Are some Americans really Canadian bound?
Even when Donald Trump was hailed as the new US president, there were many Americans looking for rentals and properties to buy while others were searching for information on Canadian immigration. Others were looking for job opportunities or simply trying to relocate to a Canadian province.
But it is not so simple to just relocate to Canada. But simpler for well-educated young Americans who are among the most disaffected from a Trump rule.
There is a new express program but applicants must have a minimum of one-year of full-time work experience and a post-secondary certificate, diploma or degree and the ability to speak French or English. But it is still a wonder to many how many Mainland Chinese was able to get in but can’t speak a word of English.
Applicants also need a job offer, proof of enough money to support themselves and dependents upon arrival or be able to find work in Canada. High-tech workers and specialists can qualify to work in Canada under the North American Free Trade Agreement but NAFTA agreement can be changed by Trump.
Many people are coming to Canada for well-paid jobs, stable government, clean environment and are willing to pay a premium price for homes. They help energize the hightech sector which provides many economic benefits to the government. Many Americans must have realized by now that Canada is a welcoming country, a democratic nation of fairness, justice and the rule of law. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a statement recently at Parliament Hill that defines Canada and Canadians – ‘’We will walk forward together, not apart.’’
It is a fact that America is Canada’s biggest trading partner and Canadians don’t want to upset the system. In retrospect, during the American Revolution, over 70,000 Americans colonists did not want to break with Britain. Instead, the Americans later known as United Empire Loyalists chose to move to Canada because they saw the American Revolution not as a story of salvation or unity but as a divisible nation. Is history repeating itself?
Canadian Filipino net a milestone
Serious, educated, and literate members of the British Columbia Filipino community and millennials welcomed the arrival of a Filipino Canadian newspaper online, produced and written by professional journalists and educators.
Canadian Filipino Net is a group of Filipino Canadians passionate about raising the profile of Filipinos in Canada by providing news and views about Canadian communities across the country. The number of Canadians of Filipino ancestry is approaching a million. Through the website, the group wants to share stories and engage in a dialogue among Filipino Canadian Filipinos. Canadians Filipino Net is owned, managed and operated by Maple Bamboo Network Society, a non-profit society.
Prod Laquian is the Founding chairperson and editor. He is a professor emeritus of community and regional planning at the University of British Columbia.
Eleanor Guerrero Campbell is president/CEO and director. She is a city planner, community leader and writer (Stumbling Through Paradise, her first novel). She is a recipient of the Vancouver Civic Merit Award (the only Filipino Canadian to receive this prestigious award).
Eleanor R. Laquian is vice president and director. She has written four best-selling books and served in various capacities at the University of British Columbia’s Institute of Asian Research.
Board members include Lara Honrado and Clayton Campbell as legal adviser.
Net staff includes Emmy Bucat (social media manager), Arlene Wright (web master).
The provincial correspondents are Lucille Nolasco (Manitoba), Emmie Joaquin (Manitoba), Dr. Mile Rayel (Newfoundland and Labrador), Dulce Amba Cuenca and G.K. Limcangco (British Columbia), Joe Zagala, Marissa Roque and Rose Tijam (Ontario) and Maria Ana Olagquera (Quebec). More professional writers and columnists are being recruited to cover the other provinces of Canada.
New York Times hails Vancouver’s global cuisine
Vancouverites are very happy to read the lead story of Sunday New York Times’ Travel Section – Vancouver’s Many Flavors Find a Home on the Menu.
The newspaper reported on a street in downtown (Denman) where you will find a global buffet: Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, Middle Eastern, Spanish, African, Italian, Mexican, Pacific Northwest. (Sadly, no sign of a Filipino restaurant despite the fact that the Philippine community is the 2nd fastest growing ethnic group in the province.)
The street is one of the many enclaves that reflect the cultural breath of this once sleepy down that is now alive with vast culinary landscape.
Vancouver is among the most ethnically diverse cities in Canada, if not North America. The talented chefs draw a multicultural palette of cuisines.