May is Asian Heritage Month

Good morning everyone,

May is  "Asian Heritage Month" I and  many others, especially our Asian Sisters and Brothers,  encourage everyone to learn more about this month and  celebrate the contributions of Asian-Canadians to Canada!

 

Asian Heritage Month celebrates people who come from, or whose ancestors came from, East Asia  - China, Hong Kong, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, Taiwan; South Asia - Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka; Central Asia - Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan; and Southeast Asia - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam.

This is meaningful personally as my background is connected in two ways;  I came from Southeast Asia (Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia ) with Chinese ancestry.  When I first got here, there were lots to learn, some of which were about the country (including the provinces and territories), the people, the government and its laws, education system and human rights.  On the other hand, my immigration to Canada  has given a chance for Canadians to learn about the unique aspects of Southeast Asian and Chinese culture.  Today, as Canadians, we appreciate that Canada remains and continues to be a country of Asian-Canadian diversity with  many different ethnicities, languages and traditions.
 

Now, as a Asian-British Columbian, I am pleased to share with you that on Monday, May 7th, seventy years later, the Province of  British Columbia formally apologized today to the Japanese-Canadian community for the internment of thousands of people during the Second World War.  For more details, please refer to http://cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2012/05/07/bc-japanese-...
                                                                     
Enjoy reading and have a great week.

Thanks.

Solidarity,

Jennifer Chieh Ho
Geographical Co-Ordinator for West Fraser Valley, PSAC BC Regional Council

Regional Vice President, BC and Yukon Region, Union of National Employees