After the Second World War, there was a huge influx of immigrants from the Netherlands to Canada. Faced with the problem of overpopulation and rebuilding a war-ravaged country and economy, the Netherlands was eager to encourage emigration. When Canada was grudgingly looking to reopen immigration in the late 1940s after the hiatus of the Great Depression and the war, the immigration policy remained highly selective until the late 1960s. But along with the British and Americans, Northern Europeans like the Dutch were favoured by Canada and actively courted. When economic factors slowed Dutch emigration, the Canadian federal government stepped in to assist financially to maintain the flow of immigrants.

Organizer Craig Fortier marches alongside other supporters on Yonge Street. On Tuesday, around 50 people convened at Yonge-Dundas Square and prepared to march in protest of the arrest and detainment of queer artist Alvaro Orozco. The protest, to end at the office of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada at 74 Victoria Street, was [...]

In the run-up to the federal election on May 2, we’ll be comparing the major parties’ platforms on issues that matter to urban voters. Each party’s key messages, according their respective colours. Image by Michael Chrisman/Torontoist. Tired as you may be of hearing it, Canada is a country of immigrants, many of whom vote. For [...]

Students taking part in Teach 2 Learn prepare for a theatrical performance on April 9. Many teenagers would agree that high school is a challenge. The physical and emotional changes of adolescence, social pressures from family and peers, the desire for independence, and worries about the future can combine to make school a tough experience. [...]

In a passionate debate that saw many councillors reflect on their own personal and family histories, City Council today considered whether to condemn—via a letter that would be sent to Prime Minister Harper and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney—federal government cuts to immigration services agencies, some of which have been in operation for ten or twenty years. This morning's debate also raised questions about the City's relationship with the federal government in general, with some councillors telling their colleagues not to be afraid to stand up for the city, and others cautioning that we need to reflect carefully before calling the feds' decisions into question. Studies were requested by some, and delays by others, so the cuts and their impacts could be examined further.

Every Saturday at noon, Historicist looks back at the events, places, and characters—good and bad—that have shaped Toronto into the city we know today. British Immigrants Standing on the Bridge of Sighs to Simcoe Street from Union Station, 1911, by William James. City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 1244, Item 102. Writing in the 1970s, Pierre [...]

Origins is Torontoist’s new video feature, which aims to tell the stories of Torontonians with roots both here and elsewhere. Graeme Lottering was born in South Africa in 1980, at the height of apartheid. His family moved to Namibia when he was six years old to live with an Ndebele tribe at the edge of [...]

Rocco Rossi and Sarah Thomson supporters protesting Rob Ford’s recent comments about immigration last week. Photo by Harry Choi/Torontoist. It’s no surprise that mayoral candidate Rob Ford’s opponents have seized on his recent comments about immigration as proof he is unfit to become the next mayor of our very diverse city. Nor is it surprising, [...]

Photos by Harry Choi/Torontoist. WHERE: Nathan Phillips Square. WHEN: Wednesday, 2:14 p.m. (top) and 2:20 p.m. (bottom). WHAT: Last night, Rob Ford said some controversial things about immigrants, and how much room we may or may not have for them in Toronto. Today, Rocco Rossi and Sarah Thomson spoke out against those comments. After greeting [...]

Natasha Fatah. Photos by Christopher Dale/Torontoist. CBC Radio’s new summer series Promised Land profiles individuals who were forced to flee their home countries and who chose to come to Canada—and, in many cases, Toronto. Torontoist sat down with host and producer Natasha Fatah, whose own family escaped from Pakistan and moved to Toronto in 2002. [...]

Every Saturday at noon, Historicist looks back at the events, places, and characters—good and bad—that have shaped Toronto into the city we know today. Photo by Kevin Plummer/Torontoist. Spadina doesn’t change, but is always changing. If you compare the present-day streetscape with the archival record—or the images in Rosemary Donegan’s Spadina Avenue (Douglas & McIntyre, [...]