Before Official Multiculturalism: Women's Pluralism in Toronto, 1950s-1970s

Before Official Multiculturalism explores women's roles as advocates and activists for a liberal pluralist vision of multiculturalism in Toronto before 1971, examining their community-based activism through the International Institute of Metropolitan Toronto.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 448 pages
Publication date: 14 November 2022
Publisher: University of Toronto Press

For nearly two decades before Canada formally embraced multiculturalism in 1971, a vast network of women and their supporters in Toronto actively promoted pluralism as a city- and nation-building project. Before Official Multiculturalism assesses women as liberal pluralist advocates and activists, critically examining the pivotal roles they played as community organizers, frontline social workers, and promoters of ethnic festivals. The book explores women's community-based activism in support of a liberal pluralist vision of multiculturalism through an analysis of the International Institute of Metropolitan Toronto, a postwar agency that sought to integrate newcomers into the mainstream and promote cultural diversity. Drawing on the rich records of the Institute, as well as the massive International Institutes collection in Minnesota, the book situates Toronto within its Canadian and North American contexts and addresses the flawed mandate to integrate immigrants and refugees into an increasingly diverse city. Before Official Multiculturalism engages with national and international debates to provide a critical analysis of women's pluralism in Canada.

Before Official Multiculturalism assesses women as liberal pluralist advocates and activists, critically examining the pivotal roles they played as community organizers, frontline social workers, and promoters of ethnic festivals. The book explores women's community-based activism in support of a liberal pluralist vision of multiculturalism through an analysis of the International Institute of Metropolitan Toronto, a postwar agency that sought to integrate newcomers into the mainstream and promote cultural diversity. Drawing on the rich records of the Institute, as well as the massive International Institutes collection in Minnesota, the book situates Toronto within its Canadian and North American contexts and addresses the flawed mandate to integrate immigrants and refugees into an increasingly diverse city. Before Official Multiculturalism engages with national and international debates to provide a critical analysis of women's pluralism in Canada.

Weight: 664g
Dimension: 151 x 228 x 32 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781487545642