What is the role that AAPI communities and individuals can play as allies, and where do we fit in a historical context that sets us up as a model minority? While we experience racism in so many ways, especially in fulfilling expectations as the model minority or exotic other, what does it mean to prioritize AAPI history and experiences in a world where there are so many intersectional groups seeking to do the same? How do we ensure that our outcomes inform the work of like-minded racialized groups so that progress is made across the board?
The Toronto Ward Museum’s project, Block by Block, explored how immigration and settlement created the diverse communities that make Toronto the global city it is today. We worked with diverse groups to help foster a sense of community across demographics and cultural identities. We sought to centre’s community, and tell each story with the hope that audiences would connect with it on a personal level, seeing their experience reflected in others.
As the General Manager and Fundraiser at the Toronto Ward Museum, and as a Chinese-Canadian, I bring insights on how oral histories are collected and expressed in a multicultural context. While I personally identify with stories that deal directly with the East Asian immigration experience, there is a tension between prioritizing stories of people like me and stories and experiences of other groups facing similar issues at different scales. I bring an inclusive lens to my work that I hope to bring to this group, and I would like to learn more about how others feel about allyship, and what it looks like. I am especially interested in this topic as Canada continues to move slowly towards Truth and Reconciliation with Indigenous communities across the nation.
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