OTTAWA (CP) - Ethnic groups who have suffered racism throughout Canadian history will get $25 million from the federal government for awareness programs about how they were wronged.
That cash - announced in the federal budget - will be spent over three years by community groups who want Canadians to remember some of the more shameful episodes in the country's history.
The money will only go to groups, not to individuals, and will be limited to ethnic groups who were targets of racist policy by the federal government.
Examples include the head tax on Chinese immigrants, the internment of Italians and Ukrainians during the world wars, and other policies against Jews, Germans and Sikhs.
Japanese-Canadians interned during the Second World War were already compensated in the 1980s and will not have access to the new fund.
More details will be known over the coming weeks as the federal government invites community groups to discuss how they would like to commemorate some of their more painful memories.
"We're making sure the stories are known," said one federal official.
"We want to talk to communities to see how we can design a response they feel would be appropriate . . .
"It is helping people say: 'We can move on.' "
The government also announced it will spend $56 million over five years on another anti-racism plan called A Canada for All.
That plan will be officially launched in a few weeks and will act as an umbrella program for existing multicultural initiatives.
Ottawa also announced Wednesday that it will renew a series of funds that were scheduled to expire this year.
Those include a $60-million quality-programming fund for the CBC, and $172 million a year over four years for the Tomorrow Starts Today arts and culture program.
Ottawa has also renewed - and made permanent - the $10 million a year set aside for celebration-of-Canada events, $4.5 million for the Centre for Research and Information on Canada, and $46 million over five years for Parks Canada.
Part of that parks money will help create a national register of historic places.
� The Canadian Press 2005