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As the world’s second largest continent, Africa, with its multiplicity of history, peoples and cultures, is still often misunderstood. In one of his dissertations, African historian Paul Tiyambe Zeleza suggests that the interchangeable use of the term “Africa” with “Sub-Saharan Africa” ultimately gives a racialized view of Africa as the “black” continent. In other words, Africa is often viewed along ethnic lines.
There is a growing demand for ethnic faces in the modeling industry, and Vancouver’s eclectic culture provides some of the most diverse-looking models sought after by agencies around the world.
“We have a wonderful melting pot here,” says Tricia Romani, 41, owner and agency director of Vancouver-based InspirationALL Talent and Modeling Group. “Through the generations we’re seeing a lot more mixed partnerships and marriages, and we’re getting more and more children coming up that are mixed races.”
Prospective immigrants have it tough. They must make the difficult decision to migrate, perform research about their destination, and tie up loose ends in their home country before departing. Adding to this difficult and expensive process is the act of moving itself. It is no wonder that many people are turning to others for help.
However, Meetup groups are not for everyone. Singapore-born Kane Tan, a Vancouver resident of at least 24 years, is uncomfortable with the idea of using services like Meetup to make friends.
For 21-year-old Salina Dhar-amsi, a member of the Ismaili community in Vancouver, volunteering started early. She was eight years old when she first helped out at her local mosque. It was something that anchored her, she says, and enabled her to give back to her mosque and the community at large.
Takako Kobayashi, is a Japanese international student, who moved to Vancouver six months ago to learn English. She believes that Japan has a better recycling system than Vancouver, and that Vancouver should have programs educating newcomers about being green and how to recycle effectively.
Leanna Maslyuk, and six local mothers have formed a group called the Veronika Children Leukemia Foundation. They created this organization to help children in need of medical care in former Soviet Union countries, like Ukraine.
It has been just over one year since the creation of the independent nation of South Sudan. This new country, which chose to separate from Sudan following a referendum supported by well over 90 per cent of the region’s population, held high hopes that legal, economic and religious autonomy would usher in a new era of peace and prosperity. Since its inception, both peace and prosperity have been elusive targets.
If you find yourself in downtown Montreal this June 24th, you will see large crowds of Quebecois waving flags and singing songs with gusto. What you will be observing is not the latest student protest, but rather the celebration of Saint-Jean Baptiste Day, Quebec’s fête nationale (national holiday).
One day my husband bought me paint and an easel,” says Iryna Nikitinska on first taking up art in Canada. “The same day my children asked me to draw a dragon.” Nikitinska and her family moved to Vancouver from Ukraine in 2002.Although she had always been interested in drawing, she did not feel she could be an artist in Ukraine.
Salomé Fornier Hanlon, 23, was born and raised in North Vancouver. She is the treasurer of the North Vancouver Folkfest, a festival that has been running since 1974. Folkfest aims to preserve, promote and enrich cultural identities while promoting greater cultural interaction among ethnic groups and by including as many ethno-cultural people in one place as possible.
On Sunday, June 10, “Little Italy” on Commercial Drive will spring to life in an extravaganza of food, music, dance, art, sport, and entertainment. “This is an opportunity,” Brunella Gaudio of the Italian Day Festival Society says, “to revive and remind people of the Italian heritage and culture in Vancouver, and to recognize the accomplishments of the new generation of Italian-Canadians.” [Read more…]
