In the majority of situations in Canada, individuals marry people they grew up with or people they meet in social settings such as work, school or on the internet. However, in various religious and ethnic communities such as Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and South Asian communities, arranged marriages where the parents choose their children's spouses, are still common.

As we celebrated Black History month in February and the progress made in trying to achieve equality for all persons, it was also a time to reflect on another issue: the serious epidemic of racial profiling currently facing people of colour and other visible minorities from regions such as the Middle East and Asia.

Racial profiling has been defined by the Ontario Court of Appeal as criminal profiling based on race. It is when race plays a role in the decision of a police officer to stop, detain, investigate, and/ or arrest an individual.