Located in the heart of Vancouver, the Filipino Cultural Centre offers a wide range of programs and activities for people of all ages and backgrounds. Showcasing the unique cultural heritage of the Philippines, from traditional folk dances to art exhibitions, the centre helps to bridge the gap between all these interconnected communities and promote a sense of unity and inclusivity.
The only problem? It doesn’t exist. Not yet, at least.
So, what’s the issue?
Vancouver is one of Canada’s most culturally diverse cities, boasting a visible minority population of 54.5% as of 2021.
Filipino people are the third largest minority at 5.5%, behind the Chinese community (20%) and South Asian community (14%) (Chan 2022). The demand for a physical space to celebrate Filipino residents has been intensifying over the years, with a few failed attempts to build one in the past.
Joyce Street has been a major hotspot for the Filipino community, known for its mom-and-pop shops and food joints. It recently faced the threat of potentially being redeveloped when a rezoning sign appeared in the neighbourhood, announcing the development of condos (Fumano 2023). As of June 2023, a year after the sign was placed, the project seems to have been stalled.
Physical cultural community hubs are essential to marginalized communities, and urban developments have unfortunately led to a decline in these historic neighbourhoods. A prime example of this disruption is Hogan’s Alley, which served as the cultural hotspot for the Black community before construction of the Georgia and Dunsmuir viaducts fragmented the neighbourhood in the 70s. Over 50 years later, the City of Vancouver granted a land trust to the Hogan’s Alley Society (HAS), with the condition that the HAS provide housing, amenities, and a cultural centre with the land (Azpiri 2022). Redevelopment of this land requires the removal of the viaducts, so it’s estimated to take several years before Hogan’s Alley can begin physical restoration.
How do we stop them from disappearing?
The solution to these disappearing neighbourhoods must be to create dedicated physical spaces for the communities. So how do we do that?
In April 2023, just six weeks before Filipinx Heritage Month, the BC government pledged $250,000 to the Mabuhay House Society, a non-profit organization meant to establish a provincial Filipino Cultural Centre in Vancouver. This major step forward largely follows the introduction of the BC Anti-Racism Data Act in 2022, which aims to “safely collect race-based data and identify where systemic racism is creating barriers” (BC Government 2023).
How big of a step is it, really?
The provincial government is no stranger to providing funding for cultural spaces. Within the same week of announcing funding for the Mabuhay House Society, the BC government also pledged an additional $10 million to the Chinese Canadian Museum, bringing the total investment to $48.5 million (BC Government 2023). But with a much larger community, more funding is to be expected, right?
About five months prior to those announcements, the federal government, in partnership with the Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver, pledged $25 million to the redevelopment of the Jewish Community Centre in the Oakridge neighbourhood (Papequash 2022). The Jewish community makes up about 0.85% of the population in Vancouver (Statistics Canada 2022). In 2021, the Nikkei Seniors Health Care and Housing Society received $2 million, as a part of an overall $100 million package, to recognize Japanese internment-era survivors. The Nikkei Centre received $500,000 in 2018 in funding (BC Government 2022). According to the 2021 Census, the Japanese community makes up about 1.2% of the Metro Vancouver population.
The question of whether these communities deserve this funding isn’t up for debate—they do. In 2018, the Government of Canada created the $300 million Canada Cultural Spaces Fund with the purpose of “supporting the improvement of physical conditions for artistic creativity and innovation, as well as the improvement, renovation and construction of arts and heritage facilities, and the acquisition of specialized equipment” (Government of Canada 2018).
The government seems to agree that this is an important initiative, but it raises questions on why some communities can gain the government’s attention for funding and some cannot. If population has no real bearing on how much support a community gets, then maybe a different criterion is being used. Certainly, reparations to historically marginalized communities play a role, but the reparation amounts drastically vary to the point where they seem almost arbitrary.
What’s next?
Whatever the case may be for government backing, these cultural centres are still perhaps our best chance at combating the degradation of marginalized communities in Vancouver. Protecting these spaces means protecting the people. While there is a long road ahead for the Filipino community and the Cultural Centre, there is no shortage of support from the people.
References
Azpiri, Jon. 2022. “The renaissance of Hogan’s Alley: Deal struck to revive Vancouver’s historic Black neighbourhood.” CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/renaissance-of-hogan-s-alley-1.6580215.
BC Government. 2022. “Japanese Canadian legacies honoured as part of redressing historical wrongs | BC Gov News.” BC Gov News. https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2022PREM0031-000800.
BC Government. 2023. “B.C. supports Chinese Canadian Museum as it prepares to open | BC Gov News.” BC Gov News. https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2023TACS0010-000492.
BC Government. 2023. “Province supports public engagement for Filipino cultural centre | BC Gov News.” BC Gov News. https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2023TACS0013-000525.
Brend, Yvette. 2023. “Vancouver’s fight to save its struggling Chinatown one of many playing out across Canada.” CBC, August 10, 2023. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/chinatown-revitalization-1.6910507.
Chan, Kenneth. 2022. “Over half of Metro Vancouver residents are now part of a visible minority: statistics | Urbanized.” Daily Hive. https://dailyhive.com/vancouver/metro-vancouver-visible-minority-population-residents-statistics.
Fumano, Dan. 2023. “The push to save Vancouver’s heritage businesses from redevelopment.” Vancouver Sun, June 26, 2023. https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/fight-to-save-vancouver-heritage-businesses.
Government of Canada. 2018. “The Nikkei National Museum and Cultural Centre Receives Federal Support for Its Expansion.” Canada.ca. https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/news/2018/04/the-nikkei-national-museum-and-cultural-centre-receives-federal-support-for-its-expansion.html.
Papequash, Vincent. 2022. “Jewish Community Centre in Vancouver to get $25M makeover.” CBC. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-jewish-community-centre-25m-redevelopment-1.6675391.
Statistics Canada. 2022. “.Census Profile, 2021 Census of Population.” Statistics Canada. https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2021/dp-pd/prof/details/page.cfm?Lang=E&GENDERlist=1,2,3&STATISTIClist=1,4&HEADERlist=0&DGUIDlist=2021S0503933&SearchText=Vancouver.
