmination of these factors and interacting dynamics.</p>