Girl in an Indian dress: Newfoundlander talks 'xenophobic' N.L. after racial incident at punk show

A Newfoundlander with Indian heritage is speaking out about racism in the province, after she says a routine night downtown ended in discrimination.

Avi Cheema, a law student living in Ottawa, was back home in St. John's on Friday to attend an Indian wedding. 

When the reception and ceremony was over, she said she decided to go downtown to meet her friends at a punk show at Distortion.

"I just had an Indian wedding thing so I just ended up going out in whatever I was wearing which I thought was pretty kickass," she said.

"It was honestly the first time ever in my life that I went out wearing my Indian clothing."

Cheema said she was wearing a shalwar kameez (pictured above), and although she was nervous about wearing it downtown, was still feeling confident.

She said she's been going to punk shows for years and has always felt like a part of the community.

I've done so much to be accepted by the community and be liked by people and all it took for that to completely disappear is me wearing my traditional clothing from my ancestral country.- Avi Cheema

But when she got to Distortion, she noticed her dress was attracting some negative attention.

"It was in the middle of a set and I was at the front of the stage," she said.

"I was trying to mosh but people were not even trying to engage with me. The looks they were giving me...kind of like what the f--k are you doing here?'

Cheema said the reception she received at the concert made her feel extremely uncomfortable.

"I've done so much to be accepted by the community and be liked by people and all it took for that to completely disappear is me wearing my traditional clothing from my ancestral country."

She said that wearing clothing outside of what's traditionally acceptable in North America made her an outcast at the show.

"It was 100 per cent a total correlation with the clothing I was wearing."

"When I actually lived in Newfoundland I had my septum pierced and obviously normally wore whatever [western] clothing. All of a sudden I come back out in this stuff and I'm completely shunned and not part of it anymore."

Ignorance in N.L.

While it was the first time Cheema said she's experienced that sort of reaction at a show, she says it's far from the only time she's experienced racism in this province.

In fact, she believes the Newfoundland and Labrador has some serious issues with racism and has a long way to go when it comes to becoming more accepting towards other cultures and ethnicities.

"I think Newfoundland's a pretty xenophobic province, which is obviously fed by a lack of diversity," she said.

Cheema has lived in Newfoundland and Labrador for nearly her entire life but said it wasn't until she moved to a bigger city for university that she realized just how prevalent racism is in the province. 

"I'm living in Ottawa now and coming back and just kind of realizing Newfoundland is not very welcoming of diversity whatsoever."

"Just so many aspects of my culture that ever seep through have been made fun of," she said. "Finally now, I'm like 'Oh shit,' that's actually super racist, which I had no conceptual understanding of."

I think Newfoundland's a pretty xenophobic province, which is obviously fed by a lack of diversity.- Avi Cheema

Back in Ottawa, Cheema said the difference between living in N.L. and a more diverse province is night and day.

"It's immeasurable," she said. 

"Even just walking around on the streets I see people wearing similar things to what I wore last night and no one gives them a second glance."

In N.L., Cheema said it's hard to feel a part of the larger community when you look different than most people.

"The way that we're received in most of the rest of the country at least in Ontario or bigger cities is just like: 'You are part of this community as much as every other single person.'"

"Here, you have a gathering of more than one man with a turban and people start getting kind of uncomfortable about it."

Changes to education system needed

In order for this to change in N.L., Cheema said more needs to be done in schools to teach kids the importance of accepting others. 

"There's no exposure to any kind of culture outside of North American culture or European culture in schools," she said.

"So when people do see something that's different, I just don't think they even know how to react. It makes them feel uncomfortable because they've never even seen or heard or experienced it in any kind of way before."

She said history needs to be taught in schools away from the traditional Eurocentric bent. 

"It's absolutely horrifying going through school and being taught something called world history, when in reality it's white history," she said.

With more and more immigrants and refugees moving to Newfoundland, Cheema said it's increasingly important the province properly welcomes them. 

"Where we don't have that diversity [that other places in Canada have], it's pretty important to at least teach about it."

Until then, Cheema said she still feels welcome in N.L., but only if she engages with the province on western terms. 

"As long as I don't express being Indian and having a culture outside of North American or European culture… I am very much accepted in Newfoundland"

"But when I start wanting to express that, then I definitely have encountered some kind of resistance."

Just like anyplace else, says human rights chair

Remzi Cej, the chair of Newfoundland and Labrador's Human Rights Commission, told the St. John's Morning Show he was saddened by Cheema's experience in the province, and that no one should face discrimination because of their appearance. 

Still, he said he had to disagree with the assertion that the province is particularly un-welcoming to non-white cultures and ethnicities. 

He says the province is not any better, either — in fact, it's just like anywhere else.

"We really are another province, just like everybody else, that seeks to be welcoming and inclusive, but in our community there are all kinds of individuals," he said.

We really are another province, just like everybody else.- Remzi Cej

"And some individuals may choose to discriminate," he added. "I think generalizing hurts everybody."

Cej said complains to his commission about discrimination by race, ethnic origin and nationality have increased in the past year. He says increasing immigration and diversification is likely a factor.

"I think the next step really should be what can we do about it, and how can we prevent it," he said, adding people should strive to be more culturally sensitive and aware.

Editor's note

The original version of this story was based on one interview. It has been edited for context.