Our next guest is Jesse Thind, a young writer from Montreal. Jesse's book 'Lions of the Sea' is based on the tragic events that occurred on the Komagata Maru. At this point I would like to quote from Toronto's 'The Weekly Voice' :

"Some of us have read or been told of the events that transpired during the turn of the 20th century in Vancouver when a shipload of desperate immigrants was kept off the country for no reason other than the fact that they were of a different race and religion.

Now a young writer from Montreal, Jessi Thind, 29, gives the events flesh and blood through a fictionalized account of the travails of these pioneers."

You can read the complete book Review at:
http://www.weeklyvoice.com/CNews/index.asp?CNewsID=525861

Jesse also works with a childrens publishing company, that has made possible, an e-book to help make sure kids learn about the incidents associated with the Komagata Maru.

The book is illustrated (by Jesse) in black-line reproducible so that teachers can make copies with ease. It is also part of the Free Books For Kids program. It gives teachers the resources to teach neglected areas of Canadian education like visible minority history.

If anyone would like to make this book available at their website, they can go ahead without permission from the publisher. Here are the links for the same.

http://www10.brinkster.com/nanakjahazz/Guru_Nanak_jahaz_book.pdf

http://www10.brinkster.com/nanakjahazz/

Jesse, welcome to Canadiandesi.com. Thank you so much for making yourself available to answer our questions for the next few days.

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Hi Jesse,
From the links that were provided to me, here are a few that caught my attention.
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"Then the Sikh people, the least objectionable of the East Indians, are turbulent and uncomfortable to
have around. They are like the worst of the Irish raised to the Nth or the fourth dimension." Vancouver
Sun, June 19, 1914
"Right-thinking people know that the natives of Hindustan, though they have their good points, should not
be allowed in this country, except for circus purposes." Vancouver Sun, June 19, 1914
---------------------------------------------------------

All this was quite a few years ago. I think its safe to say that though racism still exists its not as rampant and blatant as it was then.
1) As a third generation Indo-Canadian(for lack of a better word), do you feel from your personal experiences that Canada has come a long way from that mindset. How much did your personal experiences in Canada, as a visible minority, contribute in writing the 'Lions of the Sea'?
2) How does a book like Lions of the Sea help us in understanding our History in this land? And why is it important to understand and be aware of our history in Canada?

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Thank you, Jacob, for that wonderful introduction. I would like to compliment you on this wonderful website and your commitment to the community. I would also like to say that you are a fantastic animator. I have studied animation and know that to make something as simple as a finger move is a put-the-phone-off–the-hook, 5am to midnight task. Your short film is a real triumph. Congratulations.

Now, to answer your questions.

Canada is the best country in the world (though I am extremely bias)! We have free Medicare. We have four seasons. We invented hockey. And our national sport is La Cross. Not to mention we have Celeine Dion. Jokes aside, I love my country with all my heart and I do believe we’ve come a long way as a nation—a long way! But we still have a far way to go. A starting point would be to put an end to media misrepresentation. I firmly believe that Canada, though a tolerant country should start giving more positive media representation to visible minorities, or at least refrain from perpetuating negative stereotypes. Our opinions and thoughts are shaped by the media. Our children’s self-esteem is shaped by their thoughts. Their thoughts become their actions. And when they act in negative ways the media jumps on the opportunity to demonize them. You sort of get the feeling that it is a vicious cycle. And you know what, it is.

The other day I received an e-mail from a gentleman from Surrey, Vancouver who thanked me for writing such a positive book for the community. A few lines from that e-mail illustrate my point:

“In this politically correct and polite country we call Canada, if a white man commits a crime it’s his fault and only his fault. If a Muslim commits the same crime, it’s the religion’s fault, it’s the community’s fault. I suppose that is what happens when one company owns all the newspapers. There is freedom of speech so long as you can afford to publish…if you want fair representation as a visible minority you must own your own press.”

Those three sentences say a lot. They speak of a frustrated community. They speak of a community that feels voiceless. They speak of discontent and disillusionment. So while I believe we’ve grown to be a great nation, I still believe there’s room for growth. And while I agree with you that racism is less rampant, I would like to ask you why this so. Why can we vote? Why can we study medicine? Why can we become lawyers? These are all things all Asian pioneers were absolutely forbidden from doing prior to 1947. Why did Canada choose to abandon its color bar and adopt a fair and objective point system? It is so because our forefathers made it so. It is their gift to us.

Canada is a great country because women and visible minorities worked hard and suffered countless humiliations to put us where we are now. Yet history will not teach your children this. History will teach them in a few brief sentences that Canada is the great nation it is today because of a few men born to privilege. Your children will learn that Macdonald was responsible for the CPR railway but they will not learn that one Chinese man per km of railway laid lost his life. Your children will learn about Wilfred Laurier’s political ingenuity and how he is seen as the “architect” or “father” of modern day liberalism but you will not learn that the “father” used that ingenuity to create legislation that violated East Indians rights to free movement within the empire, put an absolute stop to East Indian immigration, and was to a large degree responsible for the Anti-Asian riots in 1907. Your children will learn that Mackenzie King led us through the great depression and World War II but they will not learn that he also led Japanese Canadians to internment camps. And this is an issue I think my book brings up. It shows that there are always two sides to a story and that more often than not it is in the interest of a privileged few to dilute or even hide one side of the story.

“We are not makers of history. We are made by history.” Martin Luther King, Jr.

Our children must learn that their legacy is just as important as those Euro-Canadian children sitting around them. It is a matter of self-image. It is a matter of self-esteem. It is a matter of making sure our children can stand with dignity amongst all other Canadian children and not feel that their ancestors did a bad thing.

Let our gift to the next generation be more fair representation. And let our gift to those loyal British subjects who challenged the “gatekeepers” be an official apology that absolutely absolves them from any wrongdoing.

I hope, Jacob, I have answered your questions. And since I strongly believe an interview is a two-way process I would like to ask you and readers two questions:

(1) Why do you think Canada has failed to address the issue of the Komagata Maru for the last 90 yrs despite the community’s constant efforts to secure an apology?

(2) Do you feel that we owe anything to those Asian pioneers who suffered as a consequence of Laurier’s government? That is to say, should we struggle for their memory as they fought for our security; as they struggled to make sure we could be our nation’s lawyers, politicians, animators, writers…Is there an obligation to give back to them for all that was given to us?

These are the questions I leave you with.

Jess

www.komagatamaru.org

(This is my site and it is being built by friends who work with me. Thank you Regina, Yasmine, Kabir, Ken, Mark, David, Xaiver, and Vageli . They are webmasters and are e-marketers by profession so I look forward to seeing what they come up with. They have committed to helping me build my website and spread the word. It should be up in a week or so. If anyone else would like to get involved, or help me spread the word by placing a banner at their site, contact me at jessethind@yahoo.com. Perhaps we could do a “link” exchange?)

Thanks for the compliments Jess. The credit for this site goes to Rashmi Patel, also known as Garvo Gujrati. The success of this site is due to each and every member who contributes to this site. I Just moderate this section for GG.

Also you are one of the few who have seen my film. I'll have a screening for desis later...still working on the final cut.

Those were some really fine answers as to why we need to know our history in this land.

There surely is an obligation for us to give those pioneers their due. Efforts like yours will ensure that. Efforts like that of this site should also serve to further that cause so we as desis can be proud of the contributions of our pioneers towards making this country what it is today.

Like most people on this board, being first generations immigrants, we are mostly unaware or not as knowledgeable about the contributions of those who came in before us. So I'd have to ask you to answer the questions that you previously put forward to us.

(1) Why do you think Canada has failed to address the issue of the Komagata Maru for the last 90 yrs despite the community’s constant efforts to secure an apology?

A feeble answer would be that the government is afraid of compensation claims. However can you tell us of the other reasons if any?

also
2) Can you enlighten us on the efforts that were made so far to receive an apology?
Thanks

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To Jessi, congrats for all your hard work!
For all those who don't know Jessi , he is a role model for the Indian community.I am very proud have him as a friend and a training partner in taekwondo.I never knew a lot about Indian culture and people but after knowing Jessi I can say that I have a new found respect for their culture.Jessi's positive attitude brings indians together and unites them with all other nationalities ,showing that despite differences people should unite and be as one.I hope the Indian community can see you for who you are Jessi, a great person and someone who wants to help others for no selfish reason but just because its the right thing to do!
I wish you all the best in this coming new year from your friend Evangelos Ligeros

Jacob, I hope you don’t mind. I announced this interview to some professors and some yahoo groups.

I would now like to introduce Evangelos Ligeros(just above), head instructor at Chong Lee Tae Kwon Do. Evangelos is a true role model for all Canadians. Of his countless accomplishments for Canada he has brought our country a silver medal from the Pan American Games, a silver medal from the US Open, and I know he’s taking GOLD at the Olympics. I train with him every morning and teach private lessons with him every afternoon. There is no one who deserves that medal more. (Evangelos, it is already yours, now all you have to do is go to Athens and collect! You make me proud to be Canadian.)

Questions:

(1) Why do you think Canada has failed to address the issue of the Komagata Maru for the last 90 yrs despite the community’s constant efforts to secure an apology?

A feeble answer would be that the government is afraid of compensation claims. However can you tell us of the other reasons if any?

also
2) Can you enlighten us on the efforts that were made so far to receive an apology?
Thanks

Answer:

I think Canada has failed to address the issue simply because the community has not really made it the issue it should be. My understanding is that only Canadians in Vancouver have been demanding an apology. Why only them? This is our history. It is crucial to all Indo-Canadians. Perhaps leaders from Vancouver (especially in our media) should start talking to leaders in Toronto. Leaders in Toronto should start talking to leaders in Montreal. Leaders in Montreal should start talking to leaders in Halifax, and so on and so forth. In 1914, a Shore Committee was established to counter the vice of the Bordon government. They united under one cause: to help the passengers, to make sure they didn’t starve. Maybe, that’s what we as community will have to do to secure an apology. Put aside all our differences to form “The Apology Committee.” I am talking to a few people right now in Toronto and Vancouver, and this is something that might really happen. It’s too soon to say.

In the end, our community has not made an official apology a real issue because for the first half of this century we were too busy fighting for other issues. Mainly, the vote. The vote was taken away from all East Indians in Canada in 1909 even though, as director Ali Kazimi puts it in his film Passage from India, it was a right “guaranteed by the fact that they were British subjects like other Canadians.” Because of Laurier’s final decision to take away from the community this inalienable right, East Indians living in Canada could not get contracts, government jobs, or enter professions. They could not be lawyers. They could not be doctors. They could not be politicians. All these blessings (that we now take for granted) required the vote. All said, there were more pressing battles to be fought. Now that we have equality, now that we have status, now that we have a say in this country, I think it is time that Canada do the right thing and give the Indo-Canadian community a formal apology. This they will only do if we make it an issue. And that is entirely up to the community.


*** Jacob, I’m not sure if you or the community is familiar with Ali Kazimi’s work. His efforts and films instill great pride in all Indo-Canadians. His film “Passage From India” meant a lot to me and I would very much like to share his link with everyone:

http://www.socialdoc.net/

In his film you will be introduced to other great Indo-Canadians (Belle Puri, Kuldit Bains, Jack Uppal) who will just make you feel very proud of your heritage. Thank you, Ali Kazimi, for that wonderful film.

Guys:

This is one of the best threads I've read on this site. Well done Jesse and good luck with the excellent work. I've bookmarked your site. Do email us or publicise here when the site is up & running.

All the best!

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