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Non-white military might needs boost
Despite Canadian Forces ad campaigns targeting women, aboriginals and visible minorities, recruitment numbers remain stubbornly low
By KATHLEEN HARRIS, SUN MEDIA SPECIAL
The Ottawa Sun
OTTAWA -- Canada's military is struggling to shed its "white guys" image, embracing more culture and diversity to put a more colourful face on the armed forces.
Employment equity law, ramped-up recruitment drives and targeted ad campaigns have tried to break down the homogeneous tradition and attract more women, aboriginals and visible minorities to the mix. But their numbers remain stubbornly low. A 2006 report showed natives represented a marginal 1.5% of the regular and primary reserves, visible minorities just 2.7% and women 15.1% -- and figures have barely budged since then.
Driven in part by ideology and in part by operational necessity, the military is making concerted new efforts to boost those numbers to 2.8%, 9.1% and 19.5% over five years. A new working group recently launched a sweeping six-month study designed to root out underlying reasons for the lagging numbers and devise ways to pick up the recruitment pace.
"It's important for the Canadian Forces to reflect the Canadian population as a whole," said Lt.-Commander Rohit Gulati, who's in charge of the diversity program. "The military must represent the people. If we are a national institution, we must reflect the population, because if the population doesn't see themselves reflected, we will lose touch with them, and them with us."
Gulati calls it the "million dollar question" why numbers remain so low, since the military has moved from a conform-and-adapt mantra to one that accommodates diverse religious practices and cultural traditions. Flexible policies allow wearing the Sikh turban, Metis sash, Muslim hijab or Jewish yarmulke and provide halal, kosher or other special religious dietary requirements on army bases.
"We've got all those pegs in place, but we're still not getting the numbers. In fact, it's hard to get people in and the recruiting groups are having a bit of a tough time," he said.
Recruitment is easier in outlying regions and smaller provinces, where the CF has established a traditional, visible presence. But in big cities like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, where most of the visible minorities live, the CF doesn't register high as a potential career choice for many young people.
The new working group study will review outreach programs, ethnic advertising and explore the best ways to target specific communities. In some ethnic groups, the offer of educational opportunities may be the inroad, while technical trade training could be the ticket in another.
The son of immigrant parents from India who grew up in Halifax, Gulati calls the military a "meritocracy" with zero tolerance for racial discrimination.
"People don't care what colour you are, it's how well can you do your job, and you're promoted based on that. If you look at our performance evaluation system, it is basically colour blind," he said. "I've never felt that race was an issue. After the first couple of hours people evaluate you based on who you are rather than what colour you are. That's my experience, anyway."
Better reflecting Canadian society is a primary goal of diversity targets, but Gulati said there are operational advantages to having more women and a multicultural military -- especially on missions like Kandahar.
"When the local women there see a female soldier, they will respect her. They will be very impressed, it will be a role model for them. And in dealing with the locals it is very difficult for men to deal with traditional Afghani women. It has to be a woman, so for a woman to be there she has more access to that group, and that brings an operational advantage," he said. "And if you have an Afghani-Canadian who understands the language and nuances of the culture, that brings another operational edge to the group."
Anthony Salloum, program director for the Ottawa-based Rideau Institute, said it's "problematic" to have low representation of aboriginals and visible minorities in any key public sector. He believes many aren't signing up because they don't support the war in Afghanistan or are turned off by the "Fight" campaign ads.
"That might be appealing to some sectors of our society, but you're not speaking the language of many of our ethnic minorities, including those who come from war-torn regions," he said. "Many of them are coming to Canada for peace, so the idea of joining up to 'Fight' may not be an appealing message. It's a very aggressive word and that might be really muting the enthusiasm of our visible minority communities to join the armed forces."
Lt.-Gen. Andrew Leslie, the chief of land staff and the Canadian Forces' "aboriginal champion," said the military must be flexible and reject a "cookie cutter" approach to attract and retain visible minorities and aboriginals. He noted that the sudden culture shock of drill, orders and fitness training for new recruits on base is even more jarring for someone who grew up in a remote, isolated native community and is now separated from family in Shilo, Man., or Wainwright, Alta.
"Let's not kid ourselves, the army culture is a little bit different from that which you find just about anywhere else in Canada," he said. "We've got to be more accommodating in not trying to cram our army culture down the throat of great young Canadians who may not understand it when they first walk through the door."
Leslie said natives are "natural soldiers" who bring to the job a deep understanding of the land, inherent survival skills and incredible self-reliance, patience and persistence. And as the fastest-growing population in Canada -- with a majority under 25 years old -- he said aboriginals represent a big "potential recruiting pool."
Aboriginal Master Warrant Officer John Young dreamed of being a soldier from when he was a young boy living on Manitoulin Island. He signed up at 17, and with 33 years in the military under his belt he now spends his days criss-crossing the country encouraging others to follow his dream.
As Leslie's aboriginal adviser, his job is to establish and nurture mentoring and recruitment programs, recommend policy and help break down barriers.
Despite a long, proud tradition of natives serving in arms, Young said there are many reasons why the numbers are so sparse now. A strong economy has offered vast career options, many are reluctant to leave tight-knit native communities, and others harbour lingering resentment for past injustices for aboriginal Canadians.
"Memories do run long, and there are some concerns after the Second World War and the Korean War, the treatment of aboriginal veterans," he said. "There is still some concern about residential schools. All these things you read in the paper that affect the Canadian public affect the aboriginal population."
But Young hopes a number of youth initiatives, an aboriginal entry college program and a welcoming attitude toward braids, sweetgrass and pow wows will help promote the CF as a viable career path. He has no regrets about his choice, looking back to adventure and travel to every corner of the country and spots around the globe.
"It's been a really great lifestyle that has offered me sights and scenes I would have never seen if I'd been a hard rock miner in northern Ontario," he said.
---
Current representation of designated group members in CF regular force and primary reserve:
Women: 15.1%
Five-year goal: 19.5%
Visible Minorities 2.7%
Five-year goal: 9.1%
Aboriginal people 1.5%
Five-year goal: 2.8%
Personally, I'm more concerned with just getting our numbers in total higher.........
Despite Canadian Forces ad campaigns targeting women, aboriginals and visible minorities, recruitment numbers remain stubbornly low
By KATHLEEN HARRIS, SUN MEDIA SPECIAL
The Ottawa Sun
OTTAWA -- Canada's military is struggling to shed its "white guys" image, embracing more culture and diversity to put a more colourful face on the armed forces.
Employment equity law, ramped-up recruitment drives and targeted ad campaigns have tried to break down the homogeneous tradition and attract more women, aboriginals and visible minorities to the mix. But their numbers remain stubbornly low. A 2006 report showed natives represented a marginal 1.5% of the regular and primary reserves, visible minorities just 2.7% and women 15.1% -- and figures have barely budged since then.
Driven in part by ideology and in part by operational necessity, the military is making concerted new efforts to boost those numbers to 2.8%, 9.1% and 19.5% over five years. A new working group recently launched a sweeping six-month study designed to root out underlying reasons for the lagging numbers and devise ways to pick up the recruitment pace.
"It's important for the Canadian Forces to reflect the Canadian population as a whole," said Lt.-Commander Rohit Gulati, who's in charge of the diversity program. "The military must represent the people. If we are a national institution, we must reflect the population, because if the population doesn't see themselves reflected, we will lose touch with them, and them with us."
Gulati calls it the "million dollar question" why numbers remain so low, since the military has moved from a conform-and-adapt mantra to one that accommodates diverse religious practices and cultural traditions. Flexible policies allow wearing the Sikh turban, Metis sash, Muslim hijab or Jewish yarmulke and provide halal, kosher or other special religious dietary requirements on army bases.
"We've got all those pegs in place, but we're still not getting the numbers. In fact, it's hard to get people in and the recruiting groups are having a bit of a tough time," he said.
Recruitment is easier in outlying regions and smaller provinces, where the CF has established a traditional, visible presence. But in big cities like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, where most of the visible minorities live, the CF doesn't register high as a potential career choice for many young people.
The new working group study will review outreach programs, ethnic advertising and explore the best ways to target specific communities. In some ethnic groups, the offer of educational opportunities may be the inroad, while technical trade training could be the ticket in another.
The son of immigrant parents from India who grew up in Halifax, Gulati calls the military a "meritocracy" with zero tolerance for racial discrimination.
"People don't care what colour you are, it's how well can you do your job, and you're promoted based on that. If you look at our performance evaluation system, it is basically colour blind," he said. "I've never felt that race was an issue. After the first couple of hours people evaluate you based on who you are rather than what colour you are. That's my experience, anyway."
Better reflecting Canadian society is a primary goal of diversity targets, but Gulati said there are operational advantages to having more women and a multicultural military -- especially on missions like Kandahar.
"When the local women there see a female soldier, they will respect her. They will be very impressed, it will be a role model for them. And in dealing with the locals it is very difficult for men to deal with traditional Afghani women. It has to be a woman, so for a woman to be there she has more access to that group, and that brings an operational advantage," he said. "And if you have an Afghani-Canadian who understands the language and nuances of the culture, that brings another operational edge to the group."
Anthony Salloum, program director for the Ottawa-based Rideau Institute, said it's "problematic" to have low representation of aboriginals and visible minorities in any key public sector. He believes many aren't signing up because they don't support the war in Afghanistan or are turned off by the "Fight" campaign ads.
"That might be appealing to some sectors of our society, but you're not speaking the language of many of our ethnic minorities, including those who come from war-torn regions," he said. "Many of them are coming to Canada for peace, so the idea of joining up to 'Fight' may not be an appealing message. It's a very aggressive word and that might be really muting the enthusiasm of our visible minority communities to join the armed forces."
Lt.-Gen. Andrew Leslie, the chief of land staff and the Canadian Forces' "aboriginal champion," said the military must be flexible and reject a "cookie cutter" approach to attract and retain visible minorities and aboriginals. He noted that the sudden culture shock of drill, orders and fitness training for new recruits on base is even more jarring for someone who grew up in a remote, isolated native community and is now separated from family in Shilo, Man., or Wainwright, Alta.
"Let's not kid ourselves, the army culture is a little bit different from that which you find just about anywhere else in Canada," he said. "We've got to be more accommodating in not trying to cram our army culture down the throat of great young Canadians who may not understand it when they first walk through the door."
Leslie said natives are "natural soldiers" who bring to the job a deep understanding of the land, inherent survival skills and incredible self-reliance, patience and persistence. And as the fastest-growing population in Canada -- with a majority under 25 years old -- he said aboriginals represent a big "potential recruiting pool."
Aboriginal Master Warrant Officer John Young dreamed of being a soldier from when he was a young boy living on Manitoulin Island. He signed up at 17, and with 33 years in the military under his belt he now spends his days criss-crossing the country encouraging others to follow his dream.
As Leslie's aboriginal adviser, his job is to establish and nurture mentoring and recruitment programs, recommend policy and help break down barriers.
Despite a long, proud tradition of natives serving in arms, Young said there are many reasons why the numbers are so sparse now. A strong economy has offered vast career options, many are reluctant to leave tight-knit native communities, and others harbour lingering resentment for past injustices for aboriginal Canadians.
"Memories do run long, and there are some concerns after the Second World War and the Korean War, the treatment of aboriginal veterans," he said. "There is still some concern about residential schools. All these things you read in the paper that affect the Canadian public affect the aboriginal population."
But Young hopes a number of youth initiatives, an aboriginal entry college program and a welcoming attitude toward braids, sweetgrass and pow wows will help promote the CF as a viable career path. He has no regrets about his choice, looking back to adventure and travel to every corner of the country and spots around the globe.
"It's been a really great lifestyle that has offered me sights and scenes I would have never seen if I'd been a hard rock miner in northern Ontario," he said.
---
Current representation of designated group members in CF regular force and primary reserve:
Women: 15.1%
Five-year goal: 19.5%
Visible Minorities 2.7%
Five-year goal: 9.1%
Aboriginal people 1.5%
Five-year goal: 2.8%
Personally, I'm more concerned with just getting our numbers in total higher.........
