Latin American Canadians are Canadian citizens of Latin American descent or persons of Latin American descent residing in Canada. Latin American is the term used by Statistics Canada. Other terms used sometimes are "Latino Canadian" and "Latin Canadian". Latin Canadians comprised 1.2% of the population in 2011.
The majority of Latin American Canadians are multilingual, primarily speaking Spanish or Portuguese. Most are fluent in one or both of Canada's two official languages, English and French. Spanish, Portuguese and French are Romance languages and share some similarities in morphology and syntax.
Latin Canadians have made distinguished contributions to Canada in all major fields, including politics, the military, music, philosophy, sports, business and economy, and science.
The largest Latin American immigrant groups in Canada are Mexican Canadians, Colombian Canadians and Salvadoran Canadians.
The majority of Latin American Canadians are recent immigrants who arrived in the late 20th century from El Salvador, Colombia, Mexico, Chile, and Guatemala, with smaller communities from the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Ecuador, and elsewhere, with nearly all Latin American countries represented. Reasons for immigrating include Canada's better economic opportunities and politics or civil war and political repression in their native countries, as in the case of Cubans fleeing from the Fidel Castro revolution, Chileans escaping from Augusto Pinochet's rule, Salvadorans fleeing from the Salvadoran Civil War, Peruvians escaping from the Juan Velasco Alvarado dictatorship, Dominicans opposed to the regimes of Rafael Trujillo and Joaquin Balaguer, Mexicans escaping from the Mexican Drug War, Colombians from the violence in their country and Venezuelans opposed to the rule of the Socialist Unity Party.
The largest Latin American Canadian communities are in the census metropolitan areas of Toronto (99,290), Montreal (75,400), Vancouver (22,695), Calgary (13,415), and Ottawa (10,630), and there are rapidly growing ones in the provinces of Alberta, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia.
a The number of Dominican Republic immigrants compared to Dominica immigrants is not specified, due to both countries using the term "Dominican".Source: Canada 2011 Census
National average: 1.2%
Calgary (7000180000000000000♠1.8%)Edmonton (7000170000000000000♠1.7%)Wood Buffalo (7000160000000000000♠1.6%)Red Deer (7000130000000000000♠1.3%)New Westminster (7000180000000000000♠1.8%)Burnaby (7000170000000000000♠1.7%)Greater Vancouver A (7000170000000000000♠1.7%)Vancouver (7000160000000000000♠1.6%)Coquitlam (7000150000000000000♠1.5%)Brandon (7000440000000000000♠4.4%)Toronto (7000280000000099999♠2.8%)London (7000270000000000000♠2.7%)Leamington (7000270000000000000♠2.7%)Kitchener (7000270000000000000♠2.7%)Brampton (7000220000000000000♠2.2%)Mississauga (7000220000000000000♠2.2%)Vaughan (7000210000000000000♠2.1%)Milton (7000200000000000000♠2%)St. Catharines (7000150000000000000♠1.5%)Hamilton (city) (7000140000000099999♠1.4%)Montreal (7000420000000000000♠4.2%)Dorval (7000320000000000000♠3.2%)Brossard (7000310000000000000♠3.1%)Longueuil (7000250000000000000♠2.5%)Laval (7000250000000000000♠2.5%)Saint-Lambert (7000230000000099999♠2.3%)Châteauguay (7000210000000000000♠2.1%)Westmount (7000180000000000000♠1.8%)Dollard-des-Ormeaux (7000160000000000000♠1.6%)Côte Saint-Luc (7000160000000000000♠1.6%)Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue (7000160000000000000♠1.6%)Sherbrooke (7000140000000099999♠1.4%)La Prairie (7000140000000099999♠1.4%)Addictiv, R&B singerEva Avila, pop singer and 2006 Canadian Idol winnerBoogat, rapperFito Blanko, tropical/urban singer-songwriter, born in PanamaKeshia Chanté, R&B singer and co-host of BET's 106 & ParkJosé Miguel Contreras, rock musician and lead vocalist of By Divine RightCriollo, hip-hop groupBeto Cuevas, rock musician and former lead vocalist of La LeyLhasa de Sela, folk musicianCarlos del Junco, harmonica player, member of the Cuban del Junco familyQuique Escamilla, Mexican-born musicianCarole Facal, rock musicianAlberto Guerrero, music composer and pianist, born in ChileDJ Kemo, producer and DJ for hip-hop group RascalzTom Landa, Mexican-born folk-rock musicianOscar Lopez, flamenco musician, born in ChileAdonis Puentes, singer-songwriterAlexis Puentes, musician known by the stage name Alex CubaAlejandra Ribera, singer-songwriterRodrigo Bascuñán, author and journalist, born in ChileGloria Escomel, writer and journalist born in UruguayGabriela Etcheverry, poet and novelist, born in ChileJosé Latour, novelist, born in CubaJuan Chioran, stage actor, born in ArgentinaCarlos Díaz, television and film actor, born in ChileOna Grauer, television and film actress, born in MexicoFlora Martínez, actressPaola Nunez Valdez, Miss Universe Canada 2015, born in Dominican RepublicEmma Rabbe, television and film actressKlea Scott, television and film actress, born in PanamaJorgito Vargas, Jr., actor (of Bolivian and Argentinian descent)Bruce Chun, cinematographer, born in MexicoFederico Hidalgo, filmmaker and film professorCarlos Arturo Castaño, portrait photographer, born in Colombia.Gloria Margarita Castaño, portrait photographer, exhibitions: born in Colombia.Paulina Ayala, former MP for Honore-Mercier (New Democratic Party), born in ChileEstefania Cortes-Vargas, Canadian politician, elected in the Alberta general election, 2015 to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, representing the electoral district of Strathcona-Sherwood Park, born in ColombiaTed Cruz, U.S. Senator from Texas since 2013, of Cuban descentJoseph Facal, former minister in Quebec (Parti Québécois), born in UruguayMiguel Figueroa, leader and President of the Communist Party of CanadaAndrés Fontecilla, leader of Québec solidaire, born in ChileRod Loyola, Canadian politician, elected in the Alberta general election, 2015 to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, representing the electoral district of Edmonton-Ellerslie, born in ChileSergio Marchi, former MP (Liberal Party of Canada), born in ArgentinaRicardo Miranda, Canadian politician, elected in the Alberta general election, 2015 to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, representing the electoral district of Calgary-Cross, born in NicaraguaOsvaldo Nunez, former MP (Bloc Québécois), born in ChileCesar Palacio, first Hispanic person elected to the Toronto City Council, born in EcuadorSaul Polo, MNA in Quebec, born in ColombiaPablo Rodríguez, MP for Honore-Mercier (Liberal Party of Canada), born in ArgentinaVic Toews, Member of Parliament for Provencher (Conservative Party of Canada), born in ParaguayScience and technology
Ivar Mendez, MD surgeon,Professor and Chairman of Surgery at the University of Saskatchewan, born in BoliviaManuel Buchwald, geneticist and academic, born in PeruRafael Lozano-Hemmer, electronic artist, born in MexicoRafael Bienvenido Cruz, Christian preacher, public speaker, and father of Ted Cruz, born in CubaMichel Acosta, professional soccer player, born in UruguayOscar Albuquerque, former professional soccer player, born in PeruKeven Aleman, professional soccer player, born in Costa RicaManny Aparicio, professional soccer player, born in ArgentinaMauro Biello, former professional soccer player, current assistant coach of the Montreal ImpactMarco Bustos, professional soccer playerMiguel Cañizalez, professional soccer player, born in El SalvadorLucas Cavallini, professional soccer playerOscar Cordon, professional soccer playerMarco Dominguez, professional soccer playerKianz Froese, professional soccer player, born in CubaManny Gomez, professional soccer player, born in ArgentinaCristián Gutiérrez, professional soccer playerAnthony Jackson-Hamel, professional soccer playerJuan Cruz Mascia, professional soccer playerRosa Mendes, WWE Diva and professional wrestlerJuan Mendez, professional basketball playerIvan Menjivar, mixed martial artistArturo Miranda, professional diver, born in CubaDavid Monsalve, professional soccer playerCristian Nuñez, professional soccer playerJonathan Osorio, professional soccer playerCarlos Patino, professional soccer player, born in ColombiaWilli Plett, professional hockey player, NHLRobyn Regehr, professional hockey player, NHLBryce Salvador, professional hockey player, NHLDavis Sanchez, professional football player, CFL and NFLIsidro Sánchez Macip, professional soccer player, born in MexicoO. J. Santiago, professional football player, NFL and CFLEduardo Sebrango, former professional soccer player, born in CubaOscar Taveras, late professional baseball player in MLB, born in the Dominican RepublicRaffi Torres, professional hockey player, NHLIn 2002, 82% of those who reported Latin American origin said they had a strong sense of belonging to Canada. At the same time, 57% said that they had a strong sense of belonging to their ethnic or cultural group.
People with Latin American origins are also active in Canadian society. For example, 66% of Canadians of Latin American origin who were eligible to vote did so in the 2000 federal election.
The Latin American community of Quebec was brought into the spotlight when 18-year-old Honduran immigrant Fredy Alberto Villanueva was shot and killed by police officers of the SPVM on 9 August 2008. The following day, what started out as a peaceful protest against the officers' actions in the borough of Montréal-Nord erupted into a riot in which neighborhood stores were looted, several cars and garbage cans were set on fire, one paramedic and two police officers were wounded and one female police officer was shot.
