What this is about
Welcome to a mini showcase of student work from ASIX 300A: Hong Kong Diaspora in Canada. I am the supervising faculty, Dr. Benjamin Cheung. I am excited to present to you, and curate for you, a subset of the amazing work students in this course have created. This course is part of the Hong Kong Studies Initiative and supports the Minor in Asian Language and Culture (Hong Kong) Degree at The University of British Columbia. This is similar to another showcase presented elsewhere for my other course, ACAM 320B: https://blogs.ubc.ca/bycacamshowcase/.
This course helps students explore different types of experiences and topics that relate to Hong Kong diaspora in Canada, including issues around migration, identity, diasporic guilt, and how various discourse around colonialism in Hong Kong differs significantly from that discourse in Canada – and the reconciliation that that may require. It is also an opportunity for many students with migratory histories that trace back to Hong Kong to discuss these topics in a space they couldn’t find before, and explore topics around identity, culture, and history that they hadn’t considered before.
What you’re about to see
As part of the course, students had to submit a final project that allowed them to explore a topic of interest in relation to Hong Kong Diaspora in Canada. These take the form of papers, podcasts, and various forms of artistic expression. On this site, you’ll see a small selection of submissions from each year. Each submission is accompanied by a description/commentary, which all end with a reflection question that I hope will inspire you to think about the deeper meaning behind each submission…and its relevance to the everyday lives of Hong Kong diaspora in Canada. The menu at the top of the page will take you to the different types of submissions here. Please feel free to look around!
All submissions here are posted with the consent of the students and, if applicable, their guests.
The header video is of the Lion Rock in Hong Kong, so named for the resemblance of its overall shame to a sitting lion. It has long come to symbolize “the spirit of the Hong Kong people”, or the “Lion Rock Spirit” – Hong Kongers’ fortitude, and their resilience – all of which are necessary as people try to rebuilt their lives in a foreign land.
Header credits: Simplyart4794 (2022) on www.pexels.com