Canadian?...Or a hyphen-Canadian?

Last night, at a community event, I was introduced to the judge who had presided over the Citizenship ceremony where I became Canadian. Though several years have passed, I remember well the sensitivity the judge had brought to the occassion; she read the name of every country represented in the room and spoke warmly about the contribution of Immigrants to Canada. Meeting her gave me the opportunity--a few years late I admit--to thank her. How timely to come back from the event and find a heated email exchange between some friends on the nature of Canadian identity. Here's the exchange in its entirety:

--The only Canadians are the natives. The rest of us, Afro & Asian notwithstanding, are more properly Euro-Canadians. If Donovan Bailey's kids are Afro-Canadian, then my kids are Euro-Canadians. "Canadian" is code for white. The code sucks. (Note: Donovan Bailey, a gold medalist in the 100 meter dash in Atlanta, is from Jamaica and would more accurately be called a Caribbean or Jamaican-Canadian)
--No no no, re: aboriginal. We need to be inclusive. After a few years, if someone wants to be Canadian, I wouldn't quibble. My mother's mother's mother came to Newfoundland. I'm going with being Canadian.
--But we are not inclusive. It is a myth and a lie. Your black neighbours in Nova Scotia self-identify as Afro-Canadian. You are a Euro-Canadian, albeit in denial. Get back in touch with your Euro roots.
--No no no - we're not all these hyphenated things. Most afro-Canadians have been in Nova Scotia longer than my mother's mother's mother was in Newfoundland. Accept your Canadianess.
--What is the shame in your European roots? What part of your family tree do you want to saw down and burn so the rest of us cannot see its influence on you? Hyphens are nice. Embrace the lowly hyphen. You can do it.

I'm tempted to give them squirt guns and let them have at it. Then again, since they're Canadian (if not Euro-Canadian) they should probably be given hockey gloves so they can "drop the gloves," Canadian code for a good ole fist fight. Clearly something seems to be at stake for both of them.

To one, the unhyphenated word "Canadian" represents a kind of structural racism--it is only used on people who are white European, otherwise everyone else needs to have their hyphen. Therefore, lets get rid of the stand-alone term "Canadian," with its implied racism, and have white Canadians be forced to claim their hyphen, just like everyone else does. Then we would be closer to having a just society.

To the other, "Canadian" is quickly available to whomever wants to claim it. You've been here for two generations from the former Czechoslovakia--sure you can be just "Canadian" if you choose; here for a few years from Somalia? Yup, you can be just "Canadian" too!

Notice how they are both imbued with the very Canadian trait of wanting to insure fairness--one wants fairness through putting the hyphen on everyone, and the other through removing it. But in all cases, let's make sure its the same for everyone. Ah yes, it's no wonder I love Canadians, plain or hyphenated.

Last thought: In Canada--with the highest per capita immigration rate in the world--where multiple identities are common, a hyphen is simply an expression of that multiplicity. Whenever the hyphen melts away from one's identity, then it melts away. For those for whom the multiplicity matters, then the hyphen stays. That seems fair. Are we not each entitled to our own relationship to our histories? One of our emailers is Canadian it would seem, whereas the other is Euro-Canadian. I'm a border mongrel. Am I Canadian-American or American-Canadian? Yes.