Tag Archives: Ukrainian-Canadians

Community

Ethnic diversity increasing in Greater Victoria, but still lags behind the rest of BC (incl. Cortes, Quadra and Campbell River stats)

Editor’s Note: The ethnic minorities in our area are far less numerous than the than provincial average cited below (34.4%). According to the 2021 census, only 2,120 of the 37,505 tabulated Campbell River residents (5.65%) are members of a visible minority. The most numerous being: South Asian -535, Filipino -410, Southeast Asian -260, Black -205, Korean -130, Japanese -110, Latin American -125, and Arab -15. On Cortes Island only 35 of the 1,055 tabulated residents (3.32%) are members of a visible minority. The most numerous being Filipino -10 and Southeast Asian -10. In Area C, 65 out of 2,675 tabulated residents (2.4%) were members of a visible minority. The most numerous being: Chinese -20, Japanese -20, Filipino -10 and South Asian -10. (All census numbers appear to be rounded off at the nearest multiple of 5.)

By  Diary Marif, New Canadian Media, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Greater Victoria is experiencing a demographic shift as more visible minorities choose to settle on Vancouver Island, according to the latest federal statistics.

Continue reading Ethnic diversity increasing in Greater Victoria, but still lags behind the rest of BC (incl. Cortes, Quadra and Campbell River stats) →
Community

For some Ukrainian refugees, Canada is not the answer

By Yuriy Umansky, New Canadian Media, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

For more than 10 years, Alina dreamed of moving to Canada. After the beginning of the Russian invasion in 2022, she finally left Ukraine and arrived in Kitchener under the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel (CUAET) program. She hoped to begin a new life here and restart her career, but Alina faces numerous difficulties in adapting to life in Canada and is thinking about returning to Europe. 

Alina is not alone. There are many similar accounts among the 220,000 Ukrainians who immigrated here over the last year and could not find themselves. Some have already left Canada. Here are their stories: 

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Community

Canada is facing the largest wave of Ukrainian immigration ever

By Yuriy Umansky, New Canadian Media, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

More than seven million Ukrainians were forced to leave the country when Russia invaded Ukraine  –   20 per cent  of the country’s population. And while most of the refugees are remaining in Europe, many have applied for a visa to come to Canada.

According to the Canadian government, Canada has received almost one million applications under the Canada-Ukraine authorization for emergency travel (CUAET) and has approved more than 650,000.

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Arts, Community

Much love for Ukraine

By Mark Brett, Penticton Herald, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A standing ovation was the culmination to a “life-changing” visit to the South Okanagan for a group of young Calgary dancers.

But the real beneficiaries of the shows at the Frank Venables Theatre in Oliver and the Cleland Theatre are some of the millions of Ukrainians now struggling for survival.

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Community

Leaving home a matter of life and death

By Mark Brett, Penticton Herald, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Editor’s note: This is the fourth installment in a five-part series about local efforts to help Ukrainian refugees. Today we profile the work of a different organization, Ukrainian Canadian Volunteers Association, which is also helping settle newcomers in the South Okanagan and those who remained behind. People indiscriminately gunned down on city streets, the almost-constant piercing sound of the air raid sirens and families cowering in shelters praying for the bombing to end. That’s everyday life for many people in Ukraine since a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War in February 2022. Liudmyla Shkyn, 60, and her mother Hanna Opanasko, 81, who now live in Penticton, were two of the lucky ones, barely managing to escape the bloodshed.

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