Chilean Canadians

Chilean Canadians are Canadian citizens of Chilean descent or a Chile-born person who resides in Canada. According to the 2011 Census there were 38,140 Canadians who claimed full or partial Chilean ancestry.[3] The first major wave of Chilean arrival in Canada began in the second half of the twentieth century. This was also the first great wave of Latin American immigrants in Canada and the third Latin American wave in that country (though the previous two were smaller).

Chilean Canadians

Total population
45,190' (by ancestry, 2016 Census)[1] 26,705 (by birth, 2016 Census)[2]
Regions with significant populations
Montréal, Toronto, Alberta (Edmonton)
Languages
Chilean Spanish, Canadian English, Canadian French
Religion
Roman Catholic
Related ethnic groups
Chilean Americans

History

After the coup d'état carried out by Army General Augusto Pinochet on September 11, 1973 in Chile, which overthrew the elected government of Salvador Allende and established a military dictatorship, a significant number of Chileans emigrated to Canada in early 1974. This migration of refugees to Canada lasted until the nineties, when Pinochet's rule over Chile ended.

Although the Canadian government rejected these political refugees, the Canadian population in general had a greater acceptance of them. Groups such as the Inter-Church Committee (which later became the Inter Church Committee on Human Rights in Latin America and is now integrated in KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives) were formed to advocate for more open doors to these refugees. Church groups like the Canadian Council of Churches, and spontaneously formed citizens' organizations, helped refugees in income and settlement of the country. Not all the population supported the newcomers, however. Small demonstrations were developed rejecting Chilean immigrants, labeling them Marxists, and supporting the coup in Chile that broke with the Socialist government, replacing it with a neoliberal dictatorship.[4]

Demographics

Population by ancestry by Canadian province or territory (2016)

Province	Population	Source
Ontario	14,625	[5]
Quebec	14,060	[6]
Alberta	8,105	[7]
British Columbia	5,700	[8]
Manitoba	1,520	[9]
Saskatchewan	865	[10]
Nova Scotia	125	[11]
New Brunswick	95	[12]
Newfoundland and Labrador	30	[13]
Prince Edward Island	25	[14]
Yukon	30	[15]
Northwest Territories	15	[16]
Nunavut	0	[17]
Canada	45,190	[1]

Legacy

The most important consequence of the arrival of Chilean refugees to the country was the founding of organizations whose aim is to help to the country's growing Latin American community. According to studies, the Chileans who arrived in Canada after the coup in Chile brought with them political activism, which caused the formation of Chilean partnerships and associations which eventually became organizations for the Latino community in Canada. Examples of this include the Arauco cooperative housing in Toronto and various associations and publications in Alberta, as well as the television news program Nosotros (We) and the radio program Hispanoamérica in Edmonton. In other cases, Chileans formed and worked on pan-Latin American organizations that have helped political and economic refugees Hispanics adjust to life in Canada, and may be considered essential in the formation of these associations.[4]

Notable Chilean-Canadians

Joshua Ho-Sang

• Paulina Ayala, politician
• Diego Fuentes, actor
• Joshua Ho-Sang (born 1996), ice hockey player
• Oscar Lopez, guitarist
• Emmanuelle Lussier-Martinez, actress
• America Olivo, actress, singer, and model
• Carmen Rodríguez, author, poet, educator, political social activist, and founding member of Aquelarre Magazine
• Carmen Aguirre, author, actor and playwright. Author of "Something Fierce" www.carmenaguirre.ca
• Osvaldo Nunez, politician, was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1993 to 1997
• Luis Fornazzari Doctor, Neurology, MD FRCPC at University of Toronto
• Doris Grinspun Nurse, Honorary Doctorate in Law, Top Ten Most Influential Hispanic Canadians, Order of Ontario and the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.
• Gabriela Etcheverry writer, translator and literary critic.
• Camila Reimers Canadian Chilean Author of Visionary Fiction.

Tulio Gonzalez - Political Prisoner / Engineer Rod Loyola, politician.

See also

• Canada–Chile relations
• Latin American Canadians

References

1. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Canada, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. 2019-02-20. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
2. "Immigrant population by place of birth, period of immigration, 2016 counts, both sexes, age (total), Canada, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. 2019-02-20. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
3. Statistics Canada. "2011 National Household Survey: Data tables". Retrieved 8 March 2014.
4. Diálogos: Chilean Refugees in Canada and their Long-Term Impact. Posted on 2007/07/15 by Francis Peddi. Retrieved in January 31, 2012, to 23:20 pm.
5. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Ontario, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
6. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Quebec, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
7. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Alberta, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
8. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), British Columbia, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
9. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Manitoba, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
10. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Saskatchewan, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
11. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Nova Scotia, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
12. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), New Brunswick, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
13. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Newfoundland and Labrador, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
14. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Prince Edward Island, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
15. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Yukon, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
16. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Northwest Territories, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
17. "Ethnic Origin, both sexes, age (total), Nunavut, 2016 Census – 25% Sample data". Canada 2016 Census. Statistics Canada. Retrieved 30 January 2020.

External links

• http://www.chileansincalgary.com/ Chilean Canadian Community Association