Acknowledging the Contributions of the Iranian Canadian Community

On September 22, 2022 Senator Omidvar gave a statement to acknowledge the contributions of the Iranian Canadian community. Watch her speech:

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Honourable senators, I rise to acknowledge the contribution of Iranian Canadians to our great country.

Most of us left Iran in the wake of the Islamic Revolution, and “left” is actually a benign word for how we got out. Some crawled, others fought, yet others smuggled themselves out. Others paid to get out at some considerable personal risk to their own lives, as my family in the gallery can attest.

I remember looking back at the border between Turkey and Iran. I looked back one last time — it was early dawn — to Iran. I remember saying to myself, “Iran will be a democracy in five years — this was 1981 — and I will be back.”

Colleagues, how wrong I was. I no longer believe that I will ever go back to Iran and that Iran will, at least not in my lifetime, be a democracy.

Instead, we have chosen to set down roots in our new country. There are close to 200,000 Iranian-Canadians in Canada. After the initial 10 years of hardship — fitting in, finding work, finding your identity — I think it’s safe to say that Iranian-Canadians have arrived. They are present in all aspects of our society. They are entrepreneurs. They are leaders in business. They are leaders in industry and finance. They are academics and thought leaders. They are politicians and philanthropists. They are architects and developers. They are politicians. They are writers, artists and actors, and, yes, they play baseball and hockey, although, frankly, they are still mad for soccer.

Like other Canadians, they also voice their opinions, as they have been doing in the last two days in Canada to protest the oppression of women in Iran. Their trajectory is not unlike that of other immigrant communities. They take to heart the universal message that is sent to us when we arrive: Work hard, follow the rules and you and your children will succeed.

As I look at my family up in the gallery, I know that none of us imagined a life for ourselves outside of Iran. But now that we are here, I know we are also incredibly grateful to this country for allowing us to weave our narrative into yours and Canada’s. Thank you.

Hon. Senators: Hear, hear.