When we meet francophones from Edmonton, Vancouver or Toronto, in particular, the fact is we see far fewer White Catholics from the St. Lawrence Valley among them. There are lots of people from around the world who live in Toronto and are part of the francophone community, because they're from an African country or North Africa where French is spoken. For the francophone communities, this is an important issue, because they would like immigrants to learn French and understand that it is possible to live one's life in French in Canada.
We can welcome and support immigrants in their own language and tell them that we provide services in French, and that there are things happening in French in Toronto. We can encourage them to get involved and to continue to live life in French in Toronto and Vancouver.
This is the kind of thing that is frequently asked of us. When we visit with francophone communities, particularly west of Ottawa, we are often asked how we can provide services to immigrants. Sometimes this contributes to increased numbers of francophones in a given region.