Ratna Omidvar’s Address to Students of Ryerson University

In June 2018, Ryerson University’s Chang School for Continuing Education awarded the Honourable Ratna Omidvar with an Honorary Doctor of Laws. Below you will find an excerpt from her address to students along with a tribute video the university made to mark the occasion.

I am inclined to think of our country through these lens: not as a perfect country, but as a gloriously imperfect one. We are a nation still coming to grips with our  racist past, particularly as we struggle to find truth in reconciliation with our indigenous peoples. But we are also a people that greatly identify with waves of immigration.

Think of our history – first the Scots, then the French, followed by waves of Ukrainians, Poles, Russians, Germans, Italians – after the first and second world wars. Followed by the Hungarians, the Jews, the Ismailis, and the Indo-Chinese, followed yet again by the Iranians, the Sri Lankans, Indians, the Somalis, the Chinese and the Philippines. When will this end people may ask? The answer is of course “never”. And that is not the problem, in fact it is the answer.   No wonder then that philosopher Pico Iyer has said this of Canada “you have a global soul”.

Not surprisingly, your generation is in fact quite comfortable with different expressions of this ever evolving identity. The Star has noted that you are just as “comfortable watching Bollywood as you are with Hollywood, or eating both sushi and samosas “, or cheering baseball, hockey, soccer or cricket. But you all must know as well, that Canada has a sense of shared collectivism that must transcend individual interests. And that is how we hold together.

I for one am grateful that there is no single Canadian identity, it sets us apart as a constantly evolving work in progress, and  never a finished product. I believe this allows and enables Canada to do two things: embrace the future with curiosity and confidence, and enable us to look back in the past, acknowledge where we have gone wrong, and attempt to set things right.

As you graduate today, consider the imprint you can have on this identity.

So here are some takeaways. No one life will be like another, but there are certainly life lessons that are useful.

Be authentic. Keep your names, wear them proudly and correct their pronunciation at every opportunity. Of course I am using names as a proxy. You will be challenged at many times in your lives to mould yourselves into something you are not, to behave as someone who you are not, to be someone you are not. Don’t give in to that temptation,. Knowing who you are is the foundation of individual resilience.

Second, be nimble. You may know where your journey is going to take you, but do not fixate on the exact path to take. There’s a personal GPS inside each of us. When one path does not work out, let your inner voice lead you to look behind closed doors and embrace risk without being worried to make mistakes. I will always submit that you learn more from failure than you do from success.  A life without accidents (and I don’t mean the accidents of a physical kind) will be pretty dull.

Third, look beyond our borders. Canada attracts many foreign students, but few Canadians seize similar opportunities elsewhere. Ask one of the many foreign students here today that they will tell you there is no better way of learning openness through travel, meeting new people, experiencing a different way of life, and learning a new language. In my life, I have learnt many new languages – and I believe that when you learn a new language you are able to peer into the soul of a culture.  I hope many of you have your backpacks packed, because there is nothing quite like travelling to give perspective. So go out and stretch your global soul.

And finally, pay it forward. I have been fortunate in my life to be helped by good people. The women who took a risk on me and gave me my first job even though I had a strange name, foreign credentials and no Canadian work experience – they set me on my path. I cannot do anything for them, but I can reach out to those who come after me.

There will be a time in your life, and I hope it comes sooner than later, when you will be given the opportunity to pave the way for someone else. Grab this with both hands. For me, this opportunity came in the form of private refugee sponsorship. I joined Team Everest and helped to sponsor two Syrian refugee families through Ryerson Lifeline Syria.

I have worn many hats in my life. I have been a refugee, a change maker, an activist, and now a Senator. But when I reflect on all of my experiences, there is not a single doubt in my mind that helping 16 individuals escape the horrors of displacement and watching them slowly become Canadians – that is the best thing I have ever done.

So go forth into this brave new world, embrace it change it, rock it.