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January/February 2001 issue	In this issue Table of Contents Editor’s Notebook Inside Story Feature: Immigration À la carte Curious by nature Reverberations

WHEN I WAS A BOY, one of my aunts stopped by our house every so often with a jar of fresh cream and two dozen eggs. She and her family farmed on the outskirts of my hometown, St. Paul, Alta. Our community was a cultural blend and, at times, a volatile mix of French, English, Ukrainian, Irish, German, Métis and many others. To the west and to the east were Cree reserves. I can’t say we lived together harmoniously — our lives, it seemed, were eternally lit by bipolar bickering: French versus English, Protestants versus Catholics, whites versus Cree, farmers versus townies — but in the end, we all swam in the same lakes, braved the same blizzards. Divided by culture, we were united by season.

Like most children, I grew up thinking that my life was the norm, that everybody had aunts who milked the cows every morning. And that all across Canada, kids like me were stuck in stuffy classrooms pinching and ribbing and spitballing neighbours who spoke Cree or French or Irish-infiected English at home.

Turns out, of course, that for a majority of Canadians, growing up within a bike ride of a working farm is, and has been for decades, exceptional. We’ve been taking leave of our rural roots since the disaster of the Dirty Thirties; as early as 1931, half of the Canadian population lived in cities. As for what I thought were rich cultural blends in my hometown, if you want diversity, take Toronto, with people from 169 nations, speaking more than 100 languages. Cree, French, English, Ukrainian — they are part of what is now, for millions of new Canadians, the old Canada. Within the past 34 years, we’ve opened our gates to immigrants of every colour, faith and language and "have changed the country forever," as historian, filmmaker and columnist Gwynne Dyer points out in our cover story.

NEWCOMERS HAVE LITTLE TIME for our old quarrels about language and land. The greatest gap opening within Canada is not the French/English divide or the North/South split or the East/West antagonisms, but the yawning gulf of misunderstanding between those born here and those who have moved here. In a country that has so dramatically transformed itself in so short a time from a majority European population to a rich blend of Asians, Africans, Europeans and a rapidly growing First Nations population, we’ve got a lot of learning to do about each other.

The package of stories in this issue is our contribution to bridging that gap. Photographer David Trattles captures Toronto’s stunning diversity. Dyer chronicles how and when Canada began its latest transformation and invites us to consider just how fundamental the changes have been. Broadcaster and writer Allen Abel ventures to Inuvik in the Northwest Territories for the story of adventurous immigrants who are learning to adapt to a country that lies deep within the embrace of winter.

Associate editor Mary Vincent, photo editor Margaret Williamson and photo researcher Susan Fisher offer historical context, showing in words and pictures the dramatic changes to home, work and leisure from 1900 to 1950 to today. Map-maker Steve Fick illuminates the pattern of settlement of Toronto’s largest immigrant groups. And, finally, writer and photographer Margo Pfeiff takes us into the back lots of Montréal to show us a bountiful point of contact between peoples of all languages, all cultures: fresh vegetables. Her story introduces us to old and new Canadians who find solace and pleasure working in the city’s expanding network of urban gardens. Vine-ripened tomatoes may be no substitute for fresh cream but they are a connection to the rural roots that occupy a place in the hearts of every Chinese or Chilean or Congolese or Cree Canadian.

AWESOME SUBMISSIONS for our 16th annual photo contest have been fiooding into our office from across the country for months now. "We saw an impressive range of formats and the quality of the photos was terrific," says art director Stephen Hanks, who was one of the judges. "The children’s entries were a particular delight."

— Rick Boychuk

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