Young man wearing traditional traditional Kufiyeh at MRU Ridell Library (Ryan Adams, CMRU.ca)
Having two identities is something very common in a cosmopolitan country like Canada. CMRU’s Ryan Adams digs deeper into this concept by meeting with two young Canadians who have had their homelands torn apart by war. Exploring the topic of how war affects the livelihood of a nation at a global scale, this story goes face to face with the refugee crisis in the Middle East. Coming from volatile political regions impacts their Canadian identity, yet hope for their homelands still perseveres from the other side of the globe. Understanding what it means to leave your homeland helps this story explain what it means to be a refugee. The differences in life across the globe can vary to a point where our cultures are nearly unrecognizable from one another, but the basic human need for security is something we can all empathize with.
Bringing ideas and perspectives from the other side of the globe in order to better understand a stigmatized political topic at home is what this story embodies. Two people who came to Canada as boys fleeing frightening realities opening up about their upbringing has made them different. See how these young men’s hope for their homelands interacts with their identities as Canadian youth.
You can donate to the cause of helping refugees worldwide at the UNHCR website.
As a reflection on his entire experience visiting his mother’s home country of Iraq, Ryan describes his own feelings about coming from two entirely different cultures in the following video:
To learn more about Iraq and its history, visit the Iraq page on the Encyclopedia Britannica website.
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