TORONTO, May 10, 2019 ─ South Asian Heritage Month is underway in Ontario, marking the first arrival of South Asians from the Indian subcontinent to the Americas on May 5, 1938. York University scholars researching the South Asian arrival, settlement, achievements and contributions, as well as the challenges they face are available for interviews.
Enakshi Dua, associate professor, School of Gender, Sexuality and Women’s Studies in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, is available for media interviews on South Asian women’s history and the challenges they face. She is the co-editor of Scratching the Surface: Canadian Anti-Racist Feminist Thought.
She can speak to:
- South Asian Canadian women’s history
- Race, gender, and Canadian nationalism
- The Komagata Maru and Canadian history
Tania Das Gupta, professor, Department of Equity Studies in the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies, is available for media interviews on policies, immigration, work and families, as they relate to the South Asian diaspora. She has co-edited and reviewed several books and journal articles pertinent to the community.
She can speak to:
- Underemployment of South Asian professionals
- Family separation due to difficulty in finding jobs
- Violence against South Asian immigrant women
Ali Kazimi, associate professor, Department of Cinema & Media Arts, in the School of the Arts, Media, Performance & Design, is available for media interviews on the early history of South Asian immigration, race and social justice. He is a 2019 recipient of the Governor General’s Award in Visual and Media Arts, in recognition of his work as a documentarian and media artist.
He can speak to:
- Early South Asian immigration history including Komagata Maru
- Intercultural dialogue with Indigenous communities
- Visual documentation of migration, history, memory and archiving.
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York U's fully bilingual Glendon Campus is home to Southern Ontario's Centre of Excellence for French Language and Bilingual Postsecondary Education.
Media Contact:
Gloria Suhasini, York University Media Relations, 416-736-2100 ext. 22094, suhasini@yorku.ca
