SAMYUKTHA PUNTHAMBEKAR

“Why I Left Toronto,”

As someone who has worked in the arts for more than 20 years, I have been thinking of writing about the gaps in addressing racial and systemic inequalities for a long time. In light of recent events in the United States and Canada, along with my own experiences with systemic racism, it was a ripe opportunity to make this vision a reality. As an immigrant, I came to Canada with dreams that I hoped Toronto would manifest. I quickly realized that it was common for sought-after institutions to use catchphrases to check off funding objectives with meaningless actions. For an establishing immigrant with no family support, this was startling. My voice has been shunned because of this. I have therefore taken this opportunity to pen a few lines that I hope highlight the issues within deeply colonized systems.

Samyuktha Punthambekar is the executive director of Infinite Arts Projects and the artistic director of Kalasadhana Dance Company in Ottawa.