Welcome to POL 220 H1 S: Immigration, Multiculturalism, and Citizenship in Canada!

This course asks three questions that are central to just about any political community, especially nation states: Who belongs? On what terms? And to what end? These questions have been an enduring - and enduringly challenging - part of Canadian politics since well before Confederation established what we now call Canada. They are central to what is often called the “national” question – that is Canada’s relationship to Quebec and to French Canada. They go the heart of Canada’s relationship with Indigenous peoples. And these questions of belonging animate the themes of this course – immigration, multiculturalism, and citizenship.

The course is divided into two overlapping parts, divided by Reading Week. The first part centres on the politics of immigration (that is, who is invited to join the Canadian club), the second on multiculturalism and citizenship (that is, the club’s terms of membership for those who are allowed to join). As this course is an introduction to these subjects, we will sample a variety of ways in which political scientists (and other scholars) have tried to make sense of, explain, and evaluate Canada’s record on immigration and multiculturalism – its citizenship regime. And through a combination of written assignments and verbal participation, we will explore some of the ways in which the personal and the political, experience and analysis, can be helpfully combined.

This course is new and counts both as a credit in Canadian politics and as a Diversity course. While a previous course in Canadian politics (e.g. POL 214 or POL 224) is not required, it is highly recommended.

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Start here: Course Orientation

Course Syllabus

Office Hours

Link for POL220 LECTURE

Course Readings

Support Resources