Whether it's through art or food, or something else entirely, immigrant communities have changed the fabric of this country's culture, becoming part of the story Canadians tell about themselves. But too often the intertwining of these stories goes unnoticed.
Take food. It can serve as an unassuming gateway to learning about and understanding different cultures and practices, while becoming a part of people's lives, their routines and celebrations.
Most small towns across Canada had a Chinese food restaurant. "It was where people gathered, where they went, and it was often their first experience of Chineseness," says York University English Professor Lily Cho, author of Eating Chinese: Culture on the Menu in Small Town Canada.
"One of the things that struck me when I started university was how interesting it was that I saw Chinese immigrants contributing to the country, not just economically, but also culturally, really changing what we think of when we think Canada, and contributing to that conversation in ways that were really not visible," says Cho, whose research often explores the cultural richness that immigrants bring to Canada.
She is one of this year's Dorothy Killam Fellowship winners, part of the National Killam Program administered and delivered by the National Research Council. Since 1968, several mid-career scholars are awarded the annual Fellowship. It is a gift, says Cho, that she is immensely grateful for as it will allow her to focus solely on her newest research project for the next couple of years exploring the work and contributions of Chinese Canadian artists.
Cho joins an exclusive club of about 30 fellowships that have been awarded to English scholars over the years with York's Department of English in the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies claiming three of them, including previous winners Professors Christopher Innes and Deanne Williams. York can also boast several past winners of the Killam Prize - Professors Christina Sharpe, Carl James, Janine Marchessault, Stephen Gillepsie, Ellen Bialystok and Harry Arthurs.
Cho's first book, Eating Chinese, looked at the conundrum of how people would talk about the small-town Chinese restaurants as a disappearing space. Although, as a Chinese Canadian, that was not her experience. "They remained vibrant and important parts of the community, real engines of cultural production and conversation in these communities." Everyone she spoke to had positive memories of their local Chinese restaurant.
Almost every small town tucked into the furthest nooks and crannies of this country had one and it often gave restaurant goers their first brush with Chinese culture. In exchange, they also defined Canadian food. Through menus, one side listing Chinese dishes, the other Canadian, Canada's culture was reflected back through its dishes, defined largely through the eyes of immigrants.
