The Governor General has sworn in the next cabinet for the 40th Parliament. Of interest to immigrantchildren.ca readers, these posts:
For Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism: The Honourable Jason Kenney, former Minister of State (Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity)
For Human Resources and Social Development: The Honourable Diane Finley, former Minister of Citizenship and Immigration.
immigrantchildren.ca will update the blog, revising any relevant pages over the next little while.
More books for children on the theme of immigration:
How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina R. Friedman.
When Jesse Came Across the Sea by Jesse Hest.
The Memory Coat by Elvira Woodruff.
Small Beauties by Elvira Woodruff.
My Name is Yoon by Helen Recorvits.
Naming Liberty by Jane Yolen.
Marianthe’s Story: Painted Words and Spoken Memories by Aliki.
The Great Migration by Jacob Lawrence.
Dia’s Story Cloth: The Hmong People’s Journey of Freedom by Dia Cha.
I Hate English! by Ellen Levine and Steve Bjorkman.
The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco.
The Colour of Home by Mary Hoffman.
Molly’s Pilgrim by Barbara Cohen.
See former posts on this topic:
Children’s books about immigration, posted Jan 22/08
Children’s books about immigration II, posted Mar 11/08.
Taken from the National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME) listserv: “The International Journal of Multicultural Education (IJME) is soliciting reviews of multicultural children’s books for its fall issue on Indigenous cultures to be published in December. Reviews can be done for picture books, easy readers, transitional readers, chapter books and literature for young adults.
“IJME is a peer-reviewed open-access journal for scholars, practitioners and students of multicultural education. Committed to promoting educational equity, cross-cultural understanding, and global awareness in all levels of education, IJME publishes two issues a year on various multicultural education topics.
“The review should consider the text from a multicultural perspective, paying attention to multicultural and monocultural themes, civil rights, cultural normativism, intercultural exchange, hybridity and so forth. Some questions might be: How does the author represent relationships between characters of different races or ethnicities? Does the text advocate for multicultural ideals in terms of political correctness or of civil rights? Are its representations of culture authentic or pejorative? Is this book likely to change the minds of its readers? Will it strengthen the convictions of those readers who share its perspective? How does this book compare with similar books on this theme?
“For picture books, additional questions might be, does the artist create authentic individualistic representations, or are they generic or stereotypical? Do the illustrations enhance the value of the text or are they superfluous? Do they possess pedagogical value in themselves, pointing toward traditions or unusual modes of representation”?
Submissions should be sent to mjoseph@rutgers.edu. More information can be found at the IJME website. Deadline is December 1, 2008.
The Institute for Public Policy Research (UK) is hosting a seminar on the Integration of Vulnerable Migrant Groups. From the website, this description:
“In recent years, there has been considerable interest in migrant integration and social cohesion. Concerns have focussed on the scale of recent immigration, its impacts on social cohesion, and apparently ‘inassimilable’ migrant and minority ethnic communities. Migrant integration and social cohesion have been accorded high priority across all parts and levels of Government. Policy initiatives have been accompanied by a growing body of research literature that provides new insights into immigrant integration and social cohesion. Yet there still remains a pressing need to ensure that research on migrant integration is used to inform policymaking”.
The seminar will be held Nov 24/08 in London. IPPR often posts podcasts and transcripts of their events afterwards.
Three groups have announced their annual awards:
The Canadian Centre for Victims of Torture (CCVT). Three awards available “to recognize the valuable contributions individuals make to build an equitable and just society; and to recognize those who have made a sustained and innovative contribution in the community, demonstrating leadership, initiative, perseverance, and originality”. Some immigrant children’s champions are likely good candidates for some of these awards.
The Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) Immigrant Success Awards recognize “employers and individuals in the Toronto Region that are leaders in recruiting, retaining and promoting skilled immigrants in the workplace”. Maybe this year, taking action on the issue of child care for working immigrant parents will elevate an employer’s chances at receiving an award.
Immigrant Services Canada in Calgary bestows awards in five categories for Immigrant of Distinction. Two categories (non-profit and community service) are likely places for immigrant children’s champions.
Microsoft has launched KIND – Kids In Need of Defense – a funding program that will provide unaccompanied minor migrant children in the United States with legal support. $14.5 million is being shared among nine states in the US for the next three years. See the news story at The Seattle Times.
A journalist from the CBCs Radio Canada International has asked immigrantchildren.ca to assist her with a story. She has identified that stories about immigrant children are often told by their parents, immigrant serving organizations, teachers and other adults. She wants to talk to immigrant children themselves to hear their perspectives and opinions for a story she is working on. Bravo!
If you can help Paloma Martinez connect with immigrant children for her story, please email her at paloma.martinez@radio-canada.ca or if you’re in Montreal, by phone at 514.597.7515 as soon as possible and no later than the end of this week.
Let’s help ensure immigrant children’s voices are heard in stories about them!
Best Start: Ontario’s Maternal, Newborn and Child Development Resource Centre (BSRC) is holding their annual conference Feb 23-25/09 in Toronto. Of interest to immigrantchildren.ca readers, these two workshops (descriptions taken from the conference website):
Giving Birth in a New Land, with Saleha Bismilla, Toronto Public Health
The changing demographics of Ontario have an impact for service providers such as nurses, physicians, midwives, and community workers who work in reproductive health. Women from diverse cultural backgrounds may have different needs and expectations when accessing health services. Service providers should be sensitive to these needs and can help women and their partners to prepare for having a baby in Ontario.
Child Language Development in Bilingual or Multilingual Environments, with Laurie-Ann Staniforth, First Words
This concurrent session will provide an overview of normal child language development in bilingual or multilingual environments. Bilingualism in the context of language delay or disorder will also be discussed. This session will include practical considerations for service providers such as issues to consider and how to work with and support bi- and multilingual children and families.
immigrantchildren.ca is participating in today’s Blog Action Day ’08 – Poverty.
Blog Action Day is an annual non-profit event that unites the world’s bloggers, videographers, writers and activists to take action on the same issue on the same day, and “trigger a global discussion”.
For immigrant children and their families in Canada, poverty is certainly an issue. In their annual report on the state of Canada’s children, Campaign 2000 last year highlighted that children of recent immigrants are more likely to live in poverty in their report, It Takes a Nation to raise a Generation.
Community Foundations of Canada annual report card Canada’s Vital Signs 2008 also highlights the issue of poverty among immigrant families.
A related upcoming event: The Canadian Council on Social Development is holding their first Canadian Social Forum on poverty in Calgary May 19-22/09. Delegates might consider raising the issue of poverty among immigrant families with young children.
TVOntario‘s Big Ideas show this weekend features Salman Ahktar, author of Immigration and Identity: Turmoil, Treatment and Transformation. Ahktar’s book, I’m told, includes much discussion on immigrant children and children of immigrants. After airing, the show uploads podcasts on its site.