This week, an unexpected community benefits meeting cut our group discussion time down. This meeting was between the residents of Regent Park and the developers, Tridel, in which they discussed how the large sum of money allocated to community benefits should be used. Despite our time being short, we managed to make the most of the limited time with our group members. This started with media training, where we learnt how to operate a video camera and make strides in our website creation and interviewing process.
Proficiency in videography is crucial to the creation of our multimedia website. We learnt skills like perfecting the framing, sound, and lighting, and knowing which equipment to use for various kinds of filming alongside other videography techniques will allow us to film our interviews (with the interviewee's consent). Last Thursday's media training led to the development of our primary apparatus for the site- video interviews. Alongside that, we have unanimously agreed upon graphics, pictures, and illustrations as other outlets for our creativity. Our first step towards this is posting the first pictures the group took when we arrived in Canada to display the passage of time and the changes it brought.
This is Lizette when she first arrived in Canada in 2004.
Our next step was arranging the interviews with prominent leaders in Regent Park. We tried to find interviewees of diverse backgrounds who had resided within this neighbourhood for several years. Our goal is to have eight different interviewees of eight different ethnic backgrounds. So far, our list, compiled by the residents, includes the following: Deany Peters (Nova Scotian), Joanna Warner, Waleed Hugali (Sudanese), Palos G (Ethiopian), Ronnie Thompson, Ines Garcia (Portuguese), and Miguel Avila-Velarde (Peruvian). The subsequent move will be to reach out to those listed above to inquire about arranging a possible interview, and if they are interested and consent to being recorded, booking the camera and an interview slot with them.
Due to the busy dynamic of our group members' schedules, finding time to congregate online outside of class proved challenging. We initially decided on Tuesdays from 5:30 to 6:00 pm, but one member had forgotten about a previous commitment she had made and notified us of her inability to meet at that time. After a lot of back and forth, we finally decided upon Mondays 5:30- 6:00 pm for a virtual meeting, including U of T students and Regent Park residents, and the residents decided that they would meet with one another immediately following the group meeting.
Given that our research question is "What is the history of immigration in creating social communities? And how has the introduction of redevelopment disrupted already-created communities?" We have compiled the following questions as potential interview questions. We plan to narrow this list down to approximately five questions to keep the interview at an appropriate length. Based on which questions we chose to proceed with and the finalisation of our interviewee list, we will begin the research component of this assignment. (452)
This is Ippi when she first arrived in Canada, this photo was taken during her Orientation.
Interview Questions:
How has immigration affected the service you provide at work?
How have the new residents migrating to regent park affected the community?
What are some challenges you faced in old regent park and how have they changed in new regent park?
Did you face challenges as a result of being an immigrant?
Why did you or your family choose regent park to live in and/ or work in
As time has passed, how does your experience compare to what you expected?
Can you think of times when you have felt unwelcome as an immigrant? What about when you have felt welcomed?
There is a story behind every decision to migrate. What do you know about your family’s story?
Migration can be hard. Where did your family gain strength in difficult times?
What traditions from your family’s country—like celebrations, foods, or songs—do you still enjoy?
How have these traditions evolved when you arrived in Regent Park?
Do you see connections between your family story and that of today’s immigrants?
Is there anything you would like to add that has not been asked?
Were there people or communities that made them feel welcomed?
What do you know about your family name—like its history, origins, or changes?
How do you think your family was changed by migration?
What supported you in your move to Canada?
This is Ippi when she first arrived in Canada, this photo was taken during her Orientation.
This is Tanishka’s first school performance in Canada, circa 2008.
UrbanEyes: Ipshita, Tanishka, Gail, Lizette, Saquib, Fardowsa