Experience of racism fuels teacher’s work in social justice

Name: Daniel Shiu

Occupation: Teacher

Union: BC Teachers’ Federation

Daniel Shiu’s family came to Vancouver from Hong Kong when he was only four years old. It was an era when racial stereotyping and discrimination were still overtly present in schools and society, and it had serious consequences for young Daniel’s pride in his cultural heritage.

“Miss Hong Kong Alley” — that’s what one teacher called a group of Asian girls who all happened to sit in one row in class. Although the label stung, the children couldn’t speak up. That sense of powerlessness remains a vivid childhood memory.

Some time in elementary school Daniel stopped speaking his native Cantonese, even with his parents. Why suppress your mother tongue? “Because I didn’t want to be called ‘Chink,’” he recalled. “I thought as long as I could shed that identity I could fit in.”

Daniel’s parents were both teachers back home. Mom taught math and Dad biology. Neither pushed him into a career in education in Canada. Rather, Daniel found his own way into the classroom. Today he teaches Social Studies, History and Law at North Surrey Secondary School, where the student population represents a broad multicultural mix.

“I look at my students who are totally bilingual and I think it’s great. I’m jealous that their cultural bonds are so strong,” he said. At NSS, the students generally get along well and respect one another’s cultures, “but under the surface, you can tell there are still some racial issues.”

Shiu’s commitment to union work involves tackling these very issues. The BC Teachers’ Federation is a proud social justice union which supports a great deal of work related to equity issues: women’s rights; aboriginal education; lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans-gendered and queer struggles; anti-racism work and more. As a member of the Committee for Action on Social Justice, Shiu devotes his energy and passion to anti-racism education.

Working with other CASJ members, he has helped produce a moving PowerPoint presentation on racism in Canada and a companion poster for teachers to hang in their classrooms. The presentation focuses on the history of racism and its persistence right up to this day, but also highlights positive developments in redressing injustices. The CASJ teachers have also developed two workshops: one called Anti-Racism: Socialising Justice and another on Anti-Discrimination Training for teachers.