Meet Neethan Shan, Toronto's first Tamil-Canadian councillor
Shan will push for infrastructure and equity as councillor for Ward 42 - Scarborough-Rouge River
Neethan Shan is still getting used to calling Ward 42 "his ward."
On Monday, he beat 28 other candidates and won the council seat in the Scarborough-Rouge River byelection.
The public school board trustee, who has run for public office more than 10 times in the last 14 years, said the road to victory has been a long one.
"As a racialized person, a young person who came here as a refugee, to advocate for change has taken a lot of effort and a lot of time and a lot of hard work," he said.
A champion of equity
Shan, who immigrated to Canada from Sri Lanka when he was 16, wants to quash an equity problem in Toronto he calls the "elephant in the room."
He said Scarborough is full of visible minorities who contribute economically, socially and culturally, and offer unique skill sets and expertise, but are stuck working minimum-wage jobs.
"My role is to champion equity so that people of all colours, regardless of where they come from, are able to have equal opportunities and equal outcomes," he said.
Doing the Tamil community proud
Shan, who is backed by the NDP, explained Toronto has the largest population of Tamil people in Canada, many who have fled war.
"For us to come and be in a country where we've gotten the opportunity to succeed and to be able to become a political representative, is a milestone that we are all celebrating together," he said.
Shan, who founded Tamil Heritage Month in 2009, said being the first Tamil-Canadian to be elected to Toronto city council is symbolic of the "growth, hard work and resilience" in the community.
"The Tamil community wants me to make them proud by serving all diverse communities," he said. "They have given me that responsibility."
Infrastructure a top priority
Shan said Scarborough, and Ward 42, have been "neglected" for far too long.
"In our neighbourhood, there are thousands of children under the age of 12, but no library or community centre in the area," he said. "We feel we're not getting a fair share of the resources to build the kind of infrastructure that can keep our society cohesive and productive."
Shan has been pushing for the Bloor-Danforth subway line to be extended to Scarborough Town Centre. "It's important for us to get the shovels on the ground and get the project moving," he said. "This should have been done many years ago."
He also wants the Scarborough LRT to be extended farther north from the University of Toronto's Scarborough campus to Malvern, another "underserved" area.
When the tie comes off
Shan lives in his ward and after a late night at the office, he goes for the all-day breakfast specials at his favourite local diner Markham Station with his wife and two young sons. China Cottage and Babu Catering are other go-to dinner spots.
When he manages to get an evening off, the self-proclaimed movie buff heads to a local theatre to watch Tamil and Hindi films. "I spend a lot of time checking out the cultural side of things," he said.
Shan will be officially sworn into office in the coming weeks. In the meantime?
"I'm looking forward to catching up on some of the family time that I've lost and spending time with my kids," he said.