This video was produced by TEDxYorkU.

HERE’S HOW THE CREATORS DESCRIBE THIS VIDEO:

The stigmatization of Jane/Finch is no new phenomenon, nor is it a neutral one. The stereotypes attached to the community have real and serious effects. For years, community members have actively tried to combat the stigma through counter narratives, but they cannot do this alone.

Talisha Ramsaroop, 22-year-old graduate student, racialized woman, and immigrant, migrated to Canada with her mother at the age of two and has since lived in or around the Jane/Finch community. As a racialized female from a highly stigmatized community, Talisha learned that stereotypes and stigma can be detrimental to one’s perception of oneself, and can cause various barriers to success in education and beyond. Since then, Talisha draws on her personal experience and post-secondary education to empower other youth from her community by deconstructing the neighbourhood’s stigma and supporting others to develop critical thinking and community-based research skills.