On the morning commute, or indeed whenever I ride the SkyTrain, I am struck by the image of the many hands clasping the central stand for support. The hands are of various shades with adornments that clothe the bodies more often than not with a nod to contemporary culture, but sometimes with hints of another country of origin or influence.

This scene is a common experience shared in many urban cores across the globe, and it reflects the essence of multiculturalism at play: a hybrid of sorts, a balance struck between origins and the present moment. However, the fact that I become cognizant of this process on transport is a fact I can’t ignore, perhaps because the metaphor of a journey is the way I experience multiculturalism, the movement of people and culture, and perhaps because it is also my own story – a journey that can take on different paths.

Come take a cultural voyage. | Photo by Andy E. Nystrom, Flickr

I am a product of Canadian multiculturalism. My parents came to Canada from two different continents, met here and had me. This was the beginning of the journey as far as my existence goes, but it also speaks of a past –

the past of my parents, one that stretches back to different cultures and societies rich in their own pasts and histories. Part of my personal quest has been to understand this mix in myself, but while I do this, I am also forced to think about the stories and histories that have brought people around me to their place in this moment.

The fact is, in that carriage on the morning commute we most certainly have a form of global representation and with that comes global knowledge. How we access that knowledge is our personal mission.

I have two experiences of multicultural societies to compare with each other, with arguably different outcomes. The first is England, where I was brought up. There, I encountered a hegemonic host culture that defined and set out clear behavioural expectations. Although not politically or publically stated, the success of the immigrant depends almost entirely on their ability to assimilate. I will admit that the centuries old Anglo Saxon culture, in some cases, did provide a clear rudder to steer through life, but it is reaching a crisis in today’s world and as a result society is very stratified.

Second, in Vancouver and Canada at large, while there is a dominant mainstream culture, the edges are blurred and there is a greater flexibility in what success means. The one maxim that was quoted to me when I came back to Canada was, “We are all immigrants.” This doesn’t mean Canadian society is perfectly egalitarian. The legacies of colonial rule and situations where we cannot deny the continued existence of racial biases are still evident, but what we can do is lay a foundation for what a future could be – that is, a framework of tolerance and genuine respect for culture.

The future has not been written, but while it is upheld by the citizens of Vancouver and Canada at large, it can keep redefining itself to be inclusive. There is an impatience on the part of older, established cultures to define Canadian culture, but what is being cultivated is something very rich and very good, if we can let it be. I now look to municipal power and governance to help encourage this tolerance and richness by providing museums, workshops and monuments to the origins and cultures of its citizens. So, the central SkyTrain stand can be more than just rhetoric and truly support the endeavours of citizens.