An ode to Canadian suburbanism
Many Canadian municipal politicians, urban academics and columnists who visit Europe seem to fall in love with the charming facades, yet they often overlook the underlying realities.
European cities may boast aesthetic allure, but beneath this veneer, some are rife with racism and other problems of inequality. European suburbs, where many immigrants reside, can be areas of severe deprivation. Paris, for example, frequently experienced riots in its impoverished, immigrant-populated suburbs. Similarly, London’s East End hardly warrants pride, as evidenced by my limited time spent in Dagenham to understand the full spectrum of British urban life. For a broader perspective, one might consider visiting the suburbs of other British cities.
Many beautiful parts of European cities were constructed by emperors with wealth amassed through centuries of exploitation, extracted from their citizens and subjugated peoples in Asia and Africa. For some, Europe’s grand imperial architecture serves as a stark reminder of a profoundly exploitative colonial history.
Canadian cities might lack superficial beauty derived from monumental architecture, but they embody a deeper allure. Our suburbs are vibrant economic and social hubs where immigrants and others are actively forging new narratives of community life. Question: When was the last communal riot in Vaughan or Mississauga?
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Canadian suburbs are relatively young, especially when compared to their European counterparts. Take Toronto, for example, where the majority of suburbs have been developed and populated since the 1960s (refer to the map above). Despite their youth, these suburban municipalities have achieved population densities comparable to those in some regions of the core municipalities. The map below illustrates how areas of Mississauga and Brampton exhibit higher densities than many neighbourhoods located in the western part of Toronto's core. This phenomenon is a clear manifestation of urbanism in progress.
For those planning to visit European cities this summer, I wish you safe travels. However, when you return, please resist the urge to merely showcase selfies against iconic European backdrops while extolling the virtues of their urban spaces. Your insights should transcend simplistic views that fail to capture the intricacies of urban living. A narrow focus on superficial charm contributes little to understanding economies that are both robust and socially inclusive.
While in Europe, seize the opportunity to share stories of Canadian successes. Speak about Toronto's suburbs like Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Richmond Hill, or Surrey (BC), McKenzie Lake (Calgary), Laurel and Windsor Park (Edmonton) and West Island (Montreal). Highlight how our suburbs are not only expanding but also thriving economically and socially. Europeans need to recognize what they might be overlooking in their assessments of urban development.
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8 个月“An ode to Canadian suburbanism” sounds like an oxymoron to me. “An ode to Canadian multiculturalism” would be closer to the idea you are trying to convey, and I’d partially agree. I doubt it has anything to do with gigantic Walmart stores surrounded by seas of parking and only accessible via typically North American “stroads”, though!
Historian & author
9 个月Meanwhile, our cities often seem to choose destruction of buildings followed by new construction, rather than taking the trouble to restore and save potentially important historic buildings. We have to go overseas to see such fascinating and educational structures. Tremendous irony here.
Semi Retired at None
9 个月Regardless of skin color, racist sentiments and inclinations are typically environmentally acquired during childhood, sometimes even passed down generationally like a communicable sickness. It may be further cemented by a misguided yet strong sense of entitlement, perhaps also environmentally acquired. Rearing one’s very impressionable young children in such an environment of baseless contempt and overt bigotry amounts to a formidable form of child abuse. It fails to prepare children for the practical reality of an increasingly diverse and populous society and workplace. It also makes it so much less likely those children will be emotionally content or (preferably) harmonious with their multicultural and multi-ethnic/-racial surroundings. Children reared into their adolescence and, eventually, young adulthood this way can often be angry yet not fully realize at precisely what. Then they may feel left with little choice but to move to another part of the land, where their own ethnicity/race predominates, preferably overwhelmingly so. Parents should really do their kids a big favor by NOT passing down onto them such destructive sentiments and perceptions, as such rearing can make life so much harder for one’s own children.
From my economic research desk: Great post. A lot here to celebrate. My parents remembered the Christie Pit Riots of 1933 and bubbling communal resentments in Toronto's Beaches neighborhood. We never went to the Beaches when I was a child because (decades before) my Mother saw a sign there that read "No Jews, Catholics, or Dogs" allowed. It is important to remember that those communal tensions were largely stirred by the Orange Order opposition to both Jews and Catholics, blocking access to City employment. Those tensions manifested itself in rural Ontario too. Catholic Church burnings, yes burnings, were still occurring in the 1950s. Tom Kent, Liberal Campaign policy writer, convenor of the influential Liberal party Kingston Conference of 1960, and Senior Mandarin in the Pearson Government, and then Pierre Trudeau's, was a driving force in Canada's welcoming immigration policy that followed. Was it a success? The issues today are mostly about capacity and volumes, not race. Many recent immigrants from all races are part of the call for slower growth. As Murtaza asks, "When was the last communal riot in Vaughan or Mississauga?" (or Surrey, or?...) https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/christie-pits-riot
Principal Planner, Communications Manager & Economic Development Coordinator at the City of Cheney. Adjunct Geography, GIS & Urban Planning Instructor
9 个月Nice work!!