Multicultural Must Read: Tuesday July 10

Every day MIREMS consultants are reading, watching and listening to Canada's multilingual and multicultural media. We bring you the day's must read story.

Millions for Difficult Youth: Subsidies from Trudeau

Published by Russian Express, a weekly newspaper and web news source from Toronto, Ontario.

At the end of June, Trudeau's government announced a $9-million fund that aims to help black youth fully and equally participate in Canadian society.

Canadian Heritage said in a press release "Canada’s diversity is a source of strength and an important factor in our success as a country. However, our success has not been equally shared by all members of our society. Unfortunately, Canada’s Black community faces unique and significant challenges, such as an overrepresentation in the criminal justice system and a higher prevalence of low income."

The commentary in Russian Express noted that the allocation has come as "A response to the wave of murders in Toronto committed mostly by young members of the Black community."

The author says that subsidies from the Trudeau government for the needs of the Black community speak of several things. "First, despite all previous efforts and costs, a certain segment of Black youth remains inadequately integrated into Canadian society. Second, this problem is of a cultural nature: A criminal subculture cannot be integrated into a traditional Canadian culture that is based on other values. Finally, it is worth recalling that the existing problems are largely the result of certain immigration and social policies in Canada.

The press release from Canadian Heritage also quoted Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen saying "Racism and discrimination are real challenges faced by some Canadians every day, including Black Canadian youth. With this new funding, Black Canadians and communities across Canada will receive support to help fund projects that overcome these issues through education and understanding.”

One out of every five Canadians is a part of a visible minority, and Canada's Black population is the third largest visible minority. The funding will be spent over three years, and fund projects that respond to key concerns of Black Canadians to help address issues faced by Black youth that affect their full and equitable participation in our society.