Becoming a Citizen: Incorporating Immigrants and Refugees in the United States and Canada (review)

Since 1970, a significant citizenship gap has opened between immigrants arriving in the United States and those coming to Canada. More specifically, immigrants to Canada have become citizens at higher rates than their counterparts in the United States. In this well-researched and well-written book, Irene Bloemraad documents this citizenship gap, arguing that it is not simply a result of cross-national differences in the characteristics of the immigrants who settle in the respective countries, nor does it arise from differences in the legal structure of citizenship, the process of its acquisition, or incentives built into the status of citizen. Rather, it reflects differences in the social reception of immigrants, produced by a variety of institutional factors.

Bloemraad points out that compared to the rather laissez-faire American approach, Canadian settlement policies are interventionist, promoting citizenship acquisition in three different ways. First, the Canadian immigration program offers explicit support for citizenship acquisition and the integration of immigrants generally, which contrasts with the "enforcement mentality" of the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. Second, there is more public assistance in Canada at all levels of government for immigrant settlement, with subsidy for activities such as language learning and job search. And finally, the Canadian policy of multiculturalism promotes integration through symbolic and financial support for ethnic diversity.

Bloemraad supports her argument with detailed analyses of census and immigration data from both countries over the entire 20^th century, and with qualitative field studies for two groups – Portuguese and Vietnamese – in Boston and Toronto. Because the American policy is more interventionist in the case of refugees, the inclusion of the Vietnamese enables Bloemraad to assess the impact of refugee status on the overall cross-national comparison.

Following an introduction which carefully lays out the plan of analysis, Bloemraad develops support for her institutional theory in six empirical chapters. The first chapter provides a detailed look at citizenship statistics in the two countries, showing that the cross-national gap which emerged in 1970 is not explained by immigration trends or by the legal structure of citizenship. It is difficult to demonstrate the impact of institutional forces, and Bloemraad builds her case by separate examination of key links in a chain of causality. In Chapter 2, she argues that citizenship acquisition is a process of political socialization. Relationship networks in ethnic communities, including ethnic businesses, ethnic organizations and community leaders, are part this process and facilitate citizenship acquisition. In Chapter 3, Bloemraad examines the role of government policies and programs in Canada and the United States, with a focus on the period since 1960, indicating how official policies may affect social life in ethnic communities. Chapter 4 turns to field data and describes how citizenship is viewed by immigrants in the two countries, the meanings they attach to terms such as "melting pot" and "multiculturalism," and the resulting implications for the political community. Chapter 5 shows that ethnic community organization is far stronger in Toronto than in Boston, with the contrast particularly marked for the Portuguese – less for the Vietnamese, among whom organization in the United States is facilitated by assistance to refugees. Evidence points to the role of government support for ethnic organizations in Canada. Finally, Chapter 6 focuses on the impact of government policy on the development of ethnic political leadership, and the role of these leaders in creating political engagement in their respective communities.

Bloemraad's concluding chapter brings these various strands together, and shows how her findings engage with the broader contemporary debate over multiculturalism. She takes issue with the growing suspicion that multiculturalism encourages minorities to withdraw into isolated communities, arguing that Canadian multicultural policies have had the opposite effect, namely, that of bringing minorities into the political mainstream. A higher rate of citizenship acquisition is the first link in a broader process of political incorporation, leading to more effective representation for immigrant minorities in political decision-making.

Bloemraad...