”Education got us into this mess and education will get us out of it.”

National Indigenous Peoples Day is celebrated each year on June 21^st. It was first celebrated in 1996 when Governor General Roméo LeBlanc proclaimed it. As students of Alexander College, we at the Library invite you to think about the above quote.

What does it mean to you? To us, it is recognition that, in the past, our education system taught that settlers were superior to Indigenous peoples, and that they had the right to take over the land we now call Canada.

This education led to the horrors of the Residential School system, as well as systemic racism as seen in, for example, the refusal of allowing Indigenous people to freely vote until 1960, or the infamous “60s Scoop.” People were taught that such things were acceptable, so they went along with it.

Now, with the passage of time and with the resilient efforts of Indigenous people reclaiming their rights, we can start to move away from the mistakes and atrocities of the past. This is what this commemorative day is about: starting and empowering new education so that we can get out of the “mess” of historic and systemic racism against Indigenous peoples.

Canada’s Indigenous peoples include the First Nations, Inuit, and Métis. The term “First Nations” is used to refer to Indigenous folks that are neither Metis nor Inuit. The phrase itself encompasses over 634 recognized communities across Canada. In the entire country itself, over 1.8 million people self-identified as Indigenous during the 2021 census.

In British Columbia alone, there are over 203 Indigenous communities. Alexander College itself is situated on the unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkʌwə̇y̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səḷílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations.

Want to learn more about the land on which you reside? Check out this interactive map from Native Land.

Remembering that the theme of this day is new education. How can you educate yourself, as an international student? For one, you can take some of our excellent courses on Indigenous peoples, including History and Sociology.

Alexander College is committed to decolonialization. Decolonization refers to undoing the effects of colonialism. Colonialism is when a country overtakes another country and claims its lands, resources, and peoples as its own property. This is what happened when the British and French colonizers took over the lands that we now call Canada.

At Alexander College, decoloniality means using education to dismantle the legacies of colonialism. We can do this with something as subtle as a land acknowledgment, by considering new teaching methods and practices in the classroom, such as the medicine wheel, or by asking questions of our Lecturers, Professors, and Librarians, to learn more about Indigenization and decolonial work.

Most importantly, we can ask ourselves how we can all contribute towards reconciliation. We can also pursue decoloniality by centering Indigenous voices and knowledge. For example, you might choose to do an assignment on an Indigenous leader and include their words and knowledge in your own work.

Alexander College Library believes in Indigenization, which is the promoting of Indigenous voices, knowledge, and perspectives. Our Team has been hard at work ensuring that our students have high quality resources about Indigenous peoples, and (most importantly) by Indigenous peoples.

We also support Indigenous business by working with Strong Nations, which is an Indigenous-owned and operated company that sells Indigenous-themed materials made and published by Indigenous peoples. You can learn more about them here: https://www.strongnations.com/.

Please visit our Indigenous Studies Research Guide here: https://alexandercollege.ca/student-support/library/research-help/indigenous-studies/. At this link, you can find

• An in-depth explanation of Land Acknowledgements
• Books (fiction and non-fiction)
• E-Books
• DVDs
• Keywords for you to use in your research
• And more!

Need help with finding Indigenous resources for your research assignment? Make an appointment in-person or online through WCOnline here: https://alexander.mywconline.com/.

So, on this important day, June 21, 2025, remember the late Justice Murray Sinclair’s words: that anti-Indigenous racism was once learned, and through new education, it can be unlearned. And in its place, we can work individually and collectively to learn from and uplift Indigenous voices, knowledge, and perspectives!

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The modern LGBT+ rights movement in America got its start during the Stonewall riots in June 1969, where members of the gay community fought back against a police raid of the Stonewall Inn in Manhattan, New York.

In Canada, homosexuality was decriminalized in 1969, and in August 1971 activists gathered in Toronto for Canada’s first gay liberation protest and march. On August 1, 1973, Vancouver had its earliest pride celebrations. In Vancouver the Pride Parade is now typically held in August.

The LGBT+ community has always been an important part of Canada and have advocated for their rights and inclusion as well as making art. Canada became the fourth country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2005. There are also many prominent LGBT+ Canadians, such as Svend Robinson, the first openly gay member of Parliament in Canada, and Dan Levy, co-creator and actor in the show Schitt’s Creek.

Discrimination against the LGBT+ community is still very common in Canada and around the world. With countries such as the United States pushing against Diversity Equity and Inclusion, it is always important to stand with vulnerable members of the community. Pride season is a celebration as well as an opportunity for education.

Feel free to come to the Burnaby campus library to check out some of the books we have on for the Pride display, including:

• Hollywood Pride: A Celebration of LGBTQ+ Representation and Perseverance in Film by Alonso Duralde
• If Beale Street Could Talk by James Baldwin
• Dear Cisgender People: A Guide to Trans Allyship and Empathy by Kenny Ethan Jones
• The Story of Us by Catherine Hernandez

And more!

Learn More

For more information about Vancouver pride events, you can check out this City of Vancouver page: https://vancouver.ca/people-programs/pride.aspx

References

Government of Canada. “Pride Season.” May 20, 2025. https://www.canada.ca/en/women-gender-equality/pride-season.html

Rau, Krishna. “2SLGBTQ+ Rights in Canada.” December 12, 2024. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/lesbian-gay-bisexual-and-transgender-rights-in-canada

Simon, Mary. “Message from the Governor General on Pride Season 2025.” The Governor General of Canada. June 1, 2025. https://www.gg.ca/en/media/news/2025/pride-season

MPLSelena. “A Brief History of Pride in Canada.” Markham Public Library. May 29, 2023. https://markhampubliclibrary.ca/blogs/post/what-pride-means-to-canad/

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The theme for this year’s Asian Heritage Month is: “Unity in Diversity: The Impact of Asian Communities in Shaping Canadian Identity”.

Over the last 2 centuries, immigrants from East Asia, Southern Asia, Western, Central and Southeast Asia have arrived in Canada, building and strengthening the communities we are grateful to be a part of today.

However, we also want to take the time to recognize the historical oppression Asian Canadians have faced.

There were many discriminatory policies and laws placed against Asian Canadians, and such significant historical events include: the Chinese Head Tax and subsequent Exclusion Act, Japanese interment, and the Komagata Maru (Guru Nanak Jahaz) incident.

Despite systemic and personal discrimination that continues to exist today, as shown in the rise of anti-Asian hate during COVID-19 and the persisting problem of Islamophobia, Asian Canadians have achieved incredible things.

Some distinguished Asian Canadians you may have already heard of are: David Suzuki, a notable environmental activist; Baljit Sethi, a recipient of the Order of British Columbia; Mahmud Jamal, a jurist appointed in the Supreme Court; Naranjan Singh Grewal, the first Sikh councillor in North America; Adrienne Clarkson, the 26th Governor General of Canada; Raymond Moriyama, the architect who designed the Canadian War Museum; and Vivienne Poy, the first Asian senator of Canada from 1998 to 2012, and the one who proposed the month of May to be officially recognized for Asian Heritage Month.

Alexander College is honoured to serve a student population whose majority is of Asian descent from diverse cultural backgrounds. The library has acquired new books to celebrate Asian Heritage Month:

• The Flamingo by Guojing
• Mary Kitagawa: Nikkei Canadian Life by Karen M. Inouye
• The Story of Us by Catherine Hernandez
• Filipinos in Canada: Disturbing Invisibility by Roland Sintos Coloma
• Shadow Life by Hiromi Goto
• The Tiger and the Cosmonaut by Eddy Boudel Tan
• Divided Loyalties by Nilofar Shidmehr
• Landbridge: Life of Fragments by Y-Dang Troeung
• Coconut Dreams by Derek Mascarenhas

And more!

Feel free to check out our book displays at both the Burnaby and Vancouver campuses.

Alexander College also encourages you to reflect on the meaningfulness of this occasion and attend related events in the community.

Get involved!

Learn More

Canada.ca: Significant events in the history of Asian communities in Canada
Douglas College: Paldi
Historica Canada: Nitro
Heritage BC: Cultural Maps
Hastings Park 1942: Japanese Canadian Interment at Hastings Park (PNE)
CMHR: Japanese Canadian internment and the struggle for redress
Royal Alberta Museum: Chinese Head Tax: George Yee’s Story
Hua Foundation: Unpacking the Model Minority Myth
Harvard Business Review: Bringing Caste into the DEI Conversation
Knowledge Network: British Columbia: An Untold History
Angus Reid Institute: Blame, bullying and disrespect: Chinese Canadians reveal their experiences with racism during COVID-19
Canada.ca: The Canadian Guide to Understanding and Combatting Islamophobia
UBC: Anti-Racism Resources
Faces of Racism: Anti-Asian Racism
Unite For Change: Asian Heritage Month and Canada’s History of Anti-Asian Racism

Reference List

Heritage, C. (2021, April 26). May is Asian Heritage Month.
https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/asian-heritage-month.html

Government of Canada. (2024, May 1). Significant Events in the History of Asian Communities in Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/asian-heritage-month/important-events.html

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“In 2013, history was made with April proclaimed as Sikh Heritage Month by the Legislative Assembly of Ontario (Bill 52). The first of its kind in the world, Sikh Heritage Month is a celebration of arts, culture and heritage.” (About, 2025)

Sikhism features one of the greatest demographics in organized faith, and originated from the Punjab region of India. With its history dating back to the 15th century, Sikhism is one of the more recently founded religions in the world.

Sikh Heritage Month celebrates “Vaisakhi, the beginning of spring harvest and the start of a new agricultural year” (Vaisakhi, Sikh Heritage Month Celebrated in Nanaimo. – Document – Gale In Context: Canada, 2023.). Traditionally, Vaisakhi is celebrated on the 13th or 14th of the month every year.

It is important for us to recognize the contributions that the Sikh community has made to the framework of our communities and country. With over 500,000 Sikh community members residing in Canada, our nation is proud to have the second largest Sikh population in the world (Branch, 2020).

“The values of equality, selflessness, openness and compassion are the core principles of Sikhism, and these values will be highlighted during Vaisakhi later this month” (Hussen, 2022).

Please stop by our Burnaby Library branch and check out some of the materials we’ve set aside to help you learn more about Sikh history and culture, such as:

1. The Sikhs by Patwant Singh
2. The Sikhs: Their Religious Beliefs and Practices by William Owen Cole
3. A history of the Sikhs. Volume I: 1469-1839 by Khushwant Singh
4. Encyclopedia of Sikh literature : volume one by Bhai Kahan Singh Nabha
5. Who are the Sikhs? : an exploration of the beliefs, practices, & traditions of the Sikh people by Gian Singh Sandhu

This year we recognize that “Anand (ਅਨੰਦ) is the state of absolute inner peace, tranquility, and bliss that is found through connection with the Divine; it is an eternal joy found beyond the struggles of this world. The joys and pleasures of materialism are short-lived, however once true Anand is attained it is unwavering” (Sikh Heritage BC, 2025).

Alexander College invites you to reflect on the meaningfulness of this occasion, and encourages you to attend related events in the community.

Get Involved!

Learn More

About Sikh Heritage Month and the ways that it’s being celebrated across Canada by clicking here.

Find more local events and related celebrations for the month across British Columbia here.

Reference List

About. (2025). Sikh Heritage Month. https://www.sikhheritagemonth.ca/about

Branch, L. S. (2020, January 14). Consolidated federal laws of canada, Sikh Heritage Month Act. https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/annualstatutes/2019_5/page-1.html

Hussen, A. (2022, April 1). Statement by Minister Hussen on Sikh Heritage Month [Statements]. https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/news/2022/03/statement-by-minister-hussen-on-sikh-heritage-month.html

Sikh Heritage BC. (2025). Sikh Heritage BC. https://www.sikhheritagebc.ca

Sikh Heritage Month theme of Saturday exhibition at Royal B.C. Museum—Greater Victoria News. (n.d.). Retrieved April 7, 2025, from https://www.vicnews.com/community/sikh-heritage-month-theme-of-saturday-exhibition-at-royal-b-c-museum-99402

Vaisakhi, Sikh Heritage Month celebrated in Nanaimo. – Document—Gale In Context: Canada. (2023). https://go-gale-com.alexandercollege.idm.oclc.org/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=News&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=MultiTab&retrievalId=78b939b8-672c-418f-9a3b-6c6fad1c2f75&hitCount=17&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm&currentPosition=1&docId=GALE%7CA745083153&docType=Brief+article&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=ZXAS-MOD1&prodId=CIC&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CA745083153&searchId=R1&userGroupName=burn46801&inPS=true

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This day was founded by Rachel Crandall, an American transgender activist. Before this, the only internationally recognized day for transgender people was Transgender Day of Remembrance which is a day to mourn those in the community who have lost their lives.

Crandall expressed frustration that the only recognized day for the trans community was a day of mourning and decided to start a movement of celebration.

Transgender Day of Visibility is to celebrate and uplift those in the community still living. By 2015 the day was being observed in multiple countries with awareness raised on social media platforms.

Canada was the first country to provide census data on transgender and nonbinary people. The 2021 Census of Population showed that transgender and nonbinary people make up 0.33% of the population over 15, around 1 in 300 people.

Despite being a small portion of population there has been growing awareness of the trans community, often through pop culture. Laverne Cox, a trans actress, starred in Orange is the New Black and Netflix released the documentary Disclosure in 2020, about transgender depictions in film and television.

Growing awareness has had positives as well as negatives. Transphobia has increased in far-right politics in Canada. In the United States and the United Kingdom bills and laws are being created that target transgender civil rights. Transgender Day of Visibility is a day to fight against this hate.

For information you can visit the Government of Canada page on Rights of LGBTI Persons.

The perspectives of trans creatives are important and worth exploring. From non-fiction memoirs and history to speculative fiction. Check out some books at the Alexander College Library for works to read this Transgender Day of Visibility:

• Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair by Mercury Stardust – Trans woman and professional maintenance technician, Mercury Stardust writes and informative and empowering guide on home repairs for renters. Mercury explains how to do simple repairs and upkeep such as how to patch holes in drywall, fix sink clogs, and safe ways to hang things on walls.

• Black on Both Sides: A Racial History of Trans Identity by C. Riley Snorton – Author C. Riley Snorton shines a light on Black trans figures in history that have often been overlooked. This book highlights such figures and speaks about the intersections between blackness and transness from the mid-nineteenth century to the present day.
• Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe – Maia Kobabe (e/em/eir) created an autobiographical comic originally to explain to eir family what it means to be nonbinary and asexual, but the comic turned out to transcend the personal and is a heartfelt guide on gender identity. According to the American Library Association, this is the most banned book in the United States.
• Black Trans Feminism by Marquis Bey – A meditation on blackness and gender nonnormativity. Marquis Bey unpacks Black trans feminism as interconnected to the world through history, law, medicine, and literature.
• Pageboy by Elliot Page – Canadian actor and transgender advocate Elliot page writes this coming-of-age memoir. Elliot explores identity, self-discovery, relationships, and mental health all while dealing with Hollywood and the pressures of fame.

Sources

“Transgender Day of Visibility.” Queer Events, http://www.queerevents.ca/tdov. Accessed March 13, 2025 “Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV).” GLAAD, https://glaad.org/tdov. Accessed March 13, 2025

“International Transgender Day of Visibility.” UFCW, https://ufcw.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=33387:international-transgender-day-of-visibility. Accessed March 13, 2025

Carreras, Jessica. “Transgender Day of Visibility plans erupt locally, nationwide.” Pride Source, https://web.archive.org/web/20130327152446/http:/www.pridesource.com/article.html?article=34351. Retrieved from Internet Archive March 13, 2025

“Rights of LGBTI persons.” Government of Canada, https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/services/rights-lgbti-persons.html. Accessed March 13, 2025

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Apartheid in South Africa was a system of racial segregation, which means that the different racial groups were not allowed to cooperate with each other, and people were treated unequally due to their group. Although apartheid is no longer in effect in South Africa, there are still economic and social effects that continue to exist, such as economic inequality.

Why should Canada observe the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination? After all, we have never had anything as bad as apartheid in our history, have we? Or have we?

The International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination invites us to consider our history and how that history may have legacies that impact the present.

For example, consider the Residential School system, in which thousands of Indigenous people were forcibly removed from their families and sent to schools aimed at destroying their culture. The schools are infamous for the abuses that occurred, ranging from physical, sexual, mental, and spiritual abuses.

Today, because of the Residential School system, many Indigenous people suffer mentally, including relatives of people who went to the schools (intergenerational trauma).

Other examples of racism in Canadian history include the Chinese Head Tax as well as the Komagata Maru incident. We must learn from the past, and this special day is time to reflect.

Combatting racism requires action on the part of all of us. It requires standing up when a friend or classmate makes a racist joke. It requires speaking and listening in tough conversations. Most importantly, it requires keeping an open and empathetic mind. The government of Canada suggests following the BRAVE framework:

Use the BRAVE Framework

The build, respect, acknowledge, validate and emphasize (BRAVE) framework is a useful tool that provides strategies to explore when having courageous conversations.

• Build the intention, focus, and safety needed to have honest conversations about race.
• Respect the sensitivity of the topic while challenging people to go beyond the superficial. Everyone needs to respect each other’s boundaries.
• Acknowledge the uncomfortable realities of the past and the present.
• Validate and accept the experiences of your racially marginalized colleagues. Productive conversations require acknowledging the reality of racism and racial discrimination.
• Emphasize prioritizing goals and measuring success around racial equity.

Check out the Government of Canada’s anti-racism toolkit.

Visit the Library and explore our texts related to anti-racism and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) topics!

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The day can also be used to raise awareness of the progress made in advancing women’s rights and the ongoing efforts to ensure their participation in society.

International Women’s Day can be traced back to the early 20th century. It had its emergence from the labour movements that occurred across North America and Europe. It reflected a growing call for equal participation for both men and women in society.

The first International Women’s Day was celebrated on March 19th, 1911, across Austria, Denmark, Switzerland, and Germany, with other countries beginning to celebrate in the following years.

The year 1975 was acknowledged by the United Nations as International Women’s Year and they soon declared March 8th as International Women’s Day on a yearly basis.

The Government of Canada’s 2025 theme for International Women’s Day is Strength in every story. This theme highlights the importance of strengthening the voices of women, particularly those who continue to face barriers to success.

By creating different opportunities for women and girls, their potential becomes unlocked, and they contribute to growing and supporting Canada’s economy. These opportunities help ensure a sustainable future for everyone.

Every woman’s story is a testament to resilience, determination, and the power of having opportunities. You can celebrate International Women’s Day by recognizing the women in your life and by sharing their stories.

The Government of Canada has plenty of ways for individuals to become involved, including several useful resources for individuals to engage with, including:

• The Women of Impact in Canada online gallery, which features profiles of Canadian women who have made impacts in politics, arts and sciences, and numerous other fields
• The Women in Canadian History timeline, which showcases achievements of Canadian women in different fields
• The Gender equality timeline, which sets an overview for Canadian gender equality milestones

Individuals can also research local initiatives that have been undertaken to celebrate International Women’s Day. In 2018, Vancouver adopted the Women’s Equity Strategy 2018-2028, a 10-year initiative aimed at addressing barriers faced by both cisgender and transgender women in Vancouver.

The strategy encompasses a vision to make Vancouver a place where women have full access to all the resources provided in the city, as well as having the opportunity to fully participate in the social, economic, cultural, and political life of Vancouver.

Those interested in attending events taking place in Vancouver for International Women’s Day 2025 can visit the International Women’s Day event page.

Drop by the Alexander College Library to check out our International Women’s Day display. Here are some of the titles on display:

• The Handmaid’s Tale – This novel is set in a dystopian society where environmental disasters and declining birth rates have led to a Second American Civil War. As a result, rigid social roles have been enforced, and the few fertile women have been enslaved to produce children for the totalitarian regime. This story follows one of those women.
• Bluestockings: The Remarkable Story of the First Women to Fight for an Education – A story of eighteenth-century women who fought for women to be educated and to have a public role in society. The author dives into the history of pioneering women from this time, with focus on women such as Elizabeth Montagu, a salon owner, and Catharine Macaulay, a prestigious author.
• Gendered Islamophobia: my journey with a scar(f) – Monia Mazigh describes her struggles as a hijab-wearing Muslim woman, who was born and raised in a Muslim country (Tunisia) but has spent much of her adult life in Quebec, Canada as an immigrant. Mazigh discusses her identities and struggles against Islamophobia as it applies to women, who are consistently stereotyped as silent and dominated by their men.

Sources

City of Vancouver. (n.d.). International Women’s Day. Retrieved February 19, 2025, from https://vancouver.ca/people-programs/international-womens-day.aspx

Government of Canada. (2025, February 19). International Women’s Day. Retrieved February 19, 2025, from https://www.canada.ca/en/women-gender-equality/commemorations-celebrations/international-womens-day.html

International Women’s Day. (n.d.). International Women’s Day 2025 events. Retrieved February 19, 2025, from https://www.internationalwomensday.com/EventSearch

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Throughout Canadian history, the role of Black people and their communities has largely been ignored. By acknowledging and celebrating Black History Month, we have the opportunity to learn more about the important contributions that Black Canadians have made to the history and growth of Canada.

A theme is unveiled each year in Canada for Black History Month, with this year’s theme being “Black Legacy and Leadership: Celebrating Canadian History and Uplifting Future Generations.”

Along with celebrating Black Canadians contributions, it is important to learn about the history of Black History Month in Canada and how it came to be.

In 1978, the Ontario Black History Society was established, and in 1993, it successfully filed a petition in Ontario to proclaim February as Black History Month. In December 1995, Black History Month was officially recognized by the House of Commons.

Locally, the BC Black History Awareness Society began in the mid-70’s, with a goal of bringing together individuals who had both an interest in BC’s Black history and a desire to develop a community.

The group continues to thrive in the present day, with a variety of public events being hosted each year, ranging from art exhibits to guest speakers, and even refurbishing grave markers. They have been hosting Black History Month programs for more than 30 years as a way to recognize the contributions of historical and contemporary Black Canadians.

Those interested can visit the Black History Month 2025 event page to see what kinds of events are taking place this February.

While Black History Month allows us the opportunity to celebrate the achievements and diversity of Black people in Canada, it is also a time to reflect on the challenges that Black people face in this country, including systemic barriers, racism, and discrimination.

The Government of Canada continues to be dedicated in combatting systemic barriers and creating an equitable future for Black Canadians.

One endeavor undertaken is Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy 2024-2028, which is dedicated to supporting community projects that protect racialized Canadians by providing access to resources that promote their participation in Canadian society while also raising attention to issues of racism and hate in Canada.

Drop by the Alexander College Library to check out our Black History Month display, which includes a variety of books discussing Black History Month, racism, and racial basis/stereotypes. Here are some of the titles on display:

• Algorithms of Oppression: How Search Engines Reinforce Racism – Discusses the power of algorithms and the way they reinforce oppressive social relationships and enact new ways of racial profiling. Those who are looking to learn about how cultures of racism and sexism are created online would gain a deal of great knowledge from this book.
• Blood like Magic– This fantasy novel follows a teen witch, Voya, who must sacrifice her first love to save her family’s magic. Voya must pass this trial to come into her powers, however she soon will be caught in between her morality and her duty to her family. Readers who enjoy a combination of fantasy and romance would thoroughly enjoy this book.
• How to Be an Antiracist – Ibram X. Kendi guides readers through a list of antiracist ideas to help them see all forms of racism and how individuals can work to oppose racism in both society and in themselves.
• Unmasking AI: My Mission to Protect What Is Human in a World of Machines– This book sets out to uncover how tech products encode discrimination and exclusion. Joy Buolamwini applies an intersectional lens to the tech industry and research sector to indicate how racism, sexism, colourism, and ableism can overlap to promote vulnerable AI tools.

Sources

• BC Black History Awareness Society. (n.d.). History and Purpose. Retrieved January 21, 2025, from https://bcblackhistory.ca/about-us/bcbhas-history-and-purpose/
• BC Black History Awareness Society. (n.d.). Black History Month 2025. Retrieved January 21, 2025, from https://bcblackhistory.ca/black-history-month-202/
• Government of Canada. (2025, January 21). The Government of Canada announces the theme for Black History Month 2025. Retrieved January 21, 2025, from https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/news/2025/01/the-government-of-canada-announces-the-theme-for-black-history-month-2025.html
• Government of Canada. (n.d.). About Black History Month. Retrieved January 21, 2025, from https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/campaigns/black-history-month/about.html

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World War One was a major military conflict that lasted from 1914 to 1918 with much of the fighting occurring in Europe.

Canada was one of many countries that sent troops to participate in the war. Millions died in the fighting, including more than sixty thousand soldiers from Canada. Canadian troops also suffered terrible injuries, both mental and physical.

A famous battle in which Canada’s sacrificial toll was high, was at Vimy Ridge in France. At this battle, Canadian troops fought bravely to take a vital and well defended enemy position.

Canadian forces were victorious after terrible fighting in which thousands of Canadian troops were killed or wounded. Afterwards Vimy Ridge became renowned among Canadians.

The victory and sacrifices at Vimy Ridge inspired a sense of nationalism in the country, and a call for more independence from Great Britain.

Thus, every year on November 11th, Canada memorializes the sacrifices of those who died both at Vimy Ridge and in the larger war.

While initially dedicated to the dead of World War One, over the years Remembrance Day has come to acknowledge those Canadians killed in other conflicts that Canada has participated in.

In Canada, Remembrance Day is a solemn occasion. Ceremonies are held in communities, churches, and schools in remembrance of fallen military personnel. These ceremonies are attended by veterans and their families, public officials, and many ordinary citizens.

Traditions during the ceremonies include laying wreaths, reading poetry, playing music, and holding two minutes of silence in remembrance of the dead.

One of the most important and enduring traditions of Remembrance Day is the wearing of red poppies. On November 11th Canadians wear poppies pinned on their clothing and over their hearts.

The poppy tradition comes from the poppy flowers that were found growing on the fields of Western Europe where so much fighting and death occurred during the war.

Canadian John McCrae helped make poppies a symbol of remembering the dead with his poem In Flanders Fields.

The poem references the flowers growing in the fields where the many dead lie buried. McCrae authored the poem while serving in World War One amid terrible violence and loss of life.

To mark Remembrance Day, the Alexander College library has prepared a display of books related to World War One. The display consists of poetry, fiction, and history books. Feel free to come to the library and check out any items that draw your interest.

Also, Student Life has prepared a Remembrance Day event for students, faculty, and staff. Here are the details:

• Date: Thursday November 7th
• Time: 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM
• Location: ACB Lobby
• Price: Free

Sources

Learn More

The Royal Canadian Legion is a veterans’ organization that has existed for almost a century. It is an excellent source to learn more about Remembrance Day and its traditions. You can access its website here.

If you are interested in attending one of the many Remembrance Day ceremonies to be held around Metro Vancouver this year, you can check the Legion’s list for details here

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We are a couple of weeks away from the scariest and most fun time of the year.

Halloween takes place every year on October 31st. It began centuries ago as both a religious and harvest festival in Britain and Ireland called Samhain that marked the start of winter.

In modern times, Halloween has lost its religious meaning for most people and is now a joyful time that has come to be celebrated by people in countries all over the world.

In Canada, Halloween is observed by carving jack-o’-lanterns, setting off firecrackers, going to parties, and dressing up in scary costumes. Most notably, there is the Halloween tradition of Trick-or-Treating where costumed children go door to door and are given candy and sweets by adults.

To mark this occasion, the Alexander College library has prepared a display of Halloween and Horror themed books and DVDs for your reading and viewing pleasure.

The display has short story collections and graphic novels, and the novels include modern classics such as The Shining by Stephen King and Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice.

There are old favourites such as Frankenstein: The 1818 Text by Mary Shelley. Also, the films include horror classics such as Alien by Ridley Scott and Halloween by John Carpenter.

If any of these titles strike your interest, please feel free to come down to the library and check them out while they are available.

Also, for your enjoyment, Student Life is preparing a celebration to mark Halloween.

There will be costumes, candy, and haunted houses!!

Here are the details:

Date: Thursday October 31st

Place: Alexander College Burnaby campus lobby

Time: 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Price: FREE!!

Sources:

Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Halloween.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 17 Oct. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Halloween.

Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Samhain: ancient Celtic festival.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Date: N/A, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Samhain.

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