I still remember during my first CAP lecture, we were asked, “What did it mean to be a global citizen?” As a fellow student enrolled in the Global Citizens CAP Stream, I felt slightly embarrassed that I did not know what the definition was. I then had a flashback to when all the prospective students and I were undertaking the incredibly stressful process of creating worklists and registering for courses back in June. was that I had desperately wanted this schedule due to my desire to pursue a Sociology major, then to go into a career in Public Relations. At first, choosing this path was a precedent to dipping my toes to get a feel of what studying humanities and social sciences was like. Thinking that the classes would be smaller with the same classmates put me at ease. My mind was still stuck in high school despite it being so close to the end of the school year.
Two Fridays ago, the CAP Global Citizens held its first joint lecture of the year. As I noticed that all the professors of our CAP classes slowly trickle in, I grew more and more puzzled. My head was spinning with countless questions wondering what was about to happen.
As it turned out, no, it was not a session where we were learning about all of our subjects in one cohesive group like I had imagined. We watched a documentary titled: “A Degree of Justice: Japanese Canadian UBC Students of 1942“, which was about Japanese students attending UBC in the 1940s. As students in the Global Citizens stream, we were expected to become more aware of history, current events, and cultures of all around the world so that we would be able to achieve not only the standing of a global citizen, but the understanding of one.
The sensitive nature of this documentary was expected. I had registered for the humanities, after all. But the actual content was surprising. Growing up, I had nearly no insight in the history of Asian Canadians, especially from Japanese descent. Then it dawned on me – the majority of history I had learned from class were about Europeans, Americans, and the progress of Canada. Albeit knowing that Asians were mistreated in Canadian history, I was shocked since presently, Canada is known for being such a diverse and multicultural country. Were the minorities regarded as barricades or hindrances for Canada’s well being?
Throughout the film, I experienced several differing emotions. Anger, frustration, distraughtness, shame, and confusion took over my brain. The fact that these Japanese UBC Alumni were stripped from the basic rights to proper education only because of the pigment of their skin and the false generalization that everyone with those physical features are potential threats to the nation. It was difficult watching these people who had gone through so much hardship were open to the idea of sharing their stories. Revealing a new perspective. But most importantly, forgiving the past and moving onto the future.
I walked out of the joint lecture with a renewed sense of purpose that day. Many subjects like this one are bound to hurt you, but like the Japanese Canadians, I am willing to wait patiently and keep my mind open to all sources of information. Controversy may not be a recipe for another disaster, but a step closer to building a better Canada. Entering the doors, I was mostly apathetic towards current events and politics, but coming out, I saw how being exposed to all of this fresh information offered an abundance of knowledge that could be used not only for my education, but also towards the upwards progress of society. It was only until I walked out of the lecture doors on that day that I discovered the value of being a global citizen.