Latest news with #KatieLe
CBC
10-05-2025
- CBC
Filipino students at McMaster leading event today to remember victims of Lapu-Lapu Day attack
Social Sharing A gathering led by Filipino groups at McMaster University is aiming to honour the 11 people killed in Vancouver during the Lapu-Lapu Day event last month. The groups began organizing after realizing there was a need in Hamilton for "a space for us to connect and check in with how people are, because no one's checking in [on us]," said Anabelle Ragsag, a PhD candidate at McMaster's School of Social Work. The gathering takes place Saturday from 3 to 6 p.m. within McMaster's Office of Community Engagement at 8 Mayfair Crescent. It's being held exactly two weeks after 11 people were killed and dozens were injured on April 26, when an SUV was driven into a crowded Lapu-Lapu Day festival. Ragsag said she felt "selfish" at first for feeling grief over the attack. "I was feeling that I'm mourning and I am angry and I feel just in a way scared for my daughter, even if [she wasn't in immediate danger]," she told CBC Hamilton. She said when someone called this feeling "secondary grief," her feelings started to click. Five-year-old Katie Le was the youngest victim of the attack along with her parents, Richard Le, 47, and Linh Hoang, 30. Glitza Daniela Samper, her mother Glitza Maria Caicedo, and her father, Daniel Samper — a family from Colombia — were also among those killed. Fundraisers have been set up for all the victims, which also include Maria Victoria Bjarnason, a mother visiting from the Philippines, Jendhel May Sico, Rizza Pagkanlungan, a "loving wife," and "devoted sister," Jenifer Darbellay, a Vancouver mother of two, and Kira Salim, a school counsellor from Brazil. The accused attacker, Kai-Ji Adam Lo, 30, has been charged with eight counts of second-degree murder. A place to 'check in with one another' Saturday's gathering, organized by Filipino McMaster social work students and faculty, the McMaster Filipino Network, and the Filipino McMaster Student Association, is called Tuloy po kayo — meaning "come in," in the Tagalog language. The event will be the second in the city where residents came together to mourn since April 26. A community vigil, or Luksang Bayan, was held at Bayfront Park last Sunday. Ragsag said this weekend's gathering aims for people to be able to "check in with one another" and while it is open for everyone, it will be student-centred. "We really wanted to create a space that was centred for students and for youth in general," said Jasmine Fox, a social work student at McMaster and the former co-president of the university's Filipino student association. She said they wanted to make space for students from Mohawk College as well as high schools, in an accessible place that also felt safe. Melissa Cortez, who's a Master of Social Work student at McMaster, said Filipino people in Canada are "very underrepresented." "This gathering is a way for us to acknowledge the pains that we are collectively feeling within spaces that have been designed to minimize our visibility or minimize our voices," she said. She said she feels "a lot of sadness" around the Lapu-Lapu Day attack. She feels conflicted, seeing how the tragedy has brought the community together, but also that there has been a "lack of care" from organizations and institutions. There are around 11,730 Filipino people in Hamilton as per the 2021 census, making them the fourth largest visible minority in the city. Fox said the weight of the attack's aftermath was put on the community that's trying to mourn. "Filipinos are always described as resilient … everyone's just like, 'oh, we'll bounce back, it'll be okay,' but we're not taking the time to actually feel out our emotions," she said. WATCH | More victims killed in Lapu-Lapu festival attack identified More victims killed in Lapu-Lapu festival attack identified 7 days ago Duration 2:59 What Lapu-Lapu Day was supposed to be Cortez said festivals like Lapu-Lapu Day in Vancouver are a chance for second-generation Filipinos like her to reconnect with their culture. "I have very little family in Canada. I have very little direct connection to the Philippines," she said. "These spaces have been for reconnecting and learning and just building communities." Fox said Lapu-Lapu was an Indigenous historical figure of anti-colonization, a day to commemorate him, on April 27, was proclaimed in B.C. in 2023. "This event was meant to celebrate him and what he represents in the bigger Filipino context of resilience, of fighting for our rights, fighting for our culture, fighting Filipino indignity," she said. To have the attack happen on that day feels like "our entire history has been tainted," said Fox. "[The event] was fun, it was loud, it was on a beautiful day. And now, rather than knowing its context for what it was supposed to be for … people now are going to associate it with this horrific tragedy."
New Straits Times
29-04-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Grieving, yet giving: Filipino Canadians remain strong after Vancouver truck crash kills 11
The election eve truck-ramming that killed 11 people and injured dozens more in Vancouver sent waves of grief across Canada's Filipino community, integral to Canada in part through many members' roles as caregivers. A man drove through a crowded pedestrian zone during a Filipino cultural festival on Saturday. Officials have arrested a suspect they said had a significant history of mental health issues, and said there was no evidence of terrorism in the attack that occurred just before Monday's election to choose a prime minister. The victims ranged in age from 5 to 65, officials said. Five-year-old Katie Le was killed with her parents, Richard Le, 47, and Linh Hoang, 30, according to a Go Fund Me page that raised US$250,000 for the family. Also among the dead was Kira Salim, a teacher and counsellor at a middle school and secondary school, education officials announced. Nearly one million of Canada's 40 million people identify as being of Filipino ethnic origin, and more than 172,000 Filipino Canadians are in British Columbia, according to the 2021 census. Their influence extends across Canada as caregivers. Many Filipinos have carved out their place in Canada by raising other people's children. "We're just such a caring culture. "We always say we're willing to give," said Christina, 58, a Filipino who attended a candlelight vigil for the victims. David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, acknowledged their role and pledged to support them "just like they support us." "It's their turn to get care from us," Eby said. The truck-ramming came during a celebration honouring Datu Lapu-Lapu, the Filipino chieftain who defeated Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and became a national hero. Filipino Canadians see the government of British Columbia's 2023 official recognition of April 27 as Lapu-Lapu Day as acknowledgement of the cultural contributions of their community. "We've been here a really long time," said Jonathan Tee, 30, a second-generation Filipino born in Canada. "We don't need to earn a place here. We are here." Some 75,000 people from the Philippines became permanent residents of Canada through the Live-in Caregiver Programme between 1992 and 2014. Women fleeing poverty in the Philippines and living in the homes of their Canadian bosses needed to maintain employment to gain permanent residency, leaving them vulnerable to extreme working conditions and abuse. "It was deeply exploitative because of the closed permit tied to a particular employer," said Geraldine Pratt, a professor at the University of British Columbia whose studies on the subject underpinned the stage play Nanay, depicting the lives of live-in caregivers. Many immigrants from the Philippines are highly educated and overqualified for the jobs available to them, according to a 2023 Canadian census report. More than 40 per cent of Filipinos held a bachelor's degree or higher but were underrepresented in jobs requiring such a degree, the report said. About 36 per cent of Filipinos who earned nursing degrees back home instead worked as nurse aides, orderlies or patient service associates in Canada, while 13 per cent worked in sales or service jobs, the census report said. Maki Cairns, 26, who advocates for the rights of women in the Philippine diaspora as an activist with the group Gabriela BC, said many have chosen to remain silent in the face of abuse so that they can bring their own children to Canada. "Why do they have to be separated from their families and raise children that are not their own?" Cairns said. "They hardly ever get to see their children in the Philippines."
New Straits Times
29-04-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Filipino 'caring culture' hit hard by Canada truck-ramming that killed 11
The election eve truck-ramming that killed 11 people and injured dozens more in Vancouver sent waves of grief across Canada's Filipino community, integral to Canada in part through many members' roles as caregivers. A man drove through a crowded pedestrian zone during a Filipino cultural festival on Saturday. Officials have arrested a suspect they said had a significant history of mental health issues, and said there was no evidence of terrorism in the attack that occurred just before Monday's election to choose a prime minister. The victims ranged in age from 5 to 65, officials said. Five-year-old Katie Le was killed with her parents, Richard Le, 47, and Linh Hoang, 30, according to a Go Fund Me page that raised US$250,000 for the family. Also among the dead was Kira Salim, a teacher and counsellor at a middle school and secondary school, education officials announced. Nearly one million of Canada's 40 million people identify as being of Filipino ethnic origin, and more than 172,000 Filipino Canadians are in British Columbia, according to the 2021 census. Their influence extends across Canada as caregivers. Many Filipinos have carved out their place in Canada by raising other people's children. "We're just such a caring culture. "We always say we're willing to give," said Christina, 58, a Filipino who attended a candlelight vigil for the victims. David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, acknowledged their role and pledged to support them "just like they support us." "It's their turn to get care from us," Eby said. The truck-ramming came during a celebration honouring Datu Lapu-Lapu, the Filipino chieftain who defeated Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and became a national hero. Filipino Canadians see the government of British Columbia's 2023 official recognition of April 27 as Lapu-Lapu Day as acknowledgement of the cultural contributions of their community. "We've been here a really long time," said Jonathan Tee, 30, a second-generation Filipino born in Canada. "We don't need to earn a place here. We are here." Some 75,000 people from the Philippines became permanent residents of Canada through the Live-in Caregiver Programme between 1992 and 2014. Women fleeing poverty in the Philippines and living in the homes of their Canadian bosses needed to maintain employment to gain permanent residency, leaving them vulnerable to extreme working conditions and abuse. "It was deeply exploitative because of the closed permit tied to a particular employer," said Geraldine Pratt, a professor at the University of British Columbia whose studies on the subject underpinned the stage play Nanay, depicting the lives of live-in caregivers. Many immigrants from the Philippines are highly educated and overqualified for the jobs available to them, according to a 2023 Canadian census report. More than 40 per cent of Filipinos held a bachelor's degree or higher but were underrepresented in jobs requiring such a degree, the report said. About 36 per cent of Filipinos who earned nursing degrees back home instead worked as nurse aides, orderlies or patient service associates in Canada, while 13 per cent worked in sales or service jobs, the census report said. Maki Cairns, 26, who advocates for the rights of women in the Philippine diaspora as an activist with the group Gabriela BC, said many have chosen to remain silent in the face of abuse so that they can bring their own children to Canada. "Why do they have to be separated from their families and raise children that are not their own?" Cairns said. "They hardly ever get to see their children in the Philippines."
Japan Times
29-04-2025
- Politics
- Japan Times
Filipino 'caring culture' hit hard by Canada truck-ramming that killed 11
The election eve truck-ramming that killed 11 people and injured dozens more in Vancouver sent waves of grief across Canada's Filipino community, integral to Canada in part through many members' roles as caregivers. A man drove through a crowded pedestrian zone during a Filipino cultural festival on Saturday. Officials have arrested a suspect they said had a significant history of mental health issues, and said there was no evidence of terrorism in the attack that struck just before Monday's election to choose a prime minister. The victims ranged in age from 5 to 65, officials said. Five-year-old Katie Le was killed with both her parents — Richard Le, 47, and Linh Hoang, 30, according to a Go Fund Me page that raised $250,000 for the family. Also among the dead was Kira Salim, a teacher and counselor at a middle school and secondary school, education officials announced. Nearly 1 million of Canada's 40 million people identify as being of Filipino ethnic origin, and more than 172,000 Filipino Canadians are in British Columbia, according to the 2021 census. Their influence extends across Canada as caregivers. Many have carved out their place in Canada by raising other people's children. Still others tend to the elderly, or have found careers as nurses or medical technicians. "This is what we do best," said Christina, 58, a Filipina who attended a candlelight vigil for the victims and asked not to be identified by her last name. "We're just such a caring culture. We always say we're willing to give." David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, acknowledged their role in comments on Canadian television on Sunday when he pledged to support them "just like they support us." "It's their turn to get care from us," Eby said. The provincial government has pledged that victims and their families will have access to support. The truck-ramming came during a celebration honoring Datu Lapu-Lapu, the Filipino chieftain who defeated Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and became a national hero. Filipino Canadians see the government of British Columbia's 2023 official recognition of April 27 as Lapu-Lapu Day as acknowledgement of the cultural contributions of their community, one of the largest immigrant groups in the province. "We've been here a really long time," said Jonathan Tee, 30, a second-generation Filipino born in Canada. "We don't need to earn a place here. We are here." Some 75,000 people from the Philippines became permanent residents of Canada through the Live-in Caregiver Program between 1992 and 2014. The program offering a path to permanent residency has been modified since 2014. Women fleeing poverty in the Philippines and living in the homes of their Canadian bosses needed to maintain employment in order to gain permanent residency, leaving them vulnerable to extreme working conditions and abuse. "It was deeply exploitative because of the closed permit tied to a particular employer," said Geraldine Pratt, a professor at the University of British Columbia whose studies on the subject underpinned the stage play "Nanay," depicting the lives of live-in caregivers. "Most of us have some connection to the Filipino community. And it's not just child care. It's care for seniors, it's hospitals, when you go for a mammogram or to get your blood tested," Pratt said. Many immigrants from the Philippines are highly educated and overqualified for the jobs available to them, according to a 2023 Canadian census report. More than 40% of Filipinos held a bachelor's degree or higher but were underrepresented in jobs requiring such a degree, the report said. The overqualification rate of 41.8% was nearly double the rate of the Chinese population and was nearly three times the rate of 15.5% among the total population, the report said. "One factor in overqualification and job mismatch was that over one-third (34.0%) of Filipino immigrant women immigrated as principal applicants through the caregiver program, which recruits them to work in personal care occupations," the report said. About 36% of Filipinas who earned nursing degrees back home instead worked as nurse aides, orderlies or patient service associates in Canada, while 13% worked in sales or service jobs, the census report said. Maki Cairns, 26, who advocates for the rights of women in the Philippine diaspora as an activist with the group Gabriela BC, said many have chosen to remain silent in the face of abuse so that they can bring their own children to Canada. "Why do they have to be separated from their families and raise children that are not their own?" Cairns said. "They hardly ever get to see their children in the Philippines."
AsiaOne
29-04-2025
- Politics
- AsiaOne
Filipino 'caring culture' hit hard by Canada truck-ramming that killed 11, World News
VANCOUVER - The election eve truck-ramming that killed 11 people and injured dozens more in Vancouver sent waves of grief across Canada's Filipino community, integral to Canada in part through many members' roles as caregivers. A man drove through a crowded pedestrian zone during a Filipino cultural festival on Saturday (April 26). Officials have arrested a suspect they said had a significant history of mental health issues, and said there was no evidence of terrorism in the attack that struck just before Monday's election to choose a prime minister. The victims ranged in age from 5 to 65, officials said. Five-year-old Katie Le was killed with both her parents, Richard Le, 47, and Linh Hoang, 30, according to a Go Fund Me page that raised $250,000 (S$327,400) for the family. Also among the dead was Kira Salim, a teacher and counselor at a middle school and secondary school, education officials announced. Nearly one million of Canada's 40 million people identify as being of Filipino ethnic origin, and more than 172,000 Filipino Canadians are in British Columbia, according to the 2021 census. Their influence extends across Canada as caregivers. Many Filipinas have carved out their place in Canada by raising other people's children. Still others tend to the elderly, or have found careers as nurses or medical technicians. "This is what we do best," said Christina, 58, a Filipina who attended a candlelight vigil for the victims and asked not to be identified by last name. "We're just such a caring culture. We always say we're willing to give." David Eby, the premier of British Columbia, acknowledged their role in comments on Canadian television on Sunday when he pledged to support them "just like they support us." "It's their turn to get care from us," Eby said. The provincial government has pledged that victims and their families will have access to support. The truck-ramming came during a celebration honoring Datu Lapu-Lapu, the Filipino chieftain who defeated Spanish forces led by Ferdinand Magellan in the Battle of Mactan in 1521 and became a national hero. Filipino Canadians see the government of British Columbia's 2023 official recognition of April 27 as Lapu-Lapu Day as acknowledgement of the cultural contributions of their community, one of the largest immigrant groups in the province. "We've been here a really long time," said Jonathan Tee, 30, a second-generation Filipino born in Canada. "We don't need to earn a place here. We are here." Some 75,000 people from the Philippines became permanent residents of Canada through the Live-in Caregiver Program between 1992 and 2014. The programme offering a path to permanent residency has been modified since 2014. Vulnerable to exploitation Women fleeing poverty in the Philippines and living in the homes of their Canadian bosses needed to maintain employment in order to gain permanent residency, leaving them vulnerable to extreme working conditions and abuse. "It was deeply exploitative because of the closed permit tied to a particular employer," said Geraldine Pratt, a professor at the University of British Columbia whose studies on the subject underpinned the stage play "Nanay," depicting the lives of live-in caregivers. "Most of us have some connection to the Filipino community. And it's not just childcare. It's care for seniors, it's hospitals, when you go for a mammogram or to get your blood tested," Pratt said. [[nid:717343]] Many immigrants from the Philippines are highly educated and overqualified for the jobs available to them, according to a 2023 Canadian census report. More than 40 per cent of Filipinos held a bachelor's degree or higher but were underrepresented in jobs requiring such a degree, the report said. The overqualification rate of 41.8 per cent was nearly double the rate of the Chinese population and was nearly three times the rate of 15.5 per cent among the total population, the report said. "One factor in overqualification and job mismatch was that over one-third (34.0 per cent) of Filipino immigrant women immigrated as principal applicants through the caregiver programme, which recruits them to work in personal care occupations," the report said. About 36 per cent of Filipinas who earned nursing degrees back home instead worked as nurse aides, orderlies or patient service associates in Canada, while 13 per cent worked in sales or service jobs, the census report said. Maki Cairns, 26, who advocates for the rights of women in the Philippine diaspora as an activist with the group Gabriela BC, said many have chosen to remain silent in the face of abuse so that they can bring their own children to Canada. "Why do they have to be separated from their families and raise children that are not their own?" Cairns said. "They hardly ever get to see their children in the Philippines."
