TOPIC: B.C. VOICES
First Person
Photography was my dad's way of saying 'I love you' — I just didn't know it before he died
Digitizing his family videos helped Vancouver photographer Taehoon Kim see a new side of his dad, who died in 2005. This First Person column was originally published in July 2021. Sunday, June 18, is Father's Day.
First Person
It's not easy being a visible transgender woman, especially when others refuse to see you as real
I wish I didn’t have to be a "real" girl to be allowed to exist, writes trans activist Mikayla Cadger.
First Person
My little boy will grow up to be a Black man — and I'm afraid
Raising a racialized child in Canada means teaching them about their complex place in the world, says Audrey McKinnon, but that burden needs to be taken on by parents of non-racialized children as well.
First Person
Agoraphobia therapy helped me see the world wasn't as perilous as I thought. Then COVID-19 hit
I spent months in therapy learning that the world wasn't as dangerous as I believed, writes Sarah Ellis Fox. And then the pandemic happened.
First Person
Photography was my dad's way of saying 'I love you' — I just didn't know it before he died
Digitizing family videos helped me see a new side of my dad, who died in 2005, writes Vancouver photographer Taehoon Kim.
First Person
It's hard to maintain cultural identity when you move out of the family home
Until she moved out of her parents' home, Neha Chollangi writes, she never understood how much she relied on her family to reinforce her cultural identity.
First Person
How gardening gave me structure, purpose and a path out of depression during the pandemic
Raising plants provided a sense of calm, purpose and normalcy during the hardest days of the pandemic, Tim Ford writes.
First Person
As an Iranian-born woman, I haven't always felt like Canada is home
For many immigrant families, Canada has long held the promise of a better life. As the child of Iranian immigrants, however, I’ve questioned whether Canada is the home for me.
Opinion
Why boycotting the Beijing Olympics would strike a distinct cultural blow to the Chinese government
Appearances are everything in Chinese culture and this can be used to Canadian advantage, writes first-generation Chinese Canadian Cissy Suen.
First Person
Western-Chinese food is authentic — and isn't white washing our culture
Insecure in my biracial identity, I initially rejected the dishes that represent the legacy of immigrant chefs like my grandparents, writes Kathryn Mannie. Now, I see it as my way home.
First Person
Let me be that person you know in a wheelchair, so we can all think about how to be more inclusive
Before becoming paralyzed, I had no idea what it meant to be ostracized from society for something I had no control over, writes Codi Darnell.
First Person
My mom's memory is failing. But rolling dumplings is something she can do intuitively
Even when her memory was failing, Tarn Tayanuth’s mom worked her way around the kitchen rolling dumplings with confidence.
First Person
I'm first and foremost a Sikh — then a family physician
For Asian Heritage Month, Dr. Birinder Narang shares how his faith inspires and motivates his approach toward health care.
First Person
I'd much rather be in New Zealand than B.C. when a big earthquake strikes
After experiencing earthquakes in both B.C. and New Zealand, public health researcher Kristina Jenei says it’s clear the province has a long way to go when it comes to earthquake preparedness.
First Person
How the pandemic triggered memories of going hungry — and how sourdough soothed my fears
For Linda Hutchinson, the empty grocery store shelves of early 2020 reminded her of a time when a bag of rice could be her only source of food for weeks. But she found solace this past year in baking, starting with a sourdough starter named Bonnie.
First Person
I live in Canada, my wife is in India. The pandemic and our broken immigration system are keeping us apart
Simran Singh was counting the days until he would reunited with his wife — a process hampered by pandemic delays. Her flight from India was booked, when the news broke all flights from the country coming into Canada were banned for 30 days to control the virus.
Want to write an opinion or first person column for CBC British Columbia? Here's how
CBC is looking for British Columbians who want to write 500-600-word opinion and first person columns.
The rituals of renewal: Celebrating Nowruz in a pandemic
Nowruz, or Persian New Year, begins this Saturday and will be celebrated in countries around the world. CBC’s Tina Lovgreen first began taking part in the festivities as a young girl growing up in Iran. This year, she revisits her family’s traditions and explores the meaning behind some New Year rituals - from "shaking the house" to jumping over fire.
First Person
We all have privilege to some degree. What we do with it matters
As a brown Muslim woman, I have been the butt of racist jokes and microagressions. But I also go unseen in other situations — like when another group is targeted, writes Taslim Jaffer.
Opinion
Despite gestures and promises of change, Black history remains untaught in most of our schools
At the time of publication, Black Canadian history is still optional in the British Columbian curriculum, writes Naomi Hudson.
Point of View
I'm mixed race, and sometimes I feel like I don't belong anywhere
My mother is Indigenous, and my dad is white. That makes me mixed — two pieces of me, split right down the middle, writes Jeremy Ratt, host of the CBC podcast Pieces.
Uncovering B.C.'s Black history: Who is Mifflin Gibbs?
Mifflin Gibbs was the first Black person elected to public office in B.C. and helped guide the colony into joining the Confederation of Canada. But most B.C. students likely don’t know who he is because local Black history isn’t part of he school curriculum.
Photos
From weaves to dreadlocks, natural to relaxed, Black hair is about celebrating diversity
As a Black man and a photographer, David Markwei wanted to capture some of the diverse hairstyles within the local Black community and learn more about the shared experiences that Black folks have had during their hair journeys.
Opinion
B.C. needs an independent agency to investigate civil rights violations in long-term care
The biggest problem for citizens living in long-term care facilities is they have no practical way to enforce their civil rights, writes Paul Caune, an advocate for people with disabilities.
Opinion
Vaccinating inmates protects us all. To say otherwise is just a cheap attempt to gain votes
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole's dismissal of inmates as unworthy of vaccinations is part of a troubling trend in politics where elected officials ignore solid evidence and policy advice, and instead manipulate our emotions in a cheap attempt to gain votes, writes Ian Gauthier.