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In tracing the rapid changes of the 1960s, Harold Troper draws upon a wealth of historical documentation, including more than eighty interviews, to demonstrate that the expression of Canadian Jewishness was an increasingly public - and political - commitment

Following an overview of the history of Toronto, Ontario, as an immigrant-receiving city from the late 19th & early 20th centuries, patterns of immigration following WWII are described, focusing on related policy issues. With the growth of a new urban industrial base & a revitalized export market, an urgent need for new workers caused Canada to reopen the doors to immigration that had been closed during the economic depression of the 1920s. Despite ethnic & racial reservations & restrictions, an urban-friendly immigration policy evolved that led to Toronto's becoming the most ethnically diverse city in Canada. In 1966, a government white paper attempted to appease both pro- & antiimmigration forces by removing racial criteria for immigration, but setting strict limits on family reunification. By the 1970s, three major factors influenced immigration: (1) multiculturalism as a federal policy, (2) a major shift in immigrant demographics, particularly the arrival of greater numbers of refugees, & (3) economic downturn. Provisions of a subsequent green paper & the passage of a new immigration act late in that decade are reviewed, along with changes in refugee policy. Ways in which immigration has transformed Toronto's urban core & suburban periphery are explored, & contradictory elements characterizing the city's racial & cultural pluralism are discussed. K. Hyatt Stewart

Compares the early-1970s Canadian Jewish campaigns on behalf of Soviet & Syrian Jews, noting that the latter cause failed to invoke passion among Jews or the wider populace. It is argued that the success of ethnic causes depends on the degree to which they are marketable to the ethnic community & larger society. The well-defined sense of governance & high-profile ethnic polity in the Canadian Jewish community are described, including internal legal structures authorized by tradition/religious sanction, & communal organizational structures designed to protect Jewish interests. The history of the Jewish polity's involvement in outside issues, eg, Israel's Six-Day War, is examined. Reasons given for the commitment of Canadian Jews to the cause of Soviet Jewry include negative Western attitudes toward the USSR. The lack of knowledge about Syria is discussed, maintaining that there was a general feeling that Syria's repressive government would be impervious to protest. Implications for current mobilization & lobbying are considered. J. Lindroth

"The 1960s witnessed a radical transformation in the Canadian Jewish community. The erosion of longstanding barriers of anti-Semitism resulted in increased access for Jews to the economic, political, and social Canadian mainstream. Arguing paradoxically that even as Canada became more accepting, Canadian Jews became more focused on Jewish identity, The Defining Decade examines how the 1960s redefined what it meant to be a Canadian Jew and a Jewish Canadian

Examines issues of ethnic match & the role of the ethnic polity in Canada. The history of Canadian ethnic/racial diversity is traced, noting that it was often seen as a problem, rather than a valued feature of society. The state's role in the integration of ethnic minorities is explored, maintaining that there are no simple answers, nor easy policy dimensions, when dealing with pluralism in a liberal-democratic society. Ethnic match, considered a tool for providing culturally sensitive services, has three dimensions: ethnic origin of personnel delivering the service, sponsorship by an ethnospecific organization, & a practice informed by ethnospecific knowledge. How ethnic groups mobilize to make collective political decisions & interact with outside political bodies is discussed. It is contended that the ethnic polity in Canada is functioning increasingly like lobby groups, although they tend to operate on a different plane than other interest groups. Prospects for future resolutions to Canada's often contradictory multicultural issues are discussed. 1 Table, 32 References. J. Lindroth