Immigrants and international students: Adding rich culture to our colourful human tapestry
The Citizen presents the first article in a series which explores the lives of newcomers to our region of southeastern Manitoba. Everywhere we look, new and diverse faces surround us. It’s time to get to know our neighbours and welcome them to our communities.
Harkirat Singh is a 24-year-old international student hailing from the Punjab state of India. He’s known to his family and friends as Anmol, which means “priceless.”
Anmol recently made the decision to move to Niverville from south Winnipeg, where until the spring he attended classes at the University of Manitoba. In June, he will graduate from his accelerated one-year course in Applied Business Management. This achievement will enhance his current master’s degree in commerce, which he received in India.
It was one year ago that Anmol first set foot on Manitoba soil. It was also the first time he’d ventured outside his home country.
As a young adventurous man, he wanted to experience a little bit of the world while building his work credentials. He chose Winnipeg because it’s a smaller city than Toronto and Vancouver.
“It’s a very fast-paced life there,” Anmol says. “Everyone is on their own. In smaller cities, in my experience, the people are more together. There’s a sense of community.”
The University of Manitoba was his institution of choice because it has a reputation of hosting a diverse student body.
“I felt very safe coming to Canada,” says Anmol. “It’s a multicultural society. In my mind, Canada stands for people coming together to form a country where everyone can be whatever they want to be.”
So far, he says, Manitoba has represented its immigrant-friendly image very well. Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the Indian community in Winnipeg is also quite vibrant. One doesn’t need to go far to find an Indian grocer or gurdwara (place of worship).
“Whenever I walk into an Indian grocery store, I feel like home because all my food is here.”
But there’s been some big adjustments for Anmol, too. First of all, he was expected to address his university professors on a first name basis. This, he says, would be considered very disrespectful back home.
Mostly, anyone who is your senior is referred to as uncle or auntie, but never by their first name unless it is accompanied by the prefix “ji,” which indicates reverence.
“We respect our elders,” he says. “We touch their feet and they put their hand on our head to transfer blessings to us.”
Anmol is an only child. Leaving Punjab was very difficult for his parents to accept, he says, but they sent him off with tears and a blessing.
Anmol describes the family culture back home as very communal and supportive. Multiple generations live together on ancestral properties and, oftentimes, within the same household.
In Anmol’s case, his parents share a small rural farm operation and homestead with his two uncles and their families. Anmol’s grandparents used to run it.
Here, the families grow potatoes, sugarcane, wheat, and rice.
Unlike in Canada, where farming has become a corporate industry, small family farms still thrive in India. To help them, the Indian government has established a regulated minimum selling price (MSP) for certain crops.
The same government also established the maximum retail price (MRP), which legislates the maximum that any grocer can charge for a grocery product, helping to keep essentials like food affordable.
“You can go anywhere in India and a Coca-Cola bottle has the same cost across the country, no matter which store you buy from.”
It came as a surprise to Anmol, then, when he saw vastly different prices for items from one store to the next in Winnipeg.
Another important tenet of Anmol’s culture is the selfless way in which people live in community. In his country, he says, you don’t make arrangements to visit your friends or family. You just drop in. It’s expected that you’ll be welcomed. No one is too busy to take the time for you.
“Punjab is known for its hospitality. If someone is there and we see them in trouble, we always help them because we are emotional people. When some other farming family needs a trolley, they would just ask my dad and my dad would let them borrow it for free.”
Anmol says that this kind of caring community exists in Indian cities, too, only in smaller pockets. It’s rare, even within city limits, for nearby neighbours to live as strangers. This kind of communal philosophy transcends differences in religion, social status, or financial means.
While Hinduism is the primary religion of the Indian people, Sikhism is the dominating faith for many Punjabi people since the religion was founded in Punjab in the fifteenth century.
Anmol attributes the Punjabi ethic of equality to the Sikh faith since it stands in direct opposition to a caste system, economic materialism, and gender discrimination.
He and his family are believers in the Sikh faith. From a young age, Anmol was taught to never judge others based on religion, appearance, or any other factor, as it sets people on an uneven plain. To further promote equality, every boy born into a Sikh family is gifted with the name Singh (lion) and every girl Kaur (princess).
While the gurdwaras are a place for Sikh worship, people of all colours, ethnicities, and faiths are welcome here. Visitors and guests are regularly treated to a free meal at any gurdwara. Here, everyone sits on the floor to partake so that all are on the same level, further demonstrating the equality that the Sikh people cherish.
According to Anmol, Punjab is home to the world’s most significant gurdwara, the Golden Temple, where visitors from around the world stop to pay a visit. This has included Justin Trudeau on visits to the country.
The Golden Temple has four separate doors to symbolize the acceptance of people from any caste, creed, sex, or religion.
The Sikhs of Punjab are also known to provide meal services around the world in areas where disaster has struck.
According to Sikh tradition, there are a number of external symbols a person could wear to demonstrate devotion to their faith. These include the turban, a steel bracelet, a ceremonial knife, and cotton undergarments.
As well, a deep commitment to the faith might require one to refrain from smoking, drinking alcohol, and sharing from a common plate of food. The most devout shower daily to cleanse themselves and do not cut their hair or beard.
Like other tenets of the Sikh faith, though, a follower isn’t judged by their adherence to these outward symbols. Anmol, for instance, has chosen not to smoke or consume alcohol. The only outward symbol he wears is the steel bracelet, making him appear more a westerner than a traditional Sikh.
Anmol’s father, on the other hand, follows more of the traditional adherences.
“My parents never pressured me to follow tradition. They said, ‘If you want to do it, do it properly.’ But it’s hard to do it properly. It’s very strict.”
Anmol says it was his faith that helped him when he first arrived in Manitoba. One of his first stops was a gurdwara in south Winnipeg where he prayed for help in finding a good place to live. Within a short period of time, he found an inexpensive room for lease in a home not far from the university.
With his university courses now complete, Anmol hopes to apply for a Canadian work visa and stay a while longer.
“I just want to get into the workforce so I can learn some skills and also contribute to your country. Because if I work, I will pay taxes and it will go to the greater benefit.”
To help put himself through university, Anmol has already worked a number of part-time jobs in fast food.
This set the stage for his exposure to locals beyond the university walls and so far, he says, Manitobans have lived up to their slogan of being friendly and warm.
Only one racist comment has tainted his stay to date, this from a stranger in a parking lot who told him to go back home to his own country.
Still, many Canadians live under the misconception that foreigners are taking jobs away from locals and abusing a system that helps its own. According to Anmol, nothing could be further from the truth.
Administrative assistants and service industry jobs are in demand in Manitoba, with not enough young people here who are willing to fill those more menial positions.
“Immigrants are very necessary for your country. I have a master’s degree, yet I’m willing to work in the fast food sector. Your government won’t allow people in randomly. If we bring some value, then they allow us.”
Case in point, Anmol says that most employers would take a Canadian student over an international one any day since they wouldn’t have to concern themselves with language barriers, work visas, or how many hours the foreign student is limited to based on government regulation.
But look around you and you’ll see how many low-end service positions are filled by international students or immigrants.
Another misconception, he adds, is that the Canadian government makes it too easy for immigrants to study and settle here.
For Anmol and other students, that was certainly not the case. He says international students pay education fees that are substantially higher than those of their Canadian counterparts. This means, in a sense, that foreign students are helping subsidize education for Canadian students.
But that’s not all. In order to study here, Anmol was required to make a $10,000 deposit into a Winnipeg bank to be held in savings until, and if, he needed it to cover living expenses.
“A new international student from India now needs to bring in even more to your country. Your bank will use it to grant loans and help the economy. The international student also spends money here and pays rent and taxes. And we’re willing to do jobs that you guys don’t want to do. Would a regular Canadian with a master’s degree work at Tim Hortons?”
There is no question that Anmol will continue finding his way wherever he goes. He’s outgoing and talkative and willing to share stories and experiences with the people he meets. Thus, he’s wasted no time in building close human connections in the year he’s been here.
One of these friendships was developed with Niverville book editor and Citizen co-owner Evan Braun. The pair met through creative endeavours and continue to meet regularly, bonding over music, writing, and other areas of commonality.
In no time, Anmol was warmly invited into the Braun fold, enjoying Christmas, Easter, and other celebrations like he was one of the family.
“Evan and his parents specifically helped me feel like home here in Niverville,” he says.
That may be one more reason why Anmol is in no rush to return to India.
Whether his career path remains in commerce or branches into new areas still remains to be seen. Anmol is gifted with many diverse interests. He’s a proficient musician who writes lyrics in three languages. He’s been collaborating with other musicians from the UK and the world for some time now.
Anmol has no aspirations for great wealth in his lifetime. He knows how to get by in a tough economy, having experienced living on a mere $1,000 per month as a student in his initial months in Canada.
He only dreams of his own home and car and taking care of his parents as they age. He hopes to generate just enough income to pay back all the people who have helped him.
Also, he says, a little fame at some point wouldn’t be discouraged.
“I thought if I moved to a different country and did everything from scratch, it would make for a great interview when I get famous,” Anmol says, tongue in cheek. “So this is my first interview.”
Brenda Sawatzky, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Niverville Citizen