“It’s important to honour our ancestors,” said Jimmy Chan, president of Chan Associations Montreal, at the launch of a national campaign to establish a Chinese-Canadian heritage month. Zachary Cheung reports.
By Zachary Cheung (CityNews)
A national campaign to designate February as Chinese-Canadian Heritage Month officially launched in Montreal Friday, with organizers calling on Canadians to sign a parliamentary petition before it is tabled in the House of Commons this fall.
“Officially designating a Candian-Chinese Heritage Month at a national level would provide an opportunity for education, reflection, and celebration, helping to strengthen inclusion and understanding,” the petition reads.
The campaign is being led by United Against Hate Canada and will be officially launched during a Friday morning press conference at the Chinese Family Service of Greater Montreal.
Organizers say the initiative aims to recognize the contributions of Chinese-Canadians while acknowledging the discrimination the community has faced throughout Canada’s history.
“Parliament has adopted an apology, but having said that, we still don’t have a Canadian Chinese Heritage Month,” said Marvin Rotrand, director general of United Against Hate Canada.
Ontario is currently the only province that officially recognizes a Chinese-Canadian Heritage Month. Organizers say they hope a national designation would bring similar recognition across the country.
The parliamentary petition calls on the federal government to officially designate February as Canadian Chinese Heritage Month because it coincides with the Lunar New Year. It also cites the more than 1.8 million people of Chinese descent living in Canada and their role in “shaping Canada’s social fabric since the 1800s” and “contributing significantly to major nation-building projects,” including work on the Canadian Pacific Railway.
Supporters say other Asian communities have dedicated heritage months, but Chinese-Canadians do not.
“We cannot protect our heritage without having our own holidays, celebrations, anniversaries,” said Jimmy Chan, president of the Chan Associations Montreal.
The petition also points to historic injustices, including the Chinese Head Tax, a discriminatory fee charged exclusively to Chinese immigrants entering Canada to restrict their entry after the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway.
“The Head Tax got so onerous it was equivalent to three years’ wages for a worker,” Rotrand said.
The legalized discrimination of Chinese immigrants continued, Chan added, through the Chinese Immigration Act of 1923, a law replaced the Head Tax and banned nearly all Chinese immigration to the country, separating families for decades.
“When the CN rail was built, the government said, ‘Now we don’t need the Chinaman. You can all go home now,’” he said.
Amanda Yeung Collucci, a Markham, Ont. city councillor supporting the campaign, said recognizing Chinese-Canadian Heritage Month would also honour the workers who helped build Canada.
“The reason why we can go from coast to coast to coast is because the Chinese laid every single mile on that railroad,” she said.
The campaign has brought together 38 organizations across Canada and has already received support through 17 municipal motions, including in Toronto, Markham and Vancouver. Organizers say no municipality in Quebec has endorsed the initiative so far.
“The heritage month helps us know our neighbours better. We learn about their history,” Rotrand said.
Organizers said they are working with Liberal MP Michael Ma, who plans to table the petition in the House of Commons in September.
They say Ma has committed to introducing legislation before the end of the year, though organizers acknowledge it could take more than a year for the proposal to become law.
“We also want people to know the Chinese community isn’t all about restaurants and laundries,” Rotrand said.
