Nguyen, Yip, Valdez, Al Soud share families’ stories of immigrating to Canada

There is a record number of 53 MPs from minority backgrounds in the Commons, representing 15.7 per cent of the total number of seats. That percentage is still below the 26.3 percentage of visible minorities in the general population. But the increase in the last election was outstanding.

Liberal MPs Chi Nguyen, left, Jean Yip, Rechie Valdez, and Fares Al Soud each recently told their own story about immigrating to Canada and shared their family struggles, too, writes Sheila Copps. The Hill Times photographs by Chelsea Nash, Andrew Meade, and Stuart Benson

Opinion

BY SHEILA COPPS

May 11, 2026

OTTAWA —May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada. And in a speech last Tuesday to a diverse audience at the National Gallery of Canada, Canadian Identity and Culture Minister Marc Miller revealed a surprising number.

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