Franco-Ontarians
Ontario is home to the largest French-speaking community in Canada outside Quebec, a presence that dates back more than 400 years to the first French explorers, including Champlain. These Franco-Ontarians have their own flag, which was first raised at the University of Sudbury in 1975 before being officially recognized by the Legislative Assembly in 2001. It is composed of a white fleur-de-lis - symbol of the Francophonie - on a green background and a white trillium - the floral symbol of Ontario - with a green border on a white background. The two colours symbolize seasons, green for summer and white for winter. The raising of the flag in Sudbury follows the identity-building movement in French-speaking Ontario, which saw the birth of a true cultural revolution with the creation of arts organizations in the fields of publishing, theatre and the visual arts, among others. At the same time, the provincial government created the Conseil supérieur des écoles de langue française and the Conseil des affaires franco-ontariennes, demonstrating its interest in and support for Ontario's Francophone community.
According to the Ontario government's 2009 Inclusive Definition of Francophone (DIF), this includes all people for whom French is their mother tongue or the language most spoken at home, as well as those who have knowledge of this official language. There are 600,000 people in Ontario, living mainly in the eastern part of the province (Ottawa and the counties of Prescott-Russell and Stormont-Dundas-Glengarry), the north (Sudbury and the Algoma, Timiskaming and Cochrane regions) and the Central-Southwestern part of the province, particularly in the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton. While Ontario's Francophone population has increased by 2% since 2011, it remains a minority community. In order to maintain, or even increase, the pool of this population, some cities are making great efforts to attract Francophone immigrants, such as Thunder Bay and Greater Sudbury. Despite this, the Progressive Conservative government of Ontario, under the leadership of Doug Ford, has been abusing the rights of Francophones since coming to power in 2018. A blatant example is the cancellation and indefinite postponement of the University of Ontario francophone project in Toronto, an act that has been decried by Franco-Ontarians and the federal Liberal government alike. As a result of the races, the green light was finally given for an opening in 2021.
Ontario has 26 designated regions where access to French-language services from nearly 30 provincial government departments is guaranteed through the French Language Services Act. There is also an entire network of French-language media (press, radio, television, etc.).), as well as resources for Franco-Ontarians such as the Assemblée de la francophonie de l'Ontario, the Association des conseils scolaires des écoles publiques de l'Ontario, the Association française des municipalités de l'Ontario, the Fédération de la jeunesse franco-ontarienne, and the Ministry of Francophone Affairs, the Regroupement étudiant franco-ontarien, the Réseau des services de santé en français de l'Est de l'Ontario, the Réseau du mieux-être francophone du Nord de l'Ontario, the various Réseau en soutien à l'immigration francophone, the Réseau franco-santé du Sud de l'Ontario and the Société économique de l'Ontario du RDÉE.An ethnic mosaic, especially in Toronto
Ontario is a true cultural and linguistic mosaic. There are ethnic groups that speak more than 100 different languages and dialects. In Toronto alone, about half of the population has a mother tongue other than English or French. Some of the most common languages spoken in Ontario homes include Italian, Cantonese, Spanish, Punjabi, Tagalog (Philippines), Portuguese, Arabic, German, Spanish and Urdu. Ontario's population is more diverse than the rest of Canada, and the city of Toronto is home to more different cultures than its Quebec neighbour (Montreal), while half of its population is foreign-born. Ontario and the Toronto region are the most immigrant-receiving regions in Canada, which explains their great ethnic diversity. All these waves of immigration have created ethnic enclaves in several Ontario cities, including Toronto, which is home to all the Chinatown, Greektown, Koreatown, India Bazaar, Little Italy, Little Portugal, Little Tibet and Pakistan Bazaar of this world. It goes without saying that with so many cultural communities present in its territory, culinary diversity is the order of the day in Ontario, which is not to displease foodies.
Among all the immigrants and descendants of immigrants present in Ontario are what are known as "visible minorities". According to the official definition in Canada, this term applies to people who are not white, Caucasian or Aboriginal. In the Greater Toronto Area, for example, almost half of the population considers itself to be a member of one of these minorities. The largest recorded minorities are South Asians, Chinese, Blacks, Filipinos and Latin Americans. An impressive melting pot that seems to live in harmony.Indigenous Peoples
According to data from the Ontario Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs, following the 2016 Census, 2.8% of Ontario's population is of Aboriginal origin, or approximately 375,000 people of First Nations, Métis or Inuit ancestry registered with the government (residents and non-residents). This is the largest Aboriginal population in the country, followed by the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba, which all scored over 200,000, and the Thunder Bay area has the highest proportion of Aboriginal people in Canada. The Aboriginal population is comprised of First Nations (American Indians), Métis and Inuit peoples. From coast to coast to coast in Canada, one day is dedicated to them: June 21, National Aboriginal Day.
Ontario's Aboriginal people are divided into seven Amerindian nations: Algonquin, Cree, Delaware, Haudenosaunee, Odawa, Ojibway (Chippewa) and Potawatomi. Only one-quarter of First Nations people live on reserves, which are scattered throughout Ontario. However, more than three-quarters of the reserves are in northern Ontario and one community in four is accessible only by air year-round or by ice road in winter. Although there is no official Inuit nation in Ontario, about 1% of the population claims Inuit ancestry.
