Toxicity Scores & Embeddings

I’m a proud Indian who is now a Canadian citizen, and I’ve made a conscious effort to assimilate into Canadian culture and values. What bothers me is how this conversation has been reduced to blaming one group. The reality is that the Canadian government failed first by not properly managing immigration volumes, not enforcing document verification, and not honestly assessing whether the country could support such rapid population growth. That policy failure created pressure on housing, jobs, and social systems long before resentment followed. We also need honesty within the Indian community. Some Indians struggle to adapt being overly loud, culturally rigid, and sometimes lacking empathy for Canadian norms and shared public spaces. I studied Canadian and Indigenous history in school, and respecting that history matters. Assimilation doesn’t mean abandoning your culture, but it does mean understanding and respecting the society you chose to join. Cultural education should be expected, not optional. That said, one Indian doing something wrong does not make all Indians bad. Most Indian students and workers I know are hardworking, punctual, and serious about contributing. I’ve personally worked minimum-wage jobs for years, and what I noticed was not jobs being “taken,” but fewer Canadian youth willing to stay in or commit to these roles long-term. Indians didn’t replace Canadians, they filled vacancies that already existed. I also briefly volunteered helping the homeless, and what I saw was honestly shocking. It’s not that the government isn’t trying to help there are rehabilitation programs and support systems in place. The difficult truth is that a significant portion of the homeless population struggles with substance abuse and refuses treatment because it requires giving up drugs. Over time, homelessness itself starts to function like a culture, where benefits and assistance unintentionally enable continued substance use rather than recovery. This is an uncomfortable reality people don’t like to talk about. None of this is simple. Immigration didn’t break Canada, and neither did one community. Poor policy, weak enforcement, lack of accountability, and refusal from governments and individuals to adapt responsibly is what brought us here. Blame is easy. Honest solutions are not.

Accountability should fall on the Government of Canada. They stopped screening properly. There used to be a point system that determined who could immigrate, and it actually worked. I’m of Pakistani descent, born and raised here, and when I’m in Brampton and walk into a Circle K, people start speaking to me in Hindi or Punjabi right away — it’s a trip. At the same time, I’m not saying everyone coming is bad. A lot of international students and new immigrants are hardworking people who want to build a better life. But plenty are also gaming the system. The real issue is that Canada messed up by letting in too many at once, with no structure to help them assimilate. When there’s no integration, no surprise people just act like they’re back home.

My Granparents, parents, settled the homestead in 1896 near Rossland BC. How it used to work, how things are supposed to work, is the Government serves the needs and demands of the people. The people don't serve the Government nor any Corporation or Public/Private Partnership. This means that the Government doesn't prevent people from doing what they do and they don't use force to extort the fruit of everyone's labor to the point of enslavement. In 1896 and throughout my Grandfather's life from 1902 to 1976, one would do for themselves if they weren't working for someone else. In other words, you found something needed be done, something the community around you required or was lacking, you opened shop and got after it. You can't work today because you require licensing for everything, you require permission for everything, everything is regulated. People have it in their minds that it's so much better today then it was then, that it's "safer". But it's not, that's a lie. My family, although never wealthy, ate good food, always had a roof over their heads, plenty of family around and always had something to do or at least could always find something to work at. Most importantly, they always had hope because they had freedom. No one has any hope anymore and the people coming here aren't just bringing their culture to overtake our culture, they are coming with anger. With envy, resentment and malice. My family didn't come here with those things, they came to Canada with hope and determination to integrate and prosper with freedom. The other side of my family fled Bolshevism when they left Russia and came here and that side had the exact same hope in freedom to work hard and prosper. Now all generational wealth, freedom, prosperity and hope is all but completely stolen. We don't need more regulations. We don't need more benefits. We don't need more Government. We need less, we need it all to go away because I know for a fact, you give people the freedom to go about their lives, the society or community they form, always tends towards peaceful, prosperous organization. You give people the freedom to build and produce and they'll get after it immediately and that opens the door for all other manner of trades and skills that just fill any hole in a community or society. And that's a fact about the organizational tendencies of human beings. There's nothing stopping us from providing for ourselves but a cartel Government in the business of extortion and human enslavement. They foment chaos and division in order to justify the revoking of more freedoms to enslave more people. People themselves, they look to get along, get to work, raise families and, as best they can, enjoy life. Once we start expecting a Government to take care of us we've institutionalized prisoners who have lost all human dignity. When you "buy in" to all the rhetoric of so called autonomy, ask yourself, how autonomous are you without a family? Just because you're alone in a box in a city, stacked one on top of the other, weighted down by a landslide of rules, collecting benefits from the Government, doesn't make you autonomous. People say, "no one can afford a family". Yet those coming in have large families and they seem to be making out just fine. It's the brainwashing of our culture that set us up. Over time we've convinced the proper way to do things is everyone to grow up and go their own way, leaving each other relying on benefits from the government in old age or illness or whatever calamity might strike in life. There's always something that comes along. With family you have human resource, a plethora of skills and you have your "insurance", free of extortion. Everything that comes from a government is conditional and sooner or later their conditions rule over our condition, even though it's our labor that provides for them. The answer isn't more benefits, as I've said. The answer is simply less government, so we can all get to the business of providing for ourselves and helping our communities prosper. We need to do this with family because alone, we are all isolated and powerless. No one stands alone and a house divided cannot stand.

English and French colonization had a devastating and intentional impact on the Indigenous languages of Canada, leading to the severe endangerment and, in some cases, extinction of many languages. This was achieved through explicit colonial policies aimed at cultural assimilation and the suppression of Indigenous identities.  Key Impacts of Colonization Forced Assimilation via Residential Schools: The most significant factor in language loss was the government-funded, church-run residential school system, which operated from the 19th century to the late 20th century. Indigenous children were forcibly removed from their families and communities and sent to these schools. Punishment for Speaking Native Tongues: In the schools, children were forbidden to speak their Indigenous languages and were often subjected to severe physical, emotional, and sexual abuse if they did. Intergenerational Trauma and Knowledge Loss: The experience in residential schools caused profound trauma. Survivors often did not teach their children their traditional languages, partly out of fear of punishment and partly because their own fluency had been impacted, which inhibited the languages from being passed to the next generation. Discriminatory Legislation: The Indian Act: This legislation, along with other colonial policies, was used to suppress Indigenous cultural expression, including language. Official Languages Act: Canada's official language policies recognize only English and French as dominant languages, effectively marginalizing the over 60 distinct Indigenous languages that existed on the land long before European settlement. Dispossession of Land: Forcible removal of Indigenous communities from their traditional lands and onto reserves disrupted the deep connection between language, culture, and the natural environment. Indigenous languages often encode unique knowledge about local ecosystems, which was lost when communities were displaced. Social Stigmatization: Colonial ideologies viewed Indigenous cultures and languages as "inferior" or "savage," promoting English and French as the languages of "modernity" and "progress". This created a social hierarchy where speaking an Indigenous language could be a barrier to education and employment opportunities in the dominant society.  Current Situation and Revitalization Efforts The legacy of these policies has resulted in low numbers of fluent Indigenous language speakers today, with many languages considered endangered or critically endangered. However, there are significant ongoing efforts toward language revitalization.  The Canadian federal government passed the Indigenous Languages Act in 2019, which aims to support the efforts of Indigenous peoples to reclaim, revitalize, maintain, and strengthen their languages. Indigenous communities, educational institutions, and organizations are actively working to preserve languages through immersion programs, community initiatives, and documentation. UNESCO has declared 2022 to 2032 the International Decade of Indigenous Languages to draw global attention to the urgent need for preservation and promotion.

As a multi-generational, born-and-raised Canadian citizen. Recently, I have been unemployed for 1 year and 2 months, which is the longest I have ever gone without a job in my entire life. My EI has run out, and during this stressful time, I have only had 4 actual interviews with real human beings. I am also a caregiver for both of my parents, and working remotely has been my profession for the last 7 years. Remote work allows me to both care for them and bring in a full-time income. Despite having 30 years of customer service experience, I find myself being overlooked. Many companies now use AI to prescreen resumes, so if your resume isn’t ATS-friendly, it often never gets seen by a human. Even if you make it past that stage, there are endless AI-driven assessments before you even have a chance to speak with someone. And when you finally do, it’s often yet another layer of screening rather than a real interview. I know I bring value — I consistently receive compliments from customers across cultures for speaking clearly, precisely, and making their experience enjoyable. Yet I find myself competing with younger candidates who can work longer hours, or new immigrants that companies often prioritize, sometimes with government incentives. At 55, I feel like I’m being overlooked despite my proven skills and professionalism. Right now, I live with my retired parents and should be caring for them. Instead, my father is helping me pay my bills so I don’t ruin the credit I worked so hard to build. If I don’t secure a job soon, I fear I’ll lose everything else I’ve managed to hold onto. The stress is overwhelming — I cry daily, and on top of everything, I also face health issues of my own, but I have no space to focus on them because survival takes priority. Canada today feels very different from the country I grew up in. Since the pandemic, things have become harder in every way — jobs, housing, and simply living. Even if I manage to secure work, rent alone now takes up nearly 75% of what I’d earn, not even including other basic bills. It’s disheartening to feel like no matter how hard I push, I can’t get ahead.

Folk may think this reduction in immigration is far from any "slash" in numbers. Consider (search the web for "Is Canada's aging population an issue ?"): "Canada's aging population is a significant issue, creating major challenges for the economy, healthcare, and social services, as more seniors require care while fewer younger workers support them, leading to potential labor shortages, strained budgets, and increased demand for healthcare and long-term support. The trend of more seniors than children under 15 puts pressure on economic growth and government finances, requiring substantial funding increases for health and care services. " For every positive to reduced immigration numbers, Canadians are going to discover that there will be negatives. The negatives might very well justify using the word "slash". Time will tell.

Making Indigenous languages official in Canada faces struggles due to the deep, ongoing impact of colonization (residential schools, assimilation policies), the sheer number of endangered languages (over 70), lack of constitutional protection like English/French have, funding gaps, and challenges implementing legislation like the Indigenous Languages Act effectively, despite strong community efforts for revitalization. The core issue is moving beyond mere documentation to ensuring effective support for daily use, education, and government services, a goal hindered by historical trauma and systemic neglect.  Key Struggles & Challenges: Colonial Legacy: Policies like the Indian Act and residential schools suppressed languages, causing massive loss, with trauma still affecting intergenerational transmission. Constitutional Gap: Unlike English and French, Indigenous languages lack explicit, strong constitutional rights (e.g., in the Charter) for government services, as noted in this article from indigenouswatchdog.org. Urgency & Scarcity: Most of Canada's 70+ Indigenous languages are endangered, with many facing imminent extinction, requiring immediate action from the last fluent elders. Implementation of Legislation: The Indigenous Languages Act (2019) aims to support revitalization, but it's criticized for being non-binding and not creating effective rights, meaning legal recognition doesn't always translate to real-world resources or services. Funding & Resource Gaps: While funding exists, it's often insufficient, limited in scope, or not reaching grassroots efforts effectively, making comprehensive revitalization difficult. Integration Challenges: Integrating Indigenous languages into education (K-12, higher ed) and public services (health, justice) remains a significant hurdle, even where there's political will, as seen in territories with official Indigenous languages.