Will election of visible minority mayors in Calgary, Edmonton change perception of Alberta?
Posted Oct 19, 2021 3:38 pm.
For the first time in Alberta’s history, the province’s two biggest cities have elected ethnically diverse mayors.
Edmontonians elected former federal cabinet minister Amarjeet Sohi, a Sikh immigrant from India. Calgarians elected Jyoti Gondek, a former city councillor with family of Indian origin.
Political observers say this is a sign Canada needs to stop thinking of Alberta as a conservative-dominated cowboy country.
“The image out there that Alberta’s this backwater really belies what’s happening effectively in these cities,” said Chaldeans Mensah, a political scientist at Edmonton’s MacEwan University
“I’ve lived here over 30 years, and I can tell you this is a very, very hospitable place for immigrants. The political system is changing to reflect that.”
Did Monday's election of ethnically diverse mayor-elects in Edmonton and Calgary change your perception of Alberta?
— CityNews Edmonton (@CityNewsYEG) October 19, 2021
Mensah says even decades ago, the idea of Alberta being a homogenous province was outdated. He says while it’s true that rural areas aren’t attracting immigrants in the same numbers, migration is happening.
“In the smaller centres, we’re beginning to see more people moving in from outside,” he said. “So I wouldn’t be shocked if we have a changed outcome in the future in terms of the diversity of political actors, even in these rural areas.”
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Boulou Ebanda de B’béri, a professor at the University of Ottawa, says Gondek’s and Sohi’s victories are also wins for democracy and integration. Not only did both choose to serve as politicians, both appealed to white voters as well.
“It does mean something’s changing in the political landscape of the country,” said de B’béri. “Not only Alberta, right? It does mean that those places, states, provinces, municipalities that were considered only white are also changing in terms of demography.
“We are talking about this today because we have stereotypes, stereotypically defined Alberta as a conservative area where immigrants have no space. But this is actually proved to be wrong.”
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But De B’béri warns against assuming that more diversity in ethnic origin means more progressive politics. He believes Canada’s highly selective immigration process often brings in deeply religious, business-minded immigrants who have often favoured conservative parties.
—With files from Xiaoli Li
