History of Medicine Collection

Items

• Colombia to Canada: A journey of self discovery and cultural identity.
  In this video, Emilio Borja discusses his journey with his cultural identity. Borja discusses topics such as his life before Canada, his reasons for coming to Canada, what he misses about Colombia, and what he likes about life in Canada. All these topics build up to Borja’s discussion of cultural identity. Borja tells us what he feels his personal cultural identity is and explains why he feels this way. Borja then explains his definition of cultural identity, and how he believes cultural identity is fluid and able to change over time. He also explains why he feels this fluidity can be both good and bad.
• Maintaining & Sharing your Cultural Identity: Through Education, Exposure, & Experience
  The video explores the cultural identity of Jose. A. Casanova, with a particular focus on how food serves as reminder of where he has come from. We not only talk about how food has shaped who he is today, but also the people who have influenced him significantly, including his mother. Over time, his core values have not diminished despite a change in location. Through passing on values from his Venezuelan culture and his wife’s Colombian culture to his children, he actively encourages them to be culturally humble and to embrace their diverse cultural identity. He does this by emphasizing that they are not just from one community, but they are from three: Canadian, Venezuelan and Colombian. He provides advice on the best way to preserve one’s cultural identity, so that one can maintain one’s roots and not forget where one has come from. He also stresses on the importance of helping others because having gone through the challenges that come with being a new immigrant in Canada himself, he realizes a little help can go a long way.