Warning: This article is not intended to discourage anyone, but have a look at harsh realities.
by Nicholas Keung, Immigration/Diversity Reporter, Toronto Star
A doctorate in nuclear engineering from prestigious Purdue University hadn't gotten Jiang Guobing very far in Canada. He'd settled for a research job at the University of Toronto while trudging toward a second post-graduate degree. At midnight on July 21, the 44-year-old Chinese immigrant leapt off a Don Mills overpass into Highway 401 traffic, leaving behind a wife and two children - and the multiple disappointments of the life he began here five years ago. Jiang's suicide, thanks to a fundraising effort for the family, became an unusually public event in a community much influenced by "shame culture" and an impulse to sweep unpalatable subjects below the surface of public scrutiny. It was the latest of several high-profile suicides among skilled Chinese immigrants in Toronto - a phenomenon many fear is only the tip of the iceberg, given the poor job this country sometimes does of integrating newcomers and addressing their mental-health needs. "We are now seeing the same sense of hopelessness among immigrants as exhibited among our aboriginal communities," says Debbie Douglas, executive director of the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving immigrants. "The acculturation process is very difficult, whether you come here by choice or not. It's about developing a sense of belonging and being able to integrate economically, socially and politically into the society." The disconnect between settlement services - the job of the federal immigration department - and health services, a provincial responsibility, is part of the problem, Douglas says.
