Marwa fatafta

Diana, you were born in Canada. What identity did you grow up with?

As the daughter of immigrant parents, I knew - and was made acutely aware - that I was not white; that I was from a different place, but that I was born in Canada. In Canada, there is a lot of veiled racism with people often asking questions to such as “where is ‘back home’?” or “where are you REALLY from?” It becomes both difficult and easy to adopt a “Canadian” identity: easy because it becomes the way of trying to fit in but difficult because you never do. As I say this, however, I think it is important to highlight that, during my education in Canada, Indigenous peoples were rarely, if ever, discussed. Canada was created on top of Indigenous land. Indigenous peoples’ place in the national narrative of the “birth” of Canada has been minimized and viewed as peripheral to the dominant culture’s stories and identity.

What values were instilled in you during your formative years and who were your role models?

My role models then are the same as they are today: my parents. My parents made certain that

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