There is a record number of 53 MPs from minority backgrounds in the Commons, representing 15.7 per cent of the total number of seats. That percentage is still below the 26.3 percentage of visible minorities in the general population. But the increase in the last election was outstanding.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on May 11, 2026.

OTTAWA —May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada. And in a speech last Tuesday to a diverse audience at the National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Identity and Culture Minister Marc Miller revealed a surprising number.

He celebrated the reality that one in five Canadians is of Asian background. The country is aware of a large Asian presence in the metropolitan areas of Toronto and Vancouver.

But our diversity has spread across the country.

What was exciting at the gallery celebration was the presence of more than two dozen MPs and Senators who hail from Asian background.

They join dozens of other MPs who are defined as visible minorities.

In the current Parliament, there is a record number of 53 MPs from minority backgrounds, representing 15.7 per cent of the total number of seats.

That percentage is still below the 26.3 percentage of visible minorities in the general population.

But the increase in the last election was outstanding.

Almost 10 per cent of the House of Commons is comprised of South Asian members who occupy 31 seats.

The number of visible minorities has increased in every one of the last four elections, so equivalency should be happening soon.

Compare that figure to the number of Asian Americans serving in their Congress. At this time, only 24 Congresspeople self-identify as Asian, representing 4.4 per cent of the House of Representatives. The Asian presence in the United States figures in at only 6.7 per cent.

The first Canadian breakthrough in diverse parliamentarian elections occurred in 1993 when 13 minority MPs were elected.

According to a paper published by retired McGill professor Jerome H. Black, “this was the first time that more than a handful of such individuals had found their way into Parliament and thus, constitutes significant early development in the racial diversification of the legislature.”

That breakthrough did not happen by accident. The Liberal Party won a majority government that year, and part of its pre-election strategy for recruiting candidates was to establish a 25-per-cent minimum nomination of women and minorities.

That strategy continued while the Liberals in government.

The establishment of Asian Heritage Month was carried out by an official declaration of the government. At the time, then-Senator Vivienne Poy and I worked together on the subject. She introduced a private member’s bill into the Senate in the fall of 2001, and I issued an official government declaration the following February, setting the stage for the first celebration of May 2002.

We used the same strategy to introduce Black History Month in 1995. Parliament’s first Black woman, Jean Augustine, introduced the resolution in the House that was subsequently adopted as official government policy under the leadership of the Department of Canadian Heritage.

The decision to adopt an inclusive nomination process was also reflected in other government policies.

In 1999, as minister, I issued a directive to the CRTC demanding a rewrite of television and radio licensing renewal guidelines to require applicants to hire women, minorities, and Indigenous Peoples.

Funding guidelines were also modified for all 15 Crown corporations under the authority of the minister of Canadian Heritage. This group included the CBC and Parks Canada.

The directive ensured that every organization develop a plan to increase the hiring of women and minorities. In the case of Parks Canada, their action plan resulted in an immediate 17-per-cent hike in the hiring of Indigenous employees.

The government also announced the first-ever National Aboriginal Day under the leadership of Ron Irwin, then-minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development. We also established National Multicultural Day.

Both days of recognition were included in the celebrations of Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day and Canada Day.

The first Asian Heritage month celebration involved coffee and cookies in one of the parliamentary reception rooms with a few dozen representatives.

Last week, it was standing-room only, and the theatre at the National Gallery was filled with hundreds of participants.

Most important were the numbers of parliamentarians who joined the minister in the presentations. The face of the country is changing, and the face of government is—thankfully—changing along with it.

From Liberal MPs Chi Nguyen to Jean Yip, from Rechie Valdez, to Fares Al Soud, the presenters were dynamic, bright and bilingual. Each had their own story, sharing their family struggles of immigrating to a new country.

Each also has experienced unique struggles in securing nominations or electoral success.

They are the new faces of Canada.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By SHEILA COPPS

First published on Monday, March 12, 2018 in The Hill Times.

OTTAWA—Viola Desmond made history back in 1946 when she refused to sit in a segregated balcony at the cinema in New Glasgow, N.S.

That was nine years before Rosa Parks became a symbol of the American civil rights movement by refusing to surrender her seat to a white passenger on a segregated bus.

So why does everyone know so much about Rosa Parks and so little about Viola Desmond?

Could it be that the racism which was pervasive in Canada during Desmond’s life, was swept under the rug or minimized?

In the United States, Negro History Week was designated in 1926 to coincide with the birthdays of president George Washington and black statesman Frederick Douglass.

That recognition morphed into Black History Month in 1970.

In our country, it took another quarter century to even acknowledge Black History Month.

Canada’s first black woman Member of Parliament, Jean Augustine, was the force behind a unanimous motion in the House of Commons to establish Black History Month back in 1995. History was made again last week when Desmond’s image was unveiled on the ten dollar note by finance minister Bill Morneau and Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz.

International Women’s Day provided the perfect backdrop for recognition of this Canadian hero.

It also marked a ground-breaking day for African-Canadians as it is the first time a black person appears on Canadian currency. It is the second recognition of non-monarch women. A fifty-dollar bill in recognition of the Famous Five suffragettes was launched by the last Liberal government back in 2004.

Canada’s first black woman Member of Parliament, Jean Augustine, was the force behind a unanimous motion in the House of Commons to establish Black History Month back in 1995. The Hill Time file photograph

It is incredible that we have gone for more than 150 years featuring only white leaders and ignoring women and minorities..

This year, International Women’s Day was celebrated across the globe in different ways. The women of Saudi Arabia rejoiced over their long-fought battle to be allowed to legally drive a car. The prohibition against female drivers will be lifted in June.

Catalyst launched a skyline takeover of Bay Street, with businesses flashing a downloaded Venus symbol of woman on office towers across the financial district. Even the iconic golden arches of McDonald’s were upended in the name of equality.

All these are very important symbols in the move toward equality. However, symbols are not enough.

Back in 1995, when Augustine moved the motion to launch Black History Month, it was not done in a vacuum. Her vision was part of a larger government strategy to build diversity into the story of Canada.

Up until that point, the mandate of Canadian Heritage was to celebrate the two official languages of Canada, English and French. When it came to aboriginal peoples, their cultures were neither recognized nor funded for any celebration of their heritage. I was puzzled because it seemed the only heritage our department recognized was that which came from Europe. We were similarly absent in the dialogue on Canadian diversity.

When I became minister, I asked the department why Indigenous celebrations were not supported, and was told that their funding partner in government was the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs.

But that ministry did not have a mandate for cultural funding of any kind, so when it came to the celebration of Indigenous peoples, there was no funding. Along with the recognition of black history, in 1995 the government instituted National Aboriginal Day June 21 and National Multicultural Day June 27. They would join St-Jean-Baptiste Day and Canada Day as part of the official 10-day annual birthday celebrations.

And we finally started to tell the whole story of Canada.

The first black person came to our country along with Samuel de Champlain. His name was Mathieu da Costa and by all accounts, the African-born da Costa was responsible for Europeans’ survival during their first rugged winter in the New World.

He was multilingual and made quick friends with the Mi’kmaq people who aided the explorers with survival techniques and home-grown food.

The fact that nine out of 10 Canadians still don’t even know da Costa’s name speaks volumes about the narrow scope of white history that dominates the landscape.

No schoolchild would pass exams without some mention of the epic voyage of Champlain.

Until last week, Desmond’s heroism was neither known nor officially acknowledged but that all changed with the emergence of the new 10 dollar bill.

Symbols are a start but Canada needs more. The recognition of Viola Desmond was certainly a step in the right direction.

But the country needs more than symbols to reach full equality.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.