Canada is one of the most diverse nations in all of the world. I cherish our nation’s policies and welcoming of individuals of all religions, cultures, and races. In Vancouver I am lucky to be exposed to a number of different cultures; I have met a number of very different people because of the diversity found in Vancouver.
With every interaction, I gain a different perspective that allows me to have a greater understanding of cultures around the world. The truth about diversity is that a number of different groups of people will be minorities. In Canada’s case, white Canadians still are the majority population. However, the balance is slowly shifting to different groups e.g. (Chinese, African, and Vietnamese Canadians) especially in our largest population centers. During the past few weeks, we have been studying the minorities of Canada to answer the question:
How has the “Canadian Experience” been different for minorities?
Below is our final product I’d recommend you give it a listen.
The sounds of Chinatown explored the first part of the journey. To be clear, it was not my best of work in terms of quality and of story, but it was a very important opportunity for me practice podcast editing to continue to improve my storytelling ability. The sounds of Chinatown told the story of the tour we took in Chinatown with Judy Lam Maxwell.
When recording the podcast I couldn’t help but notice the differences in life in neighborhoods in Vancouver. It made me think about how different my life is different for someone living around the world; the different places, cultures, and activities I am exposed to are very different. The people of Chinatown have the clans and families that produce a very strong sense of community. This is something that you don’t really see in such an organized manner in Deep Cove.
An interesting concept that I explored this unit was positionality. I have always have had a strong opinion about how much your life experiences affect who you are and this paper gave me the opportunity to share this opinion in a formal and organized manner. During the essay, the goal was to tie your position to your experience’s with literature.
The places I have access to has had an impact on my definition of peace, which ultimately influences the imagery I interpret in stories before writing the essay, I was given many prompts where confronted specific parts of my location, age, and class. Through these prompts, I felt a deeper appreciation for my advantages that I have in my life. I don’t often think about how Deep Cove has been an influence on my life even though it has such a strong impact on me. Growing up near the forest has given me access to a peaceful paradise that has guided my opinions on peace and serenity; leading my experiences to books that may share that peace using the strong imagery of the forest.
Another prompt lead me to consider how my age has influenced my position. I found it very interesting to think about how having younger, still developing mind has had an influence on my life. Personally, my young mind has to lead me to enjoy stories that share a new view or perspective.
During the essay, one point that I found myself thinking about even a week after writing the essay is how access to sports has shaped the stories I connect to. Being able to participate in a variety of sports has allowed me to gain a very deep appreciation for the story of triumph and hard work. I really find that I look someone that was able to overcome the hardest of challenges, fighting for their worth and at every step. I find myself admiring those stories because I understand the challenge and hardship they must have faced to reach their goals. These lessons and leadership I gain through these stories are having an influence in my life as I model myself after these individuals.
For the project, my group and I were to create a part of the podcast that centered around the story of Japenese Canadians through the years. We split the podcast into sections so that we didn’t overlap our points giving the interview to one editor. We communicated to make sure that our part’s flowed well and built off of each other, using music and fading to help create a cohesive experience. My group consisted of Melika, Jamie, and Marshall
It’s very easy to find myself reading stories about the past. I find history that connects to my life today is especially interesting. Studying the Japenese immigrants I was given that opportunity to study and read about something that I had a personal connection. During these times of connections, I do my best work because I am able to put deep, meaningful thought into it.
While scripting my parts I found myself lost in the story thinking letting my mind wander pondering the stories I read. I found it rather difficult to translate my thoughts into a piece of work that represents my reflection. I found myself reflecting on how the people in support of the racist policies during WWII and before. I found it extremely alarming that BC was so unaccepting of other races when today that could not be further from the truth. It is hard to believe that the people of Vancouver went from accepting policies like internment camps to welcoming thousands of immigrants from around the world to our city. I never really was able to put anything along those lines into my podcast. It disappoints me that I was unable to share that opinion of mine meaningfully.
Garage Band
I can’t say it is my favorite app to work with but while editing the podcast I noticed how useful some of the features on GarageBand are. It is certainly frustrating when it isn’t reacting or responding the way I want it to.
However, the features are a big advantage; the more I use them the more I will improve. Overall I plan to continue working GarageBand getting a better feel for how I can use each feature to my advantage creating a higher quality podcast.
How has the “Canadian Experience” been different for minorities?
The Canadain experience is going to be different for anyone living in all of Canada, but that quality is what makes Canada such a great country. Because we are willing to accept and keep our doors open we remain open to change and diversity that other countries may be missing out on. By allowing other cultures to intermingle with our own the Canadian experience grows with it; not losing its image but gaining a new angle or perspective. Minorities will always feel out of place in some way, but with programs, the government has put in place it gives opportunities for immigrants of all cultures to begin to add to our Canadain experience in their own meaningful way.
