British Columbia

Newcomer’s Guide To BC History and Asian

Stereotypes/Perceptions

2013 HIST 485 Edition

UBC

DISCLAIMER:

This is a parody version of the WelcomeBC guide of new immigrants, it

is inspired from the class where we discussed what is a fob. This

project covers broadly what we learned in class, from Too Asian to

White Supremacy. Also, it lists basic ethnic stereotypes reinforced by

how the media portrays it and reactions from the community. Any

attempts at humor are done… poorly.

Welcome to British Columbia!

Being fresh off the boat into a new country can be daunting, but we

are committed to help you thrive and become a valued Canadian in

our society.

To help you in your journey, this guide contains

important information about BC history,

Asian stereotypes and education. It also

helps you see the perceptive through

forums comments or newspaper articles

of your fellow Canadians regarding the

stereotypes.

Thanks for choosing British Columbia as your new home!

P.S. I May need your ethnic votes to win re-election.

Sincerely,

Current BC Premier

Table of Content

1. BC History

2. Official Languages

3. Lower Mainland Neighborhoods

4. Stereotypes

5. Education

About British Columbia

British Columbia (B.C) is a province on the west coast of Canada,

and like our slogan, it is considered “The Best Place on Earth,” filled

with lush nature, breath-taking scenery and envious clean air. The

capital of BC is Victoria, a quiet city that promotes many senior

discounts in its local businesses. The main population hub of BC is

Metro Vancouver, where around 2 million live.

British Columbia has a controversial history; you may have noticed

some people who look similar to Asians. However, they are First

Nations, Aboriginal people who lived in Canada before the colonists

arrived from Europe. If you came from a country with class or race

segregation you may notice the similarities that they live in a special

zone called a reserve, which is bizarre in a first-world democratic

country.

Early in the 20th century, after the CP rail connected BC to the rest of

Canada, BC went through a little phase where Europeans did not like

competing with minorities and liked to sing a song called “White

Canada Forever,” but they’re not singing about the snow. This phase

was often regarded as “White Supremacist.” Some incidents include

the Chinese head tax, 1907 Chinatown riots, Internment of Japanese-

Canadians, and a boat named Komagata Maru.

Beware of discussing “White Supremacists” past or racism with

Canadians, as you may be treated with hostility. Gasps will be heard

while making excuses such as war-time necessity or denial. Here is an

example of a UBC historian who faced considerable criticism after

explaining the phase.

Official Languages

Canada’s Official languages are English and French. It may seem a

bit odd that one province in Eastern Canada called Quebec

promotes French as its main language while the western side of

Canada promotes English as its main language. Nonetheless, both

languages are recognized and included in our education system.

Perhaps due to BC’s past regarding minorities, some Canadians only

like to see languages they are able to read so please don’t create

signs that contain any language other than English or French.

Lower Mainland

Neighborhoods

Welcome to a map of Greater Vancouver. Generalizing the ethnic

majority of neighborhoods:

Surrey rhymes with Curry = East Indian 38.3%*

Practically every other neighborhood = Chinese majority*

Kitsilano & West/North Vancouver = Last holdout of Caucasian

majority

*Taken from 2006 Census

Stereotypes This part of the guide will teach you the basic ethnic stereotypes.

1. Asians are bad drivers: Coming to a new country, it may take

time to adjust and learn new rules of the road, particularly If you

came from a country where chauffers are plentiful and cheap

to hire. After all, it takes practice to be perfect. Yet it is this

practice that people notice and make assumptions. Of course

there are some who decide to go by the old ways of bribing.

2. Asians only drive European luxury cars and think they’re above

the law: Luxury cars in Canada are around the price of a Toyota

Camry in your home country. So they are cheap and affordable

here in a new immigrants perspective. Due to this, every now

and then you see new immigrants getting their expensive cars

impounded on the news due to racing/speeding. Although one

wonders if they would be on the news if they were driving

Hondas or Toyotas, the media loves to point out that they are

Chinese nationals or have a Chinese license.

3. (Insert Ethnicity) smells bad: Unfortunately, the smell of your

favorite dish that you consider delicious does not resonate with

your fellow Canadians, only the smell of fresh baked goods seem

to be universally accepted. It may even confuse a Canadian

enough to call 911. Due to this, homes with a second kitchen are

in high demand.

4. (Insert Ethnicity), they’re all related/Look alike: Wong, Wang,

Sandhu, Chan, Park, Kim and Lee are some of the most common

last names, so they must be related; even though Smith and

Johnson are common as well.

5. East Indians are all taxi-operators/truck drivers/security guards:

New immigrants who come to Canada face challenges such as

a new language, degree recognition issues and most have to

start over and do menial jobs to survive until they become

accredited. It is noted that a person with an accent and a hard

to pronounce name are less likely to be hired.

6. Those damn Chinese are buying up real estate, making it hard

for a hard-working born & raised Canadian to afford a home:

Every now and then you see a sensationalist headline such as

Which tends to anger local Canadians who are either being priced

out of their neighborhood due to higher assessments which brings

higher property taxes or not being able to afford a home due to rising

prices.

These comments reminisce of the old days of banning foreigners in

BC history. Although Vancouver’s real estate pricing looks cheap

compared to other markets such as Hong Kong or Shanghai, These

backlashes towards investors may steer them away of purchasing

investment properties, which may cause further price decreases,

underwater mortgages and increased unemployment rates in the

trades but hey, at least the foreigners are gone!

But are foreign investors to blame?

The article by the Globe and Mail states that foreign buyers only

account for 1-4% of sales in 2012.* It’s reasonable to assume that this

assumption is formed by a “concerned citizen” seeing people with

black hair looking at open houses or condo sales centres and think

“oh the foreigners are buying up Vancouver!” Never mind that they

could be third generation Canadians. Even if foreign investors buy

property here, Angry Canadians conveniently forget the fact that

they are not exempt from property taxes/strata fees/insurance etc.

But hey, as long as these headlines keep coming, the assumptions will

be reinforced:

*Woo, Andrea. The Globe and Mail.

Education Basically the general stereotype of Asians pursuing academics is:

“The best university in BC is the University of British Columbia. Perhaps

why many aspire to send their children to attend UBC, or else imagine

the shame of telling your friends your child goes to SFU or UVic! If they

go to parties or play team sports it distracts from studying. God forbid

if your children do not achieve a prestigious job such as a

doctor/lawyer/engineer, you will lose “face!

Perhaps it’s this perception towards academics, which led to this

article:

But what about people of other ethnicities who pursue academics?

Are Asians specifically targeted because they are mainly portrayed

as anti-social nerds or ninjas in Hollywood?

Is the Macleans article “Too Asian” racist? It is quite debatable

amongst Canadians.

A UBC Historian addressed this article and as noted in page 6, was

accused of everything from being pro-Chinese to being racist against

whites. As you can see, it is a very sensitive topic.

Conclusion

It seems that the stereotypes are reinforced by how it’s portrayed in

the media, with its loaded headlines and mentioning of foreigners to

get a reaction out of its readers. They say that one of the worst things

about the internet is that it allows anyone to voice an opinion. It’s a

bit of concern looking at some of the comments, the mentality which

seems to be similar to back in the days of “White Canada Forever”

Works Cited WelcomeBC Newcomer’s Guide – Logos, icons, title page template, welcome page

template, photo of Christy Clark, Vancouver population stat, photo of scenic mountain,

photo of map of Metro Vancouver.

<http://www.welcomebc.ca/welcome_bc/media/Media-

Gallery/newcomers_guide_en.pdf>

Straight.com News & Youtube - Photos of comments towards Dr. Henry Yu.

<http://www.straight.com/news/henry-yu-macleans-offers-nonapology-writing-nonstory-

called-too-asian>

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-kTwVkty70>

The Province, CBC News & Vancity Buzz – Photos of articles regarding Chinese signs &

advertisements.

<http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/03/18/bc-chinese-

signs-richmond.html>

<http://www.theprovince.com/life/Chinese+signs+Richmond+hand+Delegation+will+

appeal+city/8104309/story.html>

<http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2013/03/chinese-only-bus-ads- appear-in-vancouver>

ICBC, Huffington Post & Newswire – photos of Chinese sign and bribe articles

<http://www.icbc.com/news/mar24-08>

<http://www.newswire.ca/fr/story/375093/vancouver-resident- attempts-to-bribe-an-

icbc-driver-examiner>

<http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1034976/thumbs/r-CHINESE-DRIVER-SIGN-large570.jpg?15>

CBC News & The Province – photos of articles/comments regarding racing/impound

<http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2011/09/01/bc-cars-

impounded.html>

<http://www.theprovince.com/Luxury+cars+impounded+Fraser+Valley+after+three+y

oung+drivers+unlicensed+caught+speeding/8223307/story.html>

The Province – photo of article regarding Durian Fruit

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Notoriously+stinky+fruit+evacuates+Richmond+m

all/7841078/story.html

Huffington Post & The Globe and Mail – Photos of articles regarding real estate

<http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/will-lin/vancouver-housing-chinese-investors-real-

estate-bubble_b_2537829.html>

<http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/scant-evidence-behind-

myth-of-vancouver-real-estates-foreign-buyers/article9000860/>

CBC News – Photos of comments and headline

<http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/story/2013/03/21/bc-condos-

empty.htm>

UBC Blog – Photo of the article “Too Asian?” by Macleans

<http://blogs.ubc.ca/maappsmedia/files/2011/04/3893270.jpg>

CBC News – Photos of comments discussing Too Asian article

<http://www.cbc.ca/q/blog/2010/11/22/is-the-macleans-too-asian-article-racist/>