Changing faces: Chinese, Iranian top recent immigrant groups in Aurora

Majority of town's ethnic origins remain European

Yorkregion.com
Feb. 7, 2019
Teresa Latchford

This is the first in a three-part series about newcomers in Aurora, the challenges they face and where they can turn to for help.

The majority of Aurora’s ethnic origins remain European but as the population continues to grow, so does its diversity.

According to the 2016 Census, Aurora had a total population of 55,445 and of that, about 16,510 or 30 per cent are immigrants.

The top five ethnic origins of the population include English, Canadian, Scottish, Irish and Italian.

While a number ethnic origins aren’t listed in the top five there are notable numbers that show the upward tick in diversity. Of the 1,850 recent immigrants who settled in Aurora between 2011 and 2016, 575 or 31 per cent emigrated from China, 240 or 13 per cent from Iran and 200 or 11 per cent from the Philippines.

The data suggests Aurora is on trend with York Region as a whole. The same census shows York Region was home to 51,410 recent immigrants who settled between 2011 and 2016. Of that, 20,040 or 39 per cent emigrated from China, 6,970 or 14 per cent from Iran and 3,010 or 6 per cent from the Philippines.

In Ontario, 29.3 per cent of the population -- 3.9 of 13.2 million -- were visible minorities. And 22.3 per cent of Canadians -- 7.7 of 34.5 million -- fall into that category.

The local Welcome Centre Immigrant Services, a one-stop service designed to guide and support immigrants in York Region, including Aurora, is experiencing the changing face of local municipalities as its client base continues to grow. It currently serves about 10,000 clients per year.

“We are seeing an increase in clients year over year,” centre manager Arunthathy Ratnasingham said. “We are seeing many more Farsi and Mandarin speaking clients compared to a few years ago.”

Ratnasingham recalls the client base being predominantly Russian when she first started working at the centre but over the years more immigrants who speak Farsi, Chinese, Spanish and Arabic have been seeking language, settlement and employment services at the centre.

“Most clients come to the centre seeking one service and end up using multiples because it’s all in one place,” she added.

There are a variety of reasons immigrants are choosing to live in Aurora, ranging from having a family member in town to landing in Toronto and heading north to find housing or for employment.

The changing demographics in Aurora are also reflected in a number of enhanced local events, Aurora special events co-ordinator Shelley Ware said.

“Changes to event programming are a result of multiple factors, including survey results, community feedback, council direction and changing demographics,” she added. “We are always looking at ways to make our events and programs more inclusive.”

The town strives to take existing events to embrace different cultures. For example, Family First Night crafts have incorporated themes from the Chinese calendar, multicultural festival showcases diverse cultures and Canada Day and Santa Under the Stars now feature multicultural performers, just to name a few. These efforts will continue into the future.

Teresa Latchford
by Teresa Latchford