Immigration.ca - Canada Immigration News - February 2007
Survey examins 23 Western countries
In a new international study that measured "Islamophobia" in 19 European countries, the United States, Australia and New Zealand, Canadians were ranked as being the most tolerant of nations and least likely to describe bigotry towards Muslims
The results were based upon how more than 32,000 respondents answered the question, "Would you like to have a person from this group as your neighbor?" Whereas only 6.5% of the 2000 Canadian respondents said that they would �not like to live beside a Muslim�, nearly 19-20% of respondents in Finland, Greece, and Belgium answered �No�. The average across the western countries was 14.5%.
The study's co-authors, economists Vani Borooah of the University of Ulster and John Mangan of the University of Queensland in Australia, said the study was conducted to examine the �increasing awareness of, and a hardening of attitudes toward, people who are 'different,'" amongst nations that have a reputation for liberalism.
Canadians ranked as the most tolerant of nations in other categories if the survey, including questions that gauged intolerance in each country towards immigrants in general, people of another race, Jews and homosexuals.
Many do agree that Canada is a very tolerant nation, including Salma Siddiqui, an official with the Toronto-based Muslim Canadian Congress.
Source:
CanWest News Service
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=bd5f2a21-b16e-401c-bd6c-efbade8ba32d
