Category: ACAM 330

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不能喝涼水 – Don’t drink cold water

Chatting With 陳 – Our Journey With TCM

Hosts:
Richie Chan 陳俊亨
Daniel Chen 陈丹宁 (he/him)

Guests:
Lisa Chai 齊麗霞 (Chinese heritage)
Wendy Chen 陈晓柔 (Chinese heritage)

One of the biggest areas of tension diasporic individuals experience in Canada is between adherence to traditional heritage medicine (e.g. Traditional Chinese Medicine [TCM], Ayurvedic medicine) versus Western medicine. Because of the holistic nature of traditional medicines, this tension not only impacts moments of illness, but pervades all aspects of life – from physical behaviours, to the temperature of food and drinks throughout one’s day. In this podcast, Chan and Chen (united by their shared family name 陳), explore their own respective journeys as they grew up grappling (and continue to grapple) with this medical tension. In particular, they discuss important questions such as how to reconcile when one’s own real experiences are so at odds with prevailing arguments and assumptions behind Western medicine? And how are TCM principles transmitted across generations?

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All I can do…

All I can do is dream about…affirmative care

Author:
Sahana Babu சஹானா (she/they)

In this qualitative study, Babu explores a topic that isn’t often studied, but certainly has pervasive impact on the lives of the diaspora – diasporic guilt. When bad things happen “back home,” diasporic communities invariable feel helpless, not knowing what to do or how to help make things better. How do we support our people when we’re so far away? We have privilege in being able to be away from all the bad things; but how should we use it? Babu interviews several individuals to get their thoughts on their respective experiences with things happening “back home.” With increased migration over time, such questions will only become even more important predictors of diasporic wellbeing. Where do diaspora find support, and how do we assuage such helplessness when turmoil hits home?

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Parallel loss of culture

It is important to support [cultural] neighbourhoods and business to keep them alive

Photographers and Storytellers:
Tamara Chang 陳秀明
Steffi Lau 劉晴昕

In a stroke of creative and artistic brilliance, Chang and Lau use their cameras as witnesses to the changing faces of two geographically disparate but culturally linked places – Hong Kong and Vancouver. Despite their distance and being on two different continents, the two cities are inextricably interlinked through history, culture, and migration – in both directions. Through these beautiful photographs, Chang and Lau weave a thought-provoking narrative that compels readers to consider how development, gentrification, and in some ways, capitalism, are pushing traditional and cultural neighbourhoods to the brink in both cities. With painful histories and rebellious resilience evident in both spaces, how do we go about protecting these spaces that have fostered and contributed to the growth of their respective cities?

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Suck on an egg

I think the Western system can go and suck on an egg

Host:
Sameen Niazi ثمين نیازی (she/hers)

Guests:
Nami Azizi نامى ءزيزي (Afghan heritage, medical laboratory assistant)
Charmain Laride (Filipina-Latinx heritage, doula)
Dr. Nazia Niazi نازیہ نیازی (Pakistani heritage, family physician)

In this podcast submission, Niazi interviews three Asian Canadians who interface with various facets of the medical system in Canada. They all express different levels of frustration in their experiences with the Canadian medical system, centring on their identities as Asian diaspora in Canada. The guests speak of systemic issues like the lack of language-accessible services, insufficient representation of diverse cultural identities in childbirth support service providers (e.g. midwives and doulas), and the problematic stereotypes and cultural assumptions healthcare providers have that are harmful for racialized communities. Niazi and her guests also talk about the difficulties of discussing about racism in Canada when the predominant conceptualization of racism requires that it be clear and explicit, making more implicit behaviours like biases and microagressions more difficult to critique despite the negative impact they have on the receiver. What steps are needed to tackle the racism and discrimination that’s built into the healthcare system in Canada?

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