Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society celebrates Asian Heritage Month

Vancouver Asian Heritage MonthMAY is celebrated as Asian Heritage Month to acknowledge the long and rich history of Asian Canadians and their contributions to Canada. It also provides an opportunity for Canadians across the country to reflect on and celebrate the contributions of Canadians of Asian heritage to the growth and prosperity of Canada.

The Vancouver Asian Heritage Month Society (VAHMS), a non-profit organization, presents / sponsors numerous events especially in Vancouver to create inter-cultural understanding in our multicultural society, and educate Canadians from all backgrounds about the histories, human stories and connections brought to light by our artists, historians and cultural workers. 2014 is the 17th annual celebrations by the society, and several rich cultural activities will take place throughout the month of May followed by a Gala Dinner event on June 1. Most of the events are free, and are expected to attract thousands of people to participate.

The official opening ceremony for the ‘Exploring Asia2014’ will be held on May 3 at the International Village, located at 88 West Pender Street. Along with many other activities, the opening of Generation One Art Exhibition “So This is Canada!” will be the part of the program.

Some other activities for the month include Classic at UBC Irving K. Barber Centre for Chinese style garden Show, Sound of Dragon Music Festival, Asian Canadian writers programs, Truth be Told: Film Screening, Living and Dying for Canada’s Ideals, The Global Eco-crisis: Diversity, Resilience and Adaptability by Dr. David Suzuki, 100th Anniversary of the Kamagata Maru, Discover Dance, Indonesian Traditional Textiles, and City of Bhangra: TransFusion.

Also, there will be three research workshops in May for an interesting project initiated by VAHMS called ‘First Families, First Stories’. This is a two-year project started with the purpose to begin the process of giving voice to pioneering families of Asian Heritage and to share the story of their arrival and settlement in Canada.

The last celebration will be the explorASIAN 2014 Recognition Gala that will be held on June 1 at Pink Pearl Restaurant. Everyone is invited to take part in the events that honour the legacy of Canadians of Asian heritage.

For further details for the celebrations, visit the website www.explorasian.org