One of the things that I do when I meet new patients is to ask them their ethnicity. Not only is that important in helping delineate certain diseases that they may be more susceptible to, but also, I'm just interested in knowing where people are from, or how they identify themselves. And it's quite wonderful: I have people in my practice spanning the globe, from Jamaica, Trinidad, Mexico, El Salvador, Ghana, Nigeria, Iran, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, China, The Phillipines, France, Romania... it's quite something. There are several things that I find very interesting (or disturbing, depending on how I look at it on any given day). One is, Newfoundlanders see themselves as a distinct ethnic group, which always makes me smile. Secondly, I find that white people, unless they are recent immigrants themselves, don't understand the concept of ethnicity. Most of them look at me blankly, always asking me to clarify what I just said. When they understand, they tell me that they are 'Canadian'. When I push further, ie. Do you have Scottish/English/Irish/German blood in you? most have no idea, and insist that they are 'Canadian', and nothing more.
This makes me ponder: Canadian in what way? Are us hypenated Canadians less Canadian because of that? Do 'Canadians' consider us less Canadian than they are, then, by extension? Do the 'ethnics' hold on too tightly to their culture? Do the white people not hold tightly enough?
The lines around nationalistic pride do need to be watched carefully, that being said. Nationalism, at its extreme, whether your adopted or inherited nation, certainly is very dangerous. To find full identity in where the 'motherland' is is also a dangerous thing. It certainly contributes to a feeling of 'us' vs. 'them'.
Is there perhaps a middle ground? To segregate, to differentiate, to exclude or include based on some conception of where 'you' are from, being different from my roots, is problematic. However, to blankly not recognize them either, to gloss over and deny the variant nuances, denies the richness of who we, as people, are...
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All the "white" people that I know would classify themselves as being Canadian yes, but decended from somewhere else. England, Germany, Italy, etc. etc. I don't know any that would not have an answer when someone asked them what their background was. And not just new Canadians, but multiple generation Canadians too.
Why is German, or Italian or Chinese an answer enough but not Canadian. Are Germans only German back through their family tree to the beginning of time? Do new families not set up in China or Italy to begin a new life, coming from somewhere else? Does this only happen in Canada, and thus Canadian should be questioned, but no other nationality. I don't know of any other world citizens other than North Americans who would be criticized for considering themselves to be North American and not a hyphen. I actually don't know if any other countries pay much attention to hyphens at all besides North America.
You make these questions: Are us hypenated Canadians less Canadian because of that? Do 'Canadians' consider us less Canadian than they are, then, by extension?
I think the real question is, do hyphenated Canadians consider being Canadian alone is somehow wrong?
I believe I also said that the reason why I was even asking the question in the first place was b/c it can become important to know for certain disease manifestations, not for any larger socio-cultural question. Can one become that estranged from their very own heritage that they have no idea who they are, or where they've come from? People who do not know their history are doomed to repeat it...
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