The Answer Is Yes, And Canada Is Thriving Because Of Immigrant’s Success As We Set To Celebrate Our 150th Birthday!
By Barj Dhahan
As we celebrate Canada’s sesquicentennial this year, let us consider the role of Indo-Canadians in building one of the greatest democracies in the world. From the blueberry and strawberry farms in British Columbia’s fertile Fraser Valley to the Centre Block of Parliament in Ottawa, and from small town lumber mills to the large corporate headquarters in Toronto, Indo-Canadians occupy positions of leadership and influence. We are as Canadian as anyone else.
Pablo Picasso, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, once said that “Action is the foundational key to all success.” Starting with the adventuresome pioneers nearly one hundred and twenty years ago, we have been working hard withunflinching determination to succeed in Canada. We stood up to the discriminatory immigration laws of the early 1900s. We challenged the notorious Continuous Passage Act which culminated with the infamous incident of the Komagata Maru in 1914. For nearly fifty long years weopposed and fought the systematic removal of our right to vote. Until 1947 we were barred from the professions of law, engineering and medicine, and prevented from owning property in certain parts of the country. Having overcome these barriers and obstacles we have become an integral and dynamic part of the great Canadian mosaic enriching the social, economic and political scape of Canada.
Today we account for nearly twenty per cent of all legal professionals in the country. In fact we are now law makers and judges. We serve on police boards and some are chiefs of police. From landowners to real estate developers we dominate residential construction, trucking and logistics industries. We are taxi drivers and technologists. While we continue in the traditions of our pioneers asfarmers and lumbermen, we are also teachers, mechanics, mathematicians, doctors and engineers. In British Columbia Indo-Canadians grow over eighty percent of the berries and sixty percent of fruits. We areinto food processing and technology start-ups. We are knowledge workers and knowledge generators. We are Canada Research Chairs and university presidents. We are innovators and sustainable infrastructure designers and builders. From a village boy who became a premier to the many who are serving as municipal counsellors, provincial legislators and federal cabinet ministers, we are shaping Canada’s politics, policies and programs affecting the daily lives of all Canadians. Among us are Olympians, hockey and football players, comedians and entertainers, authors and journalists, broadcasters and film makers, and movie stars and fashion models. In the world of finance and corporate board rooms we are in prominent executive roles. From Chief Executive Officers of Canada Post and TD Bank, Indo-Canadiansare leading the massive technological innovation taking place in the delivery of services.
Diwali, Vaisakhi and Eid are celebrated across Canada as are Christmas and Hanukah. The twin sisters of Yoga and Ayurveda, India’s ancient pathways to healthare devotionally followed from Osoyoos to Oshawa. Hockey Night in Canada in Punjabi is an example of how far we have come. And today the President of Canada’s most iconic brand Tim Hortons is a son of Indian immigrants. Are we successful? Absolutely!Is Canada thriving? Without a doubt!
