Current Projects

I’ve Not Always Been Canadian
Belonging Storytelling Forums

Sunday, March 5, 2:30pm – 6pm @Cedar Hill Rec. Centre, 3220 Cedar Hill Rd
Wednesday, March 22, 6pm – 9pm @ICA, 930 Balmoral Rd
Friday, April 7, 5:30pm – 9pm @ICA, 930 Balmoral Rd
Saturday, May 6, 1pm – 4:30pm @Cedar Hill Rec. Centre, 3220 Cedar Hill Rd

Are you a newcomer to Canada? A recently arrived refugee or immigrant, or one who arrived in the distant past?

As part of Canada’s 150 year celebrations, we’d like to invite you to share your story of arrival and settlement in Canada at one of the four Storytelling Forums above. The reality of fully embracing a Canadian identity can be daunting and ICA wants to create a healthy space for newcomers and established immigrants to articulate what it means to “belong” and to be “Canadian” – what it feels like to be seen/not seen as “other” because of how one looks, talks or prays.

The Storytelling Forums will be part of a larger refugee and immigrant photo essay project centered around the question, “What makes you feel Canadian?”. Select stories from the forums will be translated into portraits that give broader meaning to the idea of being Canadian and will be presented at an interactive launch event on November 23, 2017 at the Royal BC Museum. Our goal is to capture a fuller expression of Canadian identity, one that increases public awareness and facilitates a deeper understanding of our community’s cultural, ethnic and religious diversity.

We can never get a re-creation of community and heal our society without giving our citizens a sense of belonging – Patch Adams

Project Facilitators: Theatre Director, Lina de Guevara and Photojournalist, Quinton Gordon.

Registration is required. Please identify clearly which Storytelling Forum you wish to attend and additional details will be provided on confirmation. To register (free) and for more information, please contact: Paulina Grainger, ICA Arts & Outreach Coordinator, pgrainger@icavictoria.org

Aligned with ICA’s mandate the Storytelling Forums aim to create a space for newcomers, immigrants and refugees of all backgrounds, regardless of colour, race, sexual orientation, religion, culture, age and (dis)abilities.

This initiative is made possible by the Community Fund for Canada’s 150^th, a collaboration between the Victoria Foundation, the Government of Canada, and extraordinary leaders from coast to coast.