[van-announce] Events: Century of South Asian Presence

[Harsha]

** For full program details, please visit:
http://southasianevents.blogspot.com/

Commemorating a Century of South Asian Presence in Canada
Events from November 17-23, 2008

South Asians first arrived in Canada at the end of the nineteenth century,
and by 1908, approximately 5,000 were reported to be resident in British
Columbia. That year, the Canadian government introduced the Continuous
Journey requirement seeking to prohibit further South Asian migration into
the country. In 1914, Gurdit Singh, a Punjabi, chartered the Komagata Maru
and a group of 376 South Asians passengers sailed to Canada to challenge
this racist law. Although they were forced to return to India, they dealt
a serious blow to the 'Keep Canada White' policies of the white settler
society.

A group of South Asian academics, activists and community groups have come
together to organize a week-long series of events in November (17- 23),
2008, to mark over one hundred years of South Asian presence in Canada,
and to commemorate the 100th year anniversary of the Continuous Journey
requirement. These events will pay homage to the struggles waged by South
Asian communities in the past, celebrate our achievements, and build
alliances as we face the challenges of the 21st century.

Please mark your calenders for a series of events - all details on website:

- Film screenings of award-winning film maker Ali Kazimi, in attendance
- Toronto youth activist and keynote speaker Kabir Joshi-Vijayan
- Community forums at Langara College and Kwantlen College
- South Asian Performance Art and Poetry
- Academic Colloquiums at UBC and University of the Fraser Valley
- Media Roundtable on Representation of South Asians

Organizers: Sunera Thobani, Indira Prahst, Harsha Walia.

For general and media inquiries, please email southasianevents at gmail.com
Web: http://southasianevents.blogspot.com/


We would like to acknowledge that we reside on the lands of the Indigenous
peoples / First Nations and support them in their ongoing struggle for
self determination from racist settler-colonialism.