Growing up ‘Canadian’

Growing up ‘Canadian’

Kapisanan Philippine Centre for Arts and Culture hosted an interactive arts event on Saturday (March 3) called “Growing up ‘Canadian’” showcasing artists addressing the themes of the FYTiC study on Filipino-Canadian youth, which were also shared with the audience.

Spoken word artist PATRICK DE BELEN: ‘the guidance counselor told him that he should take Applied Sciences, which is below the academic, university-track courses... “I was in school for two weeks!”’

Artists used spoken word, visual, musical, and dramatic arts to express their experiences on what it was like for them to grow up as Filipino-Canadians in Toronto.

JO SIMALAYA ALCAMPO shared her first video “i am good inside” (2003)

“Art allows for a different kind of expression and sharing of findings that speaks beyond the numbers and facts,” says FYTiC researcher, Veronica Javier.

Spoken word artist Patrick de Belen told the audience about his experiences moving to a suburban neighborhood in grade nine. Soon after, the guidance counselor told him that he should take Applied Sciences, which is below the academic, university-track courses.

VERONICA JAVIER, FYTiC researcher

“I was in school for two weeks!” said de Belen to the audience. “How could they know that I had to be in Applied courses? We didn’t get one mark yet! Then I started to realize that I was the only Filipino there.”
Four years later, de Belen graduated as the high school’s valedictorian.

CAROLINE MANGOSING Kapisanan Executive Director

Performers and artists included Catherine Hernandez, Norman Alconcel, Noel Matta, Marcus Lomboy, Darlyne Bautista, Jo SiMalaya Alcampo, Marissa Largo and Eric B. Tigley.

MARCUS LOMBOY