Treating the “Unequal Unequally”

Abstract

This chapter argues that the Canadian government's introduction of the parents and grandparents super visa program reinforces inequality by designating the wealthier as worthier citizens. One of the requirements to qualify for this program is proof that the child or grandchild in Canada meets a low-income cut-off minimum. The program ordains privileged citizenship by creating an exclusive membership restricted only to those who can afford it while precluding other citizens from the same right. Such a policy negates the notion of citizenship as conducive to a political community of equals who are entitled to the same rights and privileges. The study points out that the infiltration of consumerism into the fabric of citizenship is the core of the problem: citizenship has become a commodity. Citizens who are denied similar opportunities based on financial factors are marginalized and relegated to second-class citizenship. In contrast, those who do qualify become what the economist J.K. Galbraith calls the “contented majority.”