Diversity rules in Vancouver

> BY CHARLIE SMITH

Virtually every weekend in the summer, there’s a festival taking place in Vancouver. For those who cherish the region’s diversity, here are five worth checking out before Labour Day.

NATIONAL ABORIGINAL DAY

(June 21) One of the centrepieces of National Aboriginal Day is the annual community-based festival at Trout Lake in John Hendry Park. This year it’s bigger than ever before, with dance, hip-hop, and soul, roots, and blues music, as well as a whole lot of food trucks.

Performers include Kwhlii Gibaygum Nisga’a Traditional Dancers, Métis and contemporary dance company V’ni Dansi, the Git Hayetsk Dancers, DJ Mukluk, Norine Braun, Jody Okabe, Withes, Dakk’one, Eden Fine Day, Murray Porter, and Gerald Charlie and the Black Owl Blues Band. This year, it runs from 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Who it appeals to: Anyone who loves outdoor concerts and watching indigenous canoeists and is in a mood to celebrate the leadership role that indigenous people are playing in protecting B.C.’S coast. Hors d’oeuvre: Head to the Museum of Anthropology at UBC in advance of the event to learn more about indigenous cultures around the world.

INDIAN SUMMER FESTIVAL (July 6 to 15) This year’s festival will welcome two-time Giller Prize–winning novelist M. G. Vassanji, two-time Grammy-winning tenor saxophonist Ernie Watts, celebrated Indian violin god L. Subramaniam, and one of the world’s most popular graphic-book authors, Joe Sacco.

The festival features 19 events with 108 artists at 12 venues, offering a smorgasbord of music, literature, and current affairs. It begins with an always memorable opening gala at the Roundhouse Community Centre, which is sure to rouse the taste buds with cuisine curated by celebrated chef Vikram Vij. The evening also includes a performance by DJ Rup Sidhu. Another highlight of the festival will be the July 8 concert at the Orpheum Theatre with Watts, Subramaniam, and other musicians.

For those of a literary bent, novelists Pasha Malla and Anosh Irani will join the Banff Centre’s Devyani