There is a growing body of information on combatting anti-Asian racism and hate and overcoming harmful stereotypes about Asia and people of Asian descent. Canada has a powerful network of organizations dedicated to raising awareness about these issues. While the list below is by no means exhaustive, it has been created by APF Canada to better inform Canadians and provide gateways to action.
We are also fortunate in Canada to have a wealth of writers and filmmakers of Asian descent whose work is helping to make their experiences more visible and enrich the telling of the ‘Canadian story.’
Government of Canada Resources
- Anti-Racism Engagement Resources
- Building a Foundation for Change: Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy 2019–2022
- Federal Anti-Racism Secretariat
Government of British Columbia Resources
- Multiculturalism and Anti-Racism
- BC's Office of the Human Rights Commissioner
- Toll-free Racist Incident Helpline
Organizations Working Against Racism - National Coalition of Canadians Against Anti-Asian Racism (NCCAAR) - A not-for-profit entity that advances public education on anti-Asian racism and promotes racial equality.
- Canadian Race Relations Foundation – Dedicated to the elimination of racism and all forms of racial discrimination in Canada. A resource for research, data, and information on racism.
- Chinese Canadian National Council for Social Justice (CCNC-SJ) – Educates, engages, and advocates for equity and justice for all in Canada. Spearheaded campaigns such as Stop the Spread.
- Elimin8Hate – Advocacy arm of the Vancouver Asian Film Festival (VAFF), it aims to empower, educate, and eliminate racism. Spearheaded the TikTok campaign #ReClaimYourName.
- Fight COVID Racism – Provides a platform to report and record race-based hate crimes in Canada (supported by Chinese Canadian National Council - Toronto Chapter; CCNC-SJ; Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic; and, Civic Engagement Network - Society of Canada).
- HeartMob by Right to Be – Report online harassment and receive support.
- Project 1907 – Partnered with VAFF and Elimin8Hate to provide a platform to report and record race-based hate crimes in Canada.
- Stop AAPI Hate – A U.S.-based coalition that tracks and responds to incidents of hate, violence, harassment, discrimination, shunning, and child bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States.
- Action! Chinese Canadians Together – Aimed at building the capacity of Canadian leaders of Chinese descent and committed to creating a more equitable Canadian society.
- Council of Agencies Serving South Asians (CASSA) – Anti-Hate Community Leaders’ Group – CASSA is an umbrella organization of agencies, groups, and individuals that provides services to the South Asian Community through information, research, mobilization, co-ordination, and leadership on social justice issues.
- Hua Foundation - A youth empowerment non-profit working on racial equity and civic engagement issues, based in Vancouver.
Educational Resources
- Addressing Anti-Asian Racism: A Resource for Educators by the Toronto District School Board, 2021.
- A Year of Racist Attacks: Anti-Asian racism across Canada one year into the COVID-19 pandemic by Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter, 2021.
- Anti-Racism for Kids: An Age-by-Age Guide to Fighting Hate, by Parents, 2021.
- “Asian-American Professionals Push For Visibility at Work,” by Te-Ping Chen, The Wall Street Journal, 2021.
- “Corky Lee, Who Photographed Asian-American Life, Dies at 73,” by Neil Genzlinger The New York Times, 2021.
- Chinese Exclusion Act [US], September 2019.
- Guide to Allyship by amélie lamont – An open source guidebook.
- “How to intervene in a racist attack,” by Akshat Rathi, Quartz, 2016.
- Road to Justice – The legal struggle for equal rights of Chinese Canadians.
- The Racial Healing Handbook: Practical Activities to Help You Challenge Privilege, Confront Systemic Racism, and Engage in Collective Healing [Handout].
- Treating Yellow Peril: Resources to Address Coronavirus Racism by Professor Jason Oliver Chang, University of Connecticut.
- “There’s a long, global history to today’s anti-Asian bias and violence,” by Kim Yi Dionne, Sarah Hayes, and Fulya Felicity Turkmen, The Washington Post (Monkey Cage), 2021.
- “What it means to be anti-racist,” by Anna North, Vox, 2020.
- “Why Diversity Training Doesn't Work – The challenge for Industry and Academia,” by Frank Dobbin and Alexandra Kalev, Anthropology Now, 2018.
- #StopAsianHate - Leading Anti-Racist Efforts in Organizations: A conversation with Lily Zheng, a Diversity, Equity & Inclusion consultant and Executive Coach, by Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
- Style Guide: Reporting on Asian Canadian Communities (First Edition) by Elimin8Hate, 2021 – A resource for best practices when reporting about Canadians and people of Asian heritage.
- “Why ‘Kim’s Convenience’ Is ‘Quietly Revolutionary’” By Priya Krishna, The New York Times, 2021.
- “Tea if by sea, cha if by land: Why the world only has two words for tea” by Nikhil Sonnad, Quartz, 2018.
- History of South Asians in Canada: Timeline by the South Asian Studies Institute, University of the Fraser Valley
- “Psychology Works” Fact Sheet: Racism by the Canadian Psychological Association.
- Race Relations in Canada 2019 Survey by Environics Institute and Canadian Race Relations Foundation.
- How To Start Conversations About Anti-Asian Racism With Your Family by Anna Sirianni and Audie Cornish, Code Switch, NPR, 2021.
- “Racing the Pandemic: Anti-Asian Racism amid COVID-19” by Christine R. Yano, Chapter 9, Pg 123-136, in The Pandemic: Perspectives on Asia, edited by Vinayak Chaturvedi.
- “Anti-Asian Racism Is More than a Trending Topic” by Anita Li, The Walrus, 2021.
- “Race as a Social Construction,” by Gordon Hodson, Psychology Today, 2016.
- “The white elephant in the room: anti-Asian racism in Canada” by Henry Yu, UBC, 2021.
- “The Riot that Changed Canada” by Crawford Kilian, The Tyee, 2015.
- 360 Riot Walk - a 360 Video Walking Tour of the 1907 Anti-Asian Riots in Vancouver.
- The President’s Task Force on Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Final Report: 54 Steps on the Pathway to an Anti-Racist and Inclusively Excellent UBC by the University of British Columbia.
Training Resources
- Anti-Racism Strategies for the Workplace by the University of British Columbia.
- Bystander intervention trainings by Asian Americans Advancing Justice | Chicago.
- Bystander intervention trainings by Right to Be (Also provides, anti-harassment trainings for workplace or street).
- Education and Training by Canadian Race Relations Foundation.
- Training & Workshops by the Anti-Racism & Cultural Diversity Office, University of Toronto.
- Responding to Hate Toolkit by Ryerson University.
- Fight Racism in Canada! By Chinese Canadian National Council - For Social Justice – A learning series designed for students (Grade 4 and up) to learn about racism and how to fight it in their communities; includes facilitator’s guide.
- Act2endracism – Provides resources and tools for the general public, community organizations, and survivors of racism. Created by a coalition of Asian Canadians and organizations.
- Historical, Systemic and Intersectional Anti-racism: From Awareness to Action (Open Online Course) by the University of British Columbia.
- Saffron Threads: Exploring South Asian Canadian Culture, History, and Heritage, a set of educational resources for BC school teachers by the University of the Fraser Valley and Royal BC Museum.
Podcasts
- Colour Code, a podcast about race in Canada by The Globe and Mail
- BE ANTIRACIST with Ibram X. Kendi
- The Secret Life of Canada with Falen Johnson and Leah Simone Bowen by CBC
- Code Switch by NPR
Self-care
- Surviving and Resisting Hate: A Toolkit for People of Colour by #ICRaceLab, Dr. Hector Y. Adames and Dr. Nayeli Y. Chavez-Dueñas.
- Grief is a direct impact of racism: Eight ways to support yourself by Roberta K. Timothy.
- Asian Americans Addiction & Mental Health Support, by Live Another Day (US)
- South Asian Network Covenant Health – Edmonton, AB
Canadian Museums
- Canadian Museum for Human Rights, Winnipeg, Manitoba
- Chinese Canadian Museum, Vancouver, BC
- Nikkei National Museum & Cultural Centre, Burnaby, BC
- Pacific Canada Heritage Centre – Museum of Migration (PCHC – MoM)
- Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto
- The Virtual Museum of Asian Canadian Cultural Heritage by the Canadian Foundation for Asian Culture (Central Ontario) Inc.
- Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project (PCLP) by Royal BC Museum, in partnership with the South Asian Studies Institute at the University of the Fraser Valley.
- South Asian Canadian Legacy Project by the South Asian Studies Institute at the University of the Fraser Valley, in partnership with Royal BC Museum.
- Landscapes of Injustice by the Centre for Asia-Pacific Initiatives, at the University of Victoria.
Documentaries and Film Festivals
- All Our Father’s Relations, by Alejandro Yoshizawa, 2016
- Continuous Journey, by Ali Kazimi, 2004
- Lost Years by Kenda Gee and Tom Radford, 2011
- One Big Hapa Family, by Jeff China Stearns, 2010
- Sleeping Tigers: The Asahi Baseball Story, by Jari Osborne, 2003
- Unwanted Soldiers, by Jari Osborne, 1999
- Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival
- Vancouver Asian Film Festival
- What Flowers They Bloom: Disinformation, mental health, and anti-Asian racism during COVID-19, by C. Hudson Hwang.
Books by Canadians of Asian Descent
- A Good Wife, by Samra Zafar
- A Fine Balance, by Rohinton Mistry
- Brown: What Being Brown in the World Today Means (to Everyone), by Kamal Al-Solaylee
- Chinatown Stories Volume 3, by Chinatown Today
- Even this Page is White, by Vivek Shraya
- Funny Boy, by Shyam Selvadurai
- How to Pronounce Knife, by Souvankham Thammavongsa
- How Does A Single Blade Of Grass Thank The Sun?, by Doretta Lau
- Kay's Lucky Coin Variety, by Ann K. Choi
- Mysterious Dreams of the Dead, by Terry Watada
- Obasan, by Joy Kogawa
- Older Sister. Not Necessarily Related., by Jenny Heijun Wills
- Polar Vortex, by Shani Mootoo
- The Hero's Walk, by Anita Rau Badami
- The Headmaster's Wager, by Vincent Lam
- The Translation Of Love, by Lynne Kutsukake
- Runaway, by Evelyn Lau
- We Have Always Been Here, by Samra Habib
Media with an Asian Angle
- Cold Tea Collective – Stories for and about Asian millennials, based in Vancouver, B.C.
- Burdock Media – An arts and culture platform celebrating multi-dimensional Asian American experiences.
- Hyphen – Asian America Unabridged – Covers cultural issues and Asian American identity.
- The Juggernaut – Stories on South Asia and South Asians in North America, based in New York City.
- Mochi Magazine – An online publication for Asian American women.
- The Conversation: Asian Americans – A collection of articles on Asian Americans by academics.
