Why do immigrants come to Canada? In the last few months I've had the opportunity to ask that very question. Three different immigrants, from three different countries, asked the same question at three different times, and all three answered the same way.
Safety. Canada is safe. It's a safe place to raise your children.
Now, I understand that this is a very small sample, but I think it shows why people will leave their homes, and come here. Safety.
Rule of law. These immigrants understood that Canada strongly supports the rule of law. They respect that, they want it, they left behind mayham, now they want a strong society that supports fair but strong rules.
You come here, you don't break our laws. Simple and easy for 2 of the immigrants I talked to, because they both came from former Communist countries. They loved the fact that they could vote, without being told how to vote, or who to vote for. They loved being able to tell me they were going to vote Liberal, and I just laughed. They questioned me about politics, and they couldn't believe that they could voice their opinion without someone telling them they were wrong.
Seeing the joy, watching them debate, they were like kids who had built their first fort, or had seen their first snowfall. They understand what having a vote means, more than any Canadian born kid can ever imagine.
Sometimes I think our immigrants understand what it means to be Canadian, better than we Canadians. Safety, that's all they want. A safe place to raise their families. The majority don't want to change our laws, they want the security of knowing our laws will protect them. They want to know that they will not be thrown in jail for no reason. They want peace.
They fight hard to get here, they want to be here, they want their children to have a better life, just like Canadians want for our kids. They sacrifice everything they have to get here, no wonder the majority of immigrants appreciate Canada, more than our children do. We are spoiled, it only takes a few minutes of talking to someone from another country, to understand just how spoiled we are.
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