Celebrating Cultural Diversity in the Capital
The Province of BC and the Provincial Capital Commission are committed to acknowledging, respecting and celebrating the rich and diverse cultures calling British Columbia home.
Through educational initiatives such as our online Social Studies 4/5 unit or our videos featuring Chinatown, Jewish History, The Doukhobors and Black History, the Provincial Capital Commission recognizes the importance of remembering, honouring and celebrating the cultural mosaic of British Columbia.
Past initiatives include sponsorship of a province-wide Aboriginal Story Contest and support for the University of Victoria’s Multicultural Day.
Celebrating Aboriginal History & Culture
- PCC engages BC’s First People
- National Aboriginal Day in the Capital
- Signs of Lekwungen
- Aboriginal Veterans Day celebration
- North American Indigenous Games
- We Raise Our Hands: Stories from BC’s Capital
- Gitmaxmak’ay Nisga’a Dancers
Community Visits to the Capital:
Celebrating Asian History & Culture
- Historical Chinatown video
- Dragon Boat Festival
Documentaries
The Chinese Canadian Historical Society of BC has recently completed two videos: Cedar and Bamboo and 1788: A History of Chinese and First Nations Relations in BC. Chinese Canadians and First Nations people have an interesting history together in British Columbia that is largely unrecognized and unknown. The videos explore this historical relationship, providing past and present examples, including how Chinese were an important part of BC’s maritime history of first contact in 1788 at Yuquot (Friendly Cove. Both documentaries are produced by Gemini award-winning producer, writer and director, Karin Lee and co-produced by Jennifer Lau.
www.cchsbc.ca/
View the video teaser at: http://www.chinese-firstnations-relations.ca/index.html
Anniversaries of Change 2007 - Anti-Asian Race Riot Reconciliation
The Anniversaries of Change 2007 community coalition came together to host an East Asian, Chinese Reconciliation Dinner and Cultural evening in September, 2007. More than 700 people attended the event which was supported by the PCC through the work of its Aboriginal Liaison.
In 2009, Anniversaries of Change 2007 and the BC Teachers Federation completed provincially-accredited curriculum Pivotal Voices about the Sept 7, 1907 Anti-Asian Riots. PCC support for the project included participation on the steering committee and contributing to the First Nations (Musqueam) component of the history curriculum.
Cookbook:
Part history, part memoir and part cookbook, Eating Stories: A Chinese Canadian and Aboriginal Potluck was the third publication in a series published by the Chinese Canadian Historical Society. The Provincial Capital Commission sponsored two First Nations writers, including the PCC’s Aboriginal Liaison Harley Wylie, to attend writing workshops and contribute to the book.
Celebrating South Asian History & Culture
On July 23, 2008, the Komagata Maru Heritage Foundation partnered with the Anniversaries of Change to host a Komagata Maru Heritage Foundation Reconciliation Dinner and cultural event. It was attended by more than 450 people and included South Asian, East Asian and First Nation panel members. It marked the progress made since the Continuous Journey legislation was enacted in 1908 and since the 1914 Komagata Maru incident in Vancouver harbour.
