SDG3: Good Health and Wellbeing
Understanding the systems that create cultural identity imbalance for racialized immigrant Canadians.
Alita Vaz
SDG3: Good Health and Wellbeing
Alita Vaz
Groups got a chance to answer a few questions about their topic and the exhibition.
Culture makes up an important part of each person’s identity. As a multicultural country, Canada is home to many immigrants of diverse cultures across the globe. Across these cultures, there are different values, traditions, beliefs and ways of interacting with other people. Many immigrant Canadians get stuck between deciding how much of their cultural identity they want to identify with, and how much they want to assimilate into Canadian culture. This is especially difficult for racialized immigrant groups, who already face discrimination in systems across the country, such as in schools and workplaces. These Canadians simply do not know who they are, often feeling that they are not enough for their ethnic culture or western culture. If not dealt with properly, a cultural identity crisis can impact mental health and affect future generations. As a multicultural country, we need to celebrate the diversity that makes up Canadians and integrate various cultures into our systems. Changing these systems starts with us.
MRU is located on the traditional territories of the Niitsitapi (Blackfoot) and the people of the Treaty 7 region in Southern Alberta, which includes the Siksika, the Piikani, the Kainai, the Tsuu T’ina and the Îyâxe Nakoda First Nations. The City of Calgary is also home to the Metis Nation of Alberta, Region III.