‘ LIVE JAZZ * GREAT FOOD * KID‘S BIKE RODEO * INCREDIBLE SHOPPING * WIN AN 18â€"SPEED QUANTUM MOUNTAIN BIKE (Courtesy of the Oakville Beaver) l'WINA $500 AMERICAN EXPRESS SHOPPING SPREE DOWNTOWN Plus... See some of North America‘s best cyclists compete! AGFA @ Products give you better portraits Downtown Oakville Cycle Race Sunday, July 31 Super Low Price! Super Big Value! SUBJECT FEE OF $3.00 PER PERSON, NOT INCLUDED IN ADVERTISED PRICE PAYABLE WHEN PORTRAITS ARE TAKEN. Pose for advertised portraits our selection â€" on your choice of background. Your favorite props welcomed. Additional poses taken for optional portrait collection with no oghgohon to purchase. No limit on the number oru idvertised collections per family, but only one per subject. Portrait sizes approximate Hurry And Get This Special Portrait Value! Mailed ballots must be received by Sunday, July 31, 1994 to be eligible. Name _ Address Phone _ WIN An 18â€"Speed Quantum Mountain Bike Courtesy of the THIS AREA KMART HAS A PERMANENT STUDIO OPEN 5 DAYS Tues. â€" Sat. 10 AM â€" 7 PM $6000 in cash and Prizes For More Information Call $44â€"4520 and the Downtown Oakville BIA Drop off in person on race day Hopedale Mall, 3rd Line Rebecca LAKESHORE CRITERIUM RACE ROUTE © 1994 PCA Intl, Inc "‘They said they told the immigration officer what type of place they had in mind â€" maybe not too crowded but close to a large centre and with a nice Because Asians "come from a differâ€" ent perspective," racism has raised its ugly head in Halton. Kesebi noted the "tension" in White Oaks High School where 30% of students come from difâ€" ferent countries. She said fights have broken out between various ethnic groups and the Heritage Front has tried to recruit students. To counteract this, the Halton Board of Education has linked up with a workâ€" er of the Council‘s Race Relations Committee to try to "bridge the gap" and to help immigrant students adjust to their new school system. However, the greatest thrust of the Council focuses on assisting the 6,189 immigrants who came to Halton between 1988 and 1992 (as well as those who came after those latest figures were published). At least half of them were between 20 and 39 years of age and, according to the statistics, women outnumbered men. (However, Kesebi was unable to find out if female children were included in the figures.) Of all the immigrants coming straight from their own countries to Halton, about 60% were able to commuâ€" nicate in English while the rest could speak neither English nor French. "It brings in an added dimension to multiculturalism," she said. ‘"Whereas traditionally immigration has come from Europe â€" especially Great Britain â€" now the Asiaâ€"born from countries like Hong Kong and Sri Lanka have been rapidly increasing over the past five years." Why did they come to Halton? Kesebi said she asked this question of some newcomers. At Thursday‘s meeting sponsored by the Women‘s Information and Support Centre of Halton, Meral Kesebi said Asians are more likely to be the targets of racism because of the differences in language, customs and even religion they bring with them. n upsurge of Asian refugees that brings with it the seeds of racism has "a strong releâ€" vance" for Oakville and Halton residents, claimed the managing director of the Halton Multicultural Council. Battling racism By BARB JOY Special to the Beaver s\%(@ Oh what a "I don‘t know why I was, except maybe someone saw my last name," she said. "Being maligned for your culture just doesn‘t wash." INTERNAL TORMENT Pereira, whose parents came from the Azores, said she, too, was embarâ€" rassed to be "different" and had gone through an "internal torment" striving to be the same as established Canadians. At the Oakville school she attended, she said she had been taken out of reguâ€" lar classes and enrolled in the English as a Second Language curriculum, even though her grades had been good. The second part of the video folâ€" lowed a young woman‘s struggle for selfâ€"dignity and independence in the face of racism. Of South Asian extracâ€" tion, she felt "humiliated" by the caustic And so they came and, with the Council‘s help, got work, found housing and enrolled their children in schools. But, because they were "different," they were often treated in patronizing and even cruel fashion, as a video shown at the meeting illustrated. After watching it, Grace Pereira said she could well relate to the woman of Italian origin who wept on screen when she remembered her callous treatment of her younger sister who had fallen and hurt herself. She had berated her bleedâ€" ing, sobbing sister with: "Get up! People are looking at us. They‘ll think all Italians behave this way." family environment. The officer said: ‘Oh, that‘s Oakville! You‘ll love it.‘" Meral Kesebi with map showing immigration trends. (Photo by Jeff Chevrier) CTION Ties to the motherland can someâ€" times alienate Canadians. For instance, one woman at the meeting recounted her Croatian friend‘s insistence on her child marrying a Croatian. But Kesebi pointed out that the mother‘s concern probably centred on her ability to converse and share meals with her child‘s mate and even on the willingness of that mate to care for her in her old age. In short, a Canadian might not be as comfortable as a Croatian inâ€"law. For instance, while young Canadian women often have no problem acceptâ€" ing divorce as the end to an unhappy marriage, many immigrant women regard it as unthinkable. Even if abused by their husbands, a very few may leave briefly and live in a shelter but the need for familiar surroundings often lures them home again. "Besides, they have a completely difâ€" ferent understanding of their role within the family (than we do)," said Kesebi. "Still, a lot of outreach work needs to be done for abused immigrant women but, unfortunately, the funding isn‘t there." "I thought: What‘s the matter with us (Canadians)?" Following the video, Kesebi concedâ€" ed that children of immigrant parents who "are trying desperately to become part of the community," have a difficult time of it, torn as they are between ensconced traditions of their parents and the (often) conflicting lifestyles of a modern world. remarks and actions of others who disâ€" missed her heritage so offâ€"handedly. She wanted to fight back. So she began wearing her Indian shirt to school in "symbolic protest," spoke her own lanâ€" guage whenever she wanted to, talked about her demeaning experiences with others and took part in community activâ€" ities to find out if others had had the same experiences. They had. She conâ€" cluded that immigrant women should hold their heads high, reâ€"capture their selfâ€"esteem and band together for mutuâ€" al support. In this week‘s ‘Back to Class‘ flyer the following errors have occurred: The ‘Original Royal Chocolate Graham Cookies‘ featured on page 3 are 400 g, not 450q as stated. The following copy and prices have been transâ€" posed on page 8: The Women‘s ‘Athletech‘ Tops and Pants are sold separately at $6.97 each, and the saving is 30% OFF. The Women‘s Jogging Tops and Pants featured at right are sold as a set for $17.97, not separately at $6.97 each. Our regular price is $24.97 per set, and the saving is 25% OFF. 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