From: The Encyclopedia of Canada's Peoples/Ethiopians/John Sorenson
Unemployment and underemployment are cited as major problems for Ethiopians in Canada. For those lacking marketable skills and facility in Canada’s official languages, opportunities are limited. Even many of those with advanced training and professional degrees work as taxi-drivers, parking-lot attendants, and factory labourers. By the late 1980s several Ethiopian restaurants had opened in Toronto and a few entrepreneurs had started small businesses in a variety of fields, such as auto repair, furniture manufacture, and printing services.
A strong cultural emphasis on education and suitable employment, particularly for the middle and upper classes, has made resettlement a stressful experience for some of those forced to accept menial labour. Ethiopians note employers’ requirements for Canadian experience as a factor that affects negatively their chances for employment, and some mention racial discrimination as an obstacle as well. Women, traditionally viewed as inferior, are generally not as well educated as men and have less knowledge of English and French. These disadvantages, combined with child-raising duties, mean that Ethiopian women remain more isolated in Canada than their male counterparts.
In the 1970s and 1980s, concern for homeland politics remained strong among immigrants from Ethiopia. From the outset, those Eritreans who rejected an Ethiopian identity formed separate communities, and by the late 1980s a distinct Oromo community had also emerged. While Tigrayans did not reject identity as Ethiopians, relations were tense between those who supported the anti-government Tigrayan Peoples Liberation Front and those who favoured a centralized state with no changes in its boundaries. The centralists were usually associated with the Amharas, although they also included other peoples from Ethiopia.
During these years, relationships in Canada between Eritreans, Tigrayans, and Oromos opposed to the Ethiopian government were cordial but they never became formalized within any broad organization. Support for various nationalist and opposition movements helped to mitigate class and regional distinctions within each ethnic group. Eritreans, Oromos, and Tigrayans formed community associations, political groups, and organizations to provide humanitarian aid for areas outside the control of Ethiopian government forces. Notable in this regard was the Relief Society of Tigray, which operated with minimal resources.
There are certain Ethiopian associations in Canada that attempt to rise above regional politics in the homeland and that are open to all peoples from Ethiopia. Among these is the Ethiopian Association of Toronto (established 1985), which concentrates on settlement and adjustment issues in Canada and develops programs to assist with language training and obtaining housing and employment.
Although some Ethiopians came to Canada as voluntary migrants, many arrived as refugees (including those not officially recognized as such). In addition to the stress commonly produced by adaptation to a new society, Ethiopians suffer specific mental and physical problems typically associated with refugees. These include the after-effects of torture, worry for relatives and friends, alienation, and “survivor guilt.” Drug abuse is rare, although some cases of alcoholism are reported. Knowledge of community and social services is limited, particularly among women without English- or French-language skills.
