Thursday, July 31, 2014
Tuesday, July 8, 2014
Monday, July 7, 2014
Thursday, July 3, 2014
Celebrating 19 years as a Abbotsford News columnist
My 19 Years As A Newspaper Columnist Has Been All About Building Positive Community Relationships
By Ken Herar
It’s hard to believe 19 years has slipped by as a columnist and over 10 years with this paper. One of the most important things, I’ve learned is creating relationships in our community is far more valuable than being opinionated on things that really don‘t matter. The truth is we don’t know it all and we need to be more inclusive with all our diverse communities by listening and having an open mind. We should never stop building intercultural relationships and that is something we have unfortunately done. For example, in my travels in the Abbotsford/Mission area I rarely see people from different cultures walking together in our communities. I’m not saying it doesn’t happen, but it should be happening a lot more due to the size of diverse population. People say they believe in diversity, but unfortunately they don’t practice the basic fundamentals of it. Diversity is not a complicated word; it’s simply about creating friendships through are differences.
Over the past two decades, I have kept every correspondence that has been emailed to me and reading some of the positive and negative remarks all I can say is that we’re very fortunate to reside in a multicultural country. I have been placed in a leadership role all these years and I’ve taken this responsibility very seriously. Some weeks, it feels like it’s a full-time job with all the e-mails and invitations. I’m proud to say I have always made an effort to reach back to all those who have reached out.
After being denied in 2010 to go to a Christmas party for being East Indian I knew that much work remained. As the founder, of Cycling4Diversity our team has visited close to 100 schools in a short four years. Through this proactive approach we’re seeing change in our: neighbourhoods, parenting, sports teams, and workplaces. I’m happy to announce at this time I will be staying on for my 20th year and excited to be part of it. The best part of what I like about this job is I get to meet many incredible faces in our community and give them an opportunity to be part of an important discussion.
Last week, I was honoured and surprised to have received the Community/Literary Ambassador Award, from the Writer’s International Network (Canada).
In 2013, local author Theresa Chevalier, also received the WIN Distinguished Writer’s Award for her historical novels “Shameful Innocence” and “Green Hell. “Writer’s International Network celebrates and honors people of all cultures whose work touches the lives of others in positive and meaningful ways,” said Chevalier.
Chevalier, novels feature fictional characters living through very real historical times. Teachers have recommended her books to their students to aid in their studies. “I love going to WIN awards ceremonies. People from all over the world come together and share poems, songs and dance. This gives me inspiration and encouragement to love all and help to make a difference in the world, even if just in little ways.”
Ken “Kulwinder” Herar is a Mission-based writer and a winner of the champions of diversity award for his columns in the LINK newspaper and other Fraser Valley newspapers. Herar can be reached at kenherar@gmail.com or view his blog at http://www.kenherar.blogspot.com
Wednesday, July 2, 2014
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Cycling4Diversity in the Langley Times
Team cycles for diversity
Members of the Cycling 4
Diversity team brave a torrential downpour on Friday, riding from
Langley Secondary to H.D. Stafford, where the group of educators,
politicians and community organizers spoke to 100 students about
celebrating and supporting people’s differences. Founder, Ken Herar,
cycled 200 km from Victoria to Abbotsford.
In 2011, Ken Herar was told he wasn’t welcome to a Christmas party in Surrey because he was East Indian.
“I called up to get two tickets to this party and the woman on the line asked me if I was East Indian.
“I told her I was and she said they weren’t allowing East Indians at this party,” Herar recalls.
“I thought she was joking.”
Here it was 2011, and this discrimination was happening to him.
“It hit me right then that racism hasn’t gone away.
“We have to be a few steps ahead of it and that’s why we are here today,” Herar told more than 100 H.D. Stafford Middle School students last Friday.
After that incident, Herar created an organization called Cycling4Diversity, in an attempt to deliver a message to students across B.C. about celebrating our cultural existence, but also to encourage dialogue about being inclusive.
With the event now in its fourth year, the team of cyclists visited 15 cities and more than 20 schools last week, to speak with students about being inclusive.
The team of eight to 10 riders, along with five support staff, rode under a torrential downpour from Langley Secondary to H.D. Stafford on Friday, to deliver that message.
Among the riders were LSS teacher, Gurp Mahil, LSS principal, Dawne Tomlinson, Langley Times editor Frank Bucholtz and Langley City Councillor Dave Hall.
“What we are asking is, do one thing to be inclusive,” said Herar.
“Maybe someone doesn’t speak English, but try to make a connection.”
Don’t make assumptions about people.
“I was born and raised here. India is a foreign country to me and I don’t speak the language,” he said.
Tomlinson told the crowd of Grade 7 and 8 students that Langley Secondary students have a message for them.
“Know that we are very accepting and safe community. We are accepting of what you wear and how you talk,” she said. To learn more go to cycling4diversity.ca.
“I called up to get two tickets to this party and the woman on the line asked me if I was East Indian.
“I told her I was and she said they weren’t allowing East Indians at this party,” Herar recalls.
“I thought she was joking.”
Here it was 2011, and this discrimination was happening to him.
“It hit me right then that racism hasn’t gone away.
“We have to be a few steps ahead of it and that’s why we are here today,” Herar told more than 100 H.D. Stafford Middle School students last Friday.
After that incident, Herar created an organization called Cycling4Diversity, in an attempt to deliver a message to students across B.C. about celebrating our cultural existence, but also to encourage dialogue about being inclusive.
With the event now in its fourth year, the team of cyclists visited 15 cities and more than 20 schools last week, to speak with students about being inclusive.
The team of eight to 10 riders, along with five support staff, rode under a torrential downpour from Langley Secondary to H.D. Stafford on Friday, to deliver that message.
Among the riders were LSS teacher, Gurp Mahil, LSS principal, Dawne Tomlinson, Langley Times editor Frank Bucholtz and Langley City Councillor Dave Hall.
“What we are asking is, do one thing to be inclusive,” said Herar.
“Maybe someone doesn’t speak English, but try to make a connection.”
Don’t make assumptions about people.
“I was born and raised here. India is a foreign country to me and I don’t speak the language,” he said.
Tomlinson told the crowd of Grade 7 and 8 students that Langley Secondary students have a message for them.
“Know that we are very accepting and safe community. We are accepting of what you wear and how you talk,” she said. To learn more go to cycling4diversity.ca.
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