​By Muskan Sandhu

Several media outlets shed light on the historically repetitive nature of police brutality and injustice towards Black people. Yvonne Sam of the Caribbean news outlet Pride, published from Ontario, wrote: “Another day in the United States of America; another White cop around; another Black man, face down on the ground; another mournful alert, about failing breath — all translated into yet, another death….For far too long, Black humanity has been denied on American soil.” 

Similarly, on the Harjinder Thind Show, a Punjabi radio program aired on Red FM 93.1 from Vancouver, Thind commented that, “if America is burning today”, it is because of the complete denial of justice over the years in the institutional murders of Michael Brown, Eric Garner, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and the lynching of Rodney King.  

The Portuguese newspaper Correio da Manha from Toronto pointed out that even though the world is preoccupied with COVID-19, long-standing issues are alive and kicking: “When we thought that there was no room for issues other than the COVID-19 pandemic today, we remember that structural problems may be temporarily hushed up, but they are still there.”

The Canadian prime minister may have had to bite his tongue in commenting on the neighbouring country’s president, but ethnic media outlets have not held back from denouncing, in straightforward terms, US President Donald Trump’s attitude. Vancouver’s Chinese newspaper Van People condemned Trump’s leadership during the pandemic and his prejudice against African Americans. 

Eric Sifuentes from Toronto’s CHIN 91.9 FM Spanish program said that the situation is being exacerbated by the inflammatory comments of Donald Trump and some US governors have even asked Trump to please shut up. The Harjinder Thind Show pointed out that the president’s comment, “when the looting starts, the shooting starts,” is an echo of the statement made by a tyrannical police officer in the 1960s. Indeed, a chilling reminder of the legacy of Black oppression.

The media’s engagement hasn’t been a unilateral one either, and it’s actively participating in the process of introspection necessitated by such events. There is a call to look within their own respective communities and address uncomfortable, unspoken prejudices. Van People noted that “racial discrimination will only be eliminated when all discriminated races come together to fight”, adding that “if Chinese people value their Canadian identity, then they should value peace in the community and say no to racial discrimination.”

On the TV channel OMNI News: Punjabi Edition from Toronto, a Punjabi woman who participated in the protest in Toronto asked, “If we do not support one another, who will support us?” Meanwhile a student noted that: “People should talk with their family members at the dinner table about how we are complicit [in racist attitudes].” The host on the show added that this conversation should start in the school system and “parents should go to the school board meetings and listen to the perspectives of Black parents.” 

In a similar vein, Wati Rehmat from Muslim Connect, a pan-Canada news platform for Muslim Canadians, wrote that it is great that the Muslim community comes out in outrage when crimes such as the murder of George Floyd occur. However, the community needs to reflect upon and address its own anti-Blackness and shadeism - “It is a slippery slope from when you regard someone with a darker skin as inferior or less desirable to tragically de-valuing Black lives.” Rehmat’s comments are incisive in the larger context of the deep-rooted desire for a fair complexion prevalent in several postcolonial nations. ​

The message across diverse media, then, is unadulterated: Black Lives Matter. 

​TV - OMNI News: Punjabi Edition - Toronto, 02/06/2020 - FEATURE, Punjabi

​WEB - Van People - Vancouver, 03/06/2020 - ARTICLE, Chinese

Summary Translation: Career Engine - African American George Floyd’s death has led to a series of protests in the United States. Recently, this movement has made its way to Canada. In the video footage, the viewers can clearly hear Floyd crying: “I can’t breathe, please.” Unfortunately, the cop was not moved by his plea and Floyd passed away as a result. The image of a black man being knelt to death by a white cop was too symbolic, it has angered the black community. What should Chinese people do? There are currently two types of trending calls to action. One calls for Chinese people to step up and support the Black community and say no to racial discrimination. Racial discrimination will only be eliminated when all discriminated races come together to fight. Another voice suggests that the Chinese are in a lower class than the Blacks in North America. If the Chinese stands up for the blacks, then who would stand up for the Chinese? This year is the American election, who knows if these protests are organized as a trap? When there is news about the Chinese being discriminated against, the community is always very fragmented. There are two reactions, the Chinese people either speak up immediately or pretend they don’t know anything. The author says if Chinese people value their Canadian identity, then they should value peace in the community and say no to racial discrimination.
Link to original story: https://info.vanpeople.com/?action-viewnews-catid-51-itemid-1081773

​

WEB - Muslim Link  - Ottawa, 29/05/2020 - Analysis, English
​

​Summary: Wati Rahmat - “The beauty of anti-racism is that you don’t have to pretend to be free of racism to be anti-racist. Anti-racism is the commitment to fight racism wherever you find it, including in yourself. And it’s the only way forward.”- Ijeomo Oluo, African American anti-racism activist I want to be brutally honest. When a heinous crime like the death of George Floyd happens, we see Muslim community members come up readily in outrage and you see posts crying for justice. This is great and it is what should happen. As I too grieve this senseless loss of life and as George's pleas of "I can't breathe" repeat painfully in my head, I grieve a bigger blight in our Muslim community - the prevalent, deeply entrenched anti-Blackness. No, it's not a leap to link a public lynching to the whitening Instafilters. No, it’s not a stretch to compare all the “Karens” who call on Black bodies for simply existing to you comparing which of your siblings was fairer as a baby. Stop! Anti-Blackness starts with ending adulation of fairness. By valuing fairness, Blackness and shades of darkness are denigrated and looked down upon. It is a slippery slope when you regard someone with a darker skin as inferior or less desirable to tragically de-valuing Black lives. I had to confront my own shade-ism just this weekend. Over Eid, our family had enjoyed a beautiful sunny picnic by the lake. I came home with a darker complexion due to the natural sunlight.
Link to original article: https://muslimlink.ca/news/challenging-shadism-and-anti-black-racism-in-muslim-communities-responding-to-the-killing-of-george-floyd-and-sh

​RADIO - G 98.7 FM Mark & Jem in the Morning - Toronto, 01/06/2020 - FEATURE, English

Summary: Mark Strong - “Justice for Regis” chants echoed throughout the streets of downtown Toronto Saturday afternoon as 4,000-odd people or more demanded answers in the death of 29-year-old Regis Korchinski-Paquet, who fell from her apartment balcony in High Park while police were present. The host said he was part of the protest with his kids and that it's important for the kids to be part of this moment. His daughter is part of the organization of the protest and he is proud of her for that. The protesters were originally going to go to Queen's Park. The reason they went to the police department was that a protest was happening at Queen's Park already by White supremacist groups who were protesting about opening the economy. They were doing that every single Saturday. So the protesters didn't want to dilute their cause or have any confrontations, so they went to the police department. Most people in the crowd wore a mask, which is what organizers asked them to do. Their message for police was that they want justice. What that means will be up to the SIU to determine. The host said it was a peaceful protest but very impactful. He said they have a lot more work to do and this was just the beginning of the mobilization. Anti-racism protests in Montreal demanded justice for different reasons, between George Floyd, Regis and problems in policing in Montreal. Unfortunately, the protest turned to violent ends. Montreal police declared the gathering illegal after projectiles were thrown at officers, who responded with pepper spray and tear gas. Store fronts were broken and merchandise stolen. Thousands marched to stand up for Canadians targeted for no other reason than the colour of their skin. Montreal police have been plagued by allegations of racial profiling and excessive force for years. Last fall, an independent study showed a Black person was four times more likely to be stopped by officers. Tensions are still lingering after 18-year-old Fredy Villanueva was shot and killed when police broke up a dice game more than a decade ago. For officers of colour, the protests are a painful reminder of the healing that needs to be done.
Image Source: http://g987fm.com/on-air-personalities

​

COVID-19 has been hailed as the “great equalizer” by multiple influential entities including New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s team, and American popstar Madonna. This statement presents only a part of the picture as the virus in itself may not be discriminatory, but its impact is mediated by a variety of pre-existing social identity markers, such as that of race, class, and gender, that often underlie discrimination. As racism rears its ugly head in Canada in the midst of a public health crisis, ethnic media reporting makes it amply clear that the virus’s repercussions are anything but a colour-blind phenomenon crashing through a vast expanse of a socially unmarked territory. 

In the context of the Vancouver Police Department’s statement that it had “seen an uptick in the number of racially-motivated crimes,” the Filipino Post, a weekly Filipino newspaper from Vancouver, pointed out that “from Canada and the U.S. to Europe and across Asia, the global coronavirus pandemic has brought with it an increase in racist attacks and microaggressions against people of Asian descent.” The Punjabi BC Round Up on Zee TV Canada reported that in response to the increase in racist hate crimes, the BC government put together a committee to act against racism.

Many Chinese media outlets in Canada denounced the role mainstream media reports may have played in fueling anti-Asian sentiment. The Global News piece on the alleged role of the United Front in exporting PPE from Canada to China was the focal point of these stories. BCbay, a Chinese newspaper from Vancouver, didn’t mince words in stating that “over the past 20 years, there have been too many mainstream articles smearing China and smearing the Chinese community in Canada.” Similarly, another Chinese newspaper from Vancouver, Van People, wrote that the “noble behaviour” of overseas Chinese people “rushing to send” PPE to China “was painted negatively by the story [in Global News], which misled and deepened the local community’s fear of Chinese Canadians, leading to racial discrimination against Chinese and Asian groups.”

This Chinese media is also replete with discussions about whether Conservative MP Derek Sloan’s remarks questioning the loyalty of Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam were racist or not. The majority of Chinese outlets were quick to note that while Tam may warrant criticism, the allegations of her favouring China would not have been made if she were of a non-Chinese descent and thus were racist in nature. Chinese newspapers Sing Tao Calgary and the Dushi.ca Vancouver edition compared Sloan’s criticism of Tam with Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s criticism to illustrate how one was racist and the other wasn’t. The Markham-based Iask website wrote: “Unfortunately, just like in the U.S., when a politician sees how a racist dog whistle can mobilize votes, especially votes from xenophobic groups of people, they're bound to learn from Trump and keep blowing the dog whistle. Conservative leadership candidate Derek Sloan is clearly such a politician.” 

Limited Chinese news outlets, however, sympathized with Sloan. Vansky, a Chinese newspaper from Vancouver, said that: “To determine whether Sloan is actually guilty of racial discrimination, we need to understand why he brought this topic up in the first place. Is it the expression of racial superiority? Or a political-ideological attack? If there is no evidence that Sloan said this out of racial superiority, he cannot be accused of racial discrimination, at most he can only be blamed for his indifference, misjudgment, or paranoia.”

The racism brought about by the pandemic isn’t limited to just the Chinese community. The discrimination against Filipino workers at the Cargill meat plant, who contracted COVID-19, is an example of the inequality borne out of the intersection of race, class, and resident status in Canada. Philippine Canadian News, a Filipino newspaper, reported that “Many Filipino workers and residents sent a letter to the company asking that the plant be closed so that safety measures could be put in place, but no actions were taken.” This inaction eventually caused the largest coronavirus outbreak in Canada. Consequently, as reported by Philippine Canadian Inquirer, Filipino people were not allowed to enter grocery stores or banks, and worse, blamed for spreading the virus.

On Red FM 106.7 The Evening Show, a Punjabi radio show from Calgary, the host commented that the poor economic standing of the migrant workers did not allow them the freedom of choice to quit their jobs because of dangerous working conditions. A guest doctor on the show added that since “companies want to make a profit and cut costs, they don’t care about how immigrants or temporary workers live,” that is, in group housing. Another host on the show noted that, “Since the workers at the plant are temporary foreign workers, they are afraid to speak up because it may cost them their job and consequently their permanent residence.” These factors coalesced together to lead to an unfair stigmatization of the Filipino community. The virus, if anything, has laid bare the deep inequalities present in our society and remains far from being the “great equalizer.” ​

As the war against COVID-19 rages on, Canada is being forced to consider enlisting soldiers its systems have deemed misfits in the past. The Ontario government’s decision to issue a 30-day license to foreign-trained doctors so that they can share the burden of the times has ignited enthusiastic discussions in various ethnic media outlets. These stories go on to shed light on the dull but recurring ache of immigrants who are unable to fully integrate into their new home owing to the lack of acceptance of their credentials; as if their professional training is an irretrievable suitcase left behind in the former homeland.  

The conversation often begins with what is seen as a long-standing injustice of the system against doctors and other professionals with foreign credentials. An editorial in the Caribbean Camera, a weekly Caribbean newspaper in Toronto, wrote: “Many in Toronto's Caribbean community may at some time or other have met ‘overqualified’ immigrant cab drivers or security guards...Many immigrants from places such as the Caribbean, Africa or India still recall their disappointment when they first tried to find work in their specific fields in Canada. They were often told that they lacked ‘Canadian experience,’ and others were turned away with the news that they were ‘overqualified.’”

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown noted in an interview with the Punjabi Channel Y Special TV program that, “These brilliant minds who have passed all Canadian exams are working in packaging plants, driving taxis, or delivering pizzas. They are not even allowed to volunteer.” Similarly, Councillor Charmaine Williams in an interview with Prime Asia TV, a Punjabi channel from Brampton, pointed out the issues faced by doctors who do clear Canadian equivalency exams: “Many people are foreign trained and have gone through all of the Canadian qualifications, but they are in limbo because they are waiting for a residency position. Canada seeks out the best of the best for immigration, and doctors are highly favoured. But when doctors come here, they have to take tests, which are not frequent, and then they have to wait for a residency. Only about 350 foreign-trained doctors were given a residency last year, out of 1,700 who applied.”  

In this context of feeling undervalued by the system in pre-corona days, Ontario’s decision to give these doctors a chance to join the fight against COVID-19 has drawn a response of elation and optimism from several media outlets. The Mandarin Fairchild Radio FM 96.1 radio program in Vancouver deemed Ontario’s move “Good news!” worthy of reference. Current affairs expert Manan Gupta from Toronto’s Punjabi CIAO AM 530 Frontline Radio described Mayor Patrick Brown’s demand for permitting foreign-trained doctors to help out during the crisis as “very positive in the current scenario.”

Host Harjinder Thind from Vancouver’s Punjabi Red FM 93.1 Harjinder Thind Show appreciated the letter written by city councillors to the BC health minister, urging him to allow foreign-trained doctors to help out in the pandemic and perhaps permit them to continue practicing later on. He called the councillors’ approach “far-sighted.” The media also reports of individuals who see this opportunity as a chance to show gratitude to Canada. The Toronto Chinese newspaper New Star Net highlighted a refugee who “worked as an obstetrician and gynecologist in Syria” and who “after learning about this measure in Ontario...plans to apply so that he can pay back Canada, the country that gave him another chance to survive.” 

Amidst the appreciation for the step forward by Ontario, the oddity of a licence that expires after 30 days is not lost on the media. Will the doctors who prove themselves during the pandemic revert to being misfits after helping out for 30 days? A headline in the Toronto Polish newspaper Goniec simply asked, “Temporary doctors?”​

As if elaborating on this precise question, immigration Lawyer Dr. Jagmohan Sangha commented on the TV program OMNI News: Punjabi Edition that: “Policies need to change if the government ever wants foreign-trained professionals, including doctors, lawyers, teachers and nurses, to practice in Canada. Doctors are not seasonal workers, to be given 30-day licenses. Professionals come to Canada and work in other fields and their talent goes to waste.” As with other things, time alone will tell if 30 days will transform into years of service for these doctors, or if their degrees will go back to gathering dust in the archive of lost dreams. 

As the world undergoes an unprecedented crisis, ethnic media is serving as a lifeline to immigrant communities now more than ever before. At Diversity Empowers Health, a blog series by MIREMS, we hope to make cross-cultural communication on COVID-19 accessible by overcoming language barriers and bringing voices at the margins to the fore. 
 
“Some community agencies see people being cut off from essential information because it isn’t readily available in their language...these are people who will fall through the cracks,” said Avvy Go, the director of a legal clinic, in response to the funding package announced by Health Canada to reach ethnic communities through multilingual awareness advertisements on COVID-19 (1).  Andrew Griffith, a former director in the government’s immigration department, echoed the sentiment when he said that a gap of 10 days between consistent daily press briefings by ministers and placing ads in ethnic media “means you’ve probably missed the boat” (2).
 
While these statements are incisive in recognising the heightened vulnerability of immigrant groups to COVID-19 owing to language barriers, they also risk falling into the trap of infantilizing these communities. For when one performs the imperative task of actually tuning into ethnic media, these claims reveal themselves to be woefully unaware, if not downright false. Ironically, in assuming that the ethnic communities are in the dark about vital information, these statements appear to be in the dark about the role ethnic media is playing in bringing meaningful COVID-19 reportage to its multilingual audiences. 
 
In this time of crisis, ethnic media is executing a range of functions from communicating regular COVID-19 updates to answering a slew of questions by confused citizens. Various radio shows live broadcast the PM’s addresses along with snippets of announcements made by federal and provincial health officers. In a Hindi radio show broadcast from Calgary, an MLA from Alberta appears as a guest on the show almost everyday to give an update on the situation in the province (3). In a similar vein, a popular Punjabi radio show from Vancouver has a Punjabi speaking doctor come in every other day to talk about COVID-19 and clarify any circulating misinformation (4). Television and radio shows have consultants come in to answer queries about rapidly evolving government benefits. This media is also quick to note the gaps in government policies; several ethnic outlets launched a critique on health officials after Dr. Theresa Tam changed her stance on the use of masks. Most importantly perhaps, ethnic media highlights the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on certain communities - the headline of a Chinese editorial read, “how do we explain racial conflict to children amid the public health crisis?”(5).
 
The central role ethnic media is playing in disseminating invaluable information to its diverse audience should not be undermined. Rather, its relevance and necessity ought to be acknowledged and understood.

To stay in touch with COVID-19 reportage in ethnic media visit our blog series Diversity Empowers Health at http://www.mirems.com/covid-19   

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(1) As quoted in Miller, Jason, “Linguistic minorities lack COVID-19 information, say advocates.” https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2020/03/27/linguistic-minorities-lack-covid-19-information-say-advocates.html
​(2) As quoted in Mangat, Palak, “Dole out funding for COVID-19 ads soon, say experts, as ethnic media outlets face cash crunch.” https://www.hilltimes.com/2020/04/02/dole-out-funding-for-covid-19-foreign-language-ads-soon-say-experts-as-ethnic-media-outlets-face-cash-crunch/242113
(3) Red FM 106.7, The Evening Show, Calgary
(4) Red FM 93.1, The Harjinder Thind Show, Vancouver
(5) Chinese Readers (Daily5), Vancouver, 06/04/2020

(TORONTO. April 9, 2020) In an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the Canadian Ethnic Media Association calls on the country’s Federal and Provincial Governments to reach out directly to all ethnic media, as the most effective means to inform Canada’s diverse communities about the Coronavirus Covid 19 Pandemic.

As the virus sweeps rampantly across Canada, and indeed the whole world, CEMA Chair, Madeline Ziniak, urges all levels of government to recognize the importance of communicating with new, and older, more vulnerable Canadians in their primary languages of comfort.

Ms. Ziniak, speaking in a video presentation on behalf of the Canadian Ethnic Media Association, expresses concern that information has not been received directly from any level of government. “We realize this is a very busy time, but it is necessary for governments to harness ethnic media to address this crisis, and to serve as a conduit to ethno-specific communities”, says Ms. Ziniak.

The video, released today, is entitled, Stand Up For Canada. To view the video, click here, or visit the News Page on the CEMA website: www.canadianethnicmedia.com.

In the video, Ms. Ziniak, in conversation with Dora Konomi of Itoc Media (Agape Greek Radio) describes the fear and confusion, especially among older, more vulnerable Canadians, over the rapid acceleration of the disease, and the measures that must be taken to mitigate its effects. Important concepts such as physical or social distancing, staying at home, and practicing good hand hygiene are best conveyed directly in primary languages of comfort. Navigating the intricate labyrinth of applying for financial assistance can be made less daunting if explained in the mother tongues of the ethno-cultural communities.

Canada’s ethnic communities rely on their language-specific media to keep them informed of developments here and abroad. “Ethnic media is a source of message distribution which provides information to approximately 250 ethnic groups and communities in Canada”, explains Ms. Ziniak. They have quick access to hundreds, if not tens of thousands of community members whose first language is neither English or French.”

While many ethnic journalists have tried to keep abreast of the world situation by turning to mainstream media and translating important updates and details, they can better serve their communities if such critical information is sent directly to them. With their insight into the sensibilities of the cultures they represent, they can build broader awareness among their community members, and generate informed inquiries and responses to government programs.

Ms. Ziniak emphasizes the important role ethnic media continues to play in reaching Canada’s diverse demographics, and states the “Canadian Ethnic Media Association is ready and willing to do its part to assist the flow of information to those who need it. The time is now.”
​
For further information, please contact:
Averill Maroun
Board Member
Canadian Ethnic Media Association
swam49@rogers.com
905 881-3955

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