Visible minority in the context of "Human rights in Canada"

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⭐ Core Definition: Visible minority

In Canada, a visible minority (French: minorité visible) is a demographic category of people, defined by the Government of Canada as "persons, other than aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour". The term is used primarily as a demographic category by Statistics Canada, in connection with Canada's employment equity, human rights, and other laws and policies. The term as defined, and the qualifier "visible", were chosen by the Canadian authorities as a way to classify and separate out newer immigrant minorities from both aboriginal Canadian minorities, and from other "older" minorities—which were distinguishable by language spoken (French vs. English) and religious identification (Catholics vs. Protestants): so-called "invisible" traits.

The term "visible minority" is sometimes used as a euphemism for "non-white". This is incorrect, in that the government definition creates a difference: Aboriginal people are excluded from the category "visible minorities", but may not be white either. In some cases, members of "visible minorities" may be visually indistinguishable from the majority population and/or may form a majority-minority population locally (as is the case in Vancouver and Toronto).

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Visible minority in the context of Vancouver

Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The Metro Vancouver area had a population of 2.6 million in 2021, making it the third-largest metropolitan area in Canada. Greater Vancouver, along with the Fraser Valley, comprises the Lower Mainland with a regional population of over 3 million. Vancouver has the highest population density in Canada, with over 5,700 inhabitants per square kilometre (15,000/sq mi), and the fourth highest in North America (after New York City, San Francisco, and Mexico City).

Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada: 49.3 percent of its residents are not native English speakers, 47.8 percent are native speakers of neither English nor French, and 54.5 percent of residents belong to visible minority groups. It has been consistently ranked one of the most liveable cities in Canada and in the world. In terms of housing affordability, Vancouver is also one of the most expensive cities in Canada and in the world. Vancouverism is the city's urban planning design philosophy.

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Visible minority in the context of Ethnic origins of people in Canada

According to the 2021 Canadian census, over 450 "ethnic or cultural origins" were self-reported by Canadians. The country's ten largest self-reported specific ethnic or cultural origins in 2021 were Canadian (accounting for 15.6 percent of the population), followed by English (14.7 percent), Irish (12.1 percent), Scottish (12.1 percent), French (11.0 percent), German (8.1 percent), Chinese (4.7 percent), Italian (4.3 percent), Indian (3.7 percent), and Ukrainian (3.5 percent).

Of the 36.3 million people enumerated in 2021 approximately 25.4 million reported being White, representing 69.8 percent of the population. The indigenous population representing 5 percent or 1.8 million individuals, grew by 9.4 percent compared to the non-Indigenous population, which grew by 5.3 percent from 2016 to 2021. One out of every four Canadians or 26.5 percent of the population belonged to a non-White and non-Indigenous visible minority, the largest of which in 2021 were South Asian (2.6 million people; 7.1 percent), Chinese (1.7 million; 4.7 percent), and Black (1.5 million; 4.3 percent), Filipinos (960,000 2.6 percent), Arabs (690,000; 1.9 percent), Latin Americans (580,000; 1.6 percent), Southeast Asians (390,000; 1.1 percent), West Asians (360,000; 1.0 percent), Koreans (220,000; 0.6 percent), and Japanese (99,000; 0.3 percent).

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Visible minority in the context of First Nations in Canada

First Nations (French: Premières Nations) is a term used to identify Indigenous peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. Traditionally, First Nations in Canada were peoples who lived south of the tree line, and mainly south of the Arctic Circle. There are 634 recognized First Nations governments or bands across Canada. Roughly half are located in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia.

Under federal employment equity law, First Nations are a "designated group", along with women, visible minorities, and people with physical or mental disabilities. First Nations are not included in the Statistics Canada visible minority category, as there is a separate category for First Nations, Metis and Inuit.

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Visible minority in the context of Southeast Asian Canadians

Southeast Asian Canadians are Canadians who were either born in or can trace their ancestry to Southeast Asia. The term Southeast Asian Canadian is a subgroup of Asian Canadians. According to Statistics Canada, Southeast Asian Canadians are considered visible minorities and can be further divided by ethnicity and/or nationality, such as Cambodian Canadian, Filipino Canadian, Indonesian Canadian, Laotian Canadian, Malaysian Canadian, Singaporean Canadian, Thai Canadian, or Vietnamese Canadian, as seen on demi-decadal census data.

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