Ideas on diversity and action for 2018
Last Wednesday, March 14th, the UTM political science department hosted a lecture titled “Diversity 2018 and Beyond: Five Big Ideas on Diversity and Inclusion” as part of its third annual public affairs lecture. This lecture invited senator Ratna Omidvar to share her personal story and how it influenced her work on diversity and inclusion as a lawmaker in Canada. Senator Omidvar is an internationally recognized voice on migration, diversity, and inclusion. In April 2016, she was appointed to the senate by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, where she sits as a member of the Independent Senators Group.
“[The UTM political science department] would like to thank the UTM dean’s office, which funds the series through its Priorities Fund,” began Dr. Erin Trolley, the lecture’s moderator and an assistant professor of political science at UTM. “And of course, we’re grateful to senator Ratna Omidvar for agreeing to share her insights with us.” Professor Trolley followed this with land acknowledgment, stating her gratefulness to have the opportunity to work on this Indigenous land.
“Senator Omidvar came to Canada in 1981 and her experiences of displacement, integration, and physical movement have been a foundation of her work,” Trolley said. “She is a founding executive director and currently a distinguished visiting professor at the Global Diversity Exchange, which is housed at the Ted Rogers School of Management, at Ryerson University—we won’t hold that against her,” the professor added, amidst chuckles from the audience.
The senator began by saying, “Before I talk about these ideas, I want to talk about myself, just because my story is the foundation of how I think and how I come at things.” She continued, “I also want to share my story because I believe it is not a unique story. It is a story that has been shared by millions before and by millions to come.”
“As you can probably guess, I was born in India to a middle-class family. When I was 20-to-21 years old, I decided to leave home—and I hope lots of you decide to leave home, not because home is a bad place,” she rushed to explain, “[But] because adventure is a good place.”
“I decided to go and learn German. One weekend, like many other students in Bavaria, I packed my knapsack […] and I went up the Alps on a hike, and when I came down, I knew I had met my life partner who had climbed the Alps with me.” She elaborated, “He was from Iran, and when we both finished our studies, we decided to go live in Iran.”
The senator spoke of living through the Iranian Revolution that replaced the previously oppressive regime.
With the regime being replaced with a theocracy rather than the democracy her family hoped for, they eventually decided to flee through the Iran-Turkey land border.
“The border itself is represented by a big room […], we are on one side of the room. This side of the room had a picture of [Ruhollah] Khomeini on it, and the other side, which was the side we want to get on, has a picture of [Mustafa Kemal] Atatürk on it.”
“Me and my family, we were petrified […] and I remember saying to myself, wishing for God to get us over to the other side and I made a promise, ‘If you get me over to the side, I will never ask you for anything again,’” senator Omidvar recalled. “I have broken that promise many times, over and over again, because I am human, after all.”
She continued, “When things go bad in life, as they tend to, then I try and remember that moment where I almost lost everything.”
The senator and her family applied for immigration to Germany, and after not being accepted, Canada accepted them “after some hiccups.”
“We arrived in Canada in June. I remember June 6th very clearly. It was a bright sunny day, and I thought that was going to be the metaphor for my new life,” senator Omidvar shared, “As you will have heard, the promise of Canada is there. It is within your grasp but it is not immediate.”
“I remember very clearly the first moment that I felt that I belonged. I don’t think [belonging] has anything to do with a passport. To me, having a passport is wonderful, but it really doesn’t define how you engage,” the senator explained.