that's right: the plight of black canadians is not "top of mind" in canada because, unless you live in a handful of districts in toronto, they really don't exist. black canadians are less than 3% of the population, in canada,  and almost all of them have arrived since 1970. they were barely present at all in the early years of the country, as slaves or as citizens, and did not stay after the underground railroad, for whatever reasons. there are only a handful of black communities in canada, and most of them are not urban but actually quite remote. that's very different than the united states, where blacks are about 10% nationally and make up majorities in substantial parts of the country, including in major urban areas.

in the united states, blacks are without a doubt the largest minority group and of exceeding importance in the country. in canada, they're like 15th - sandwiched between japanese and jewish, or something.

the largest and most important minority groups in canada are not black africans, but lighter-skinned indigenous people and asians, both east and south. we will have chinese and indian prime ministers before we have african ones, and we may never have african ones at all.

the trudeau government's strange focus on african-canadians is an imported americanism, a consequence of the fact that so much of the liberal party went to school in the united states. and, that's a problem that the party needs to come to grips with: it needs more canadians in it's top positions. it's not running for office in california.

the media was right to change the topic, and the party should get the point.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2018/01/30/justin-trudeau-gets-no-questions-about-black-canadians-at-press-conference-focused-on-their-experiences_a_23348080/

jagmeet singh must cut his beard.