57th annual Multicultural Festival underway in Kitchener
Kitchener’s Victoria Park came alive on Saturday as the Kitchener-Waterloo Multicultural Centre (KWMC) hosts their 57th annual Multicultural Festival, celebrating the rich diversity of the community.
“This is the biggest festival in the region and we're celebrating the diversity and the uniqueness. We're celebrating each other,” said Lucia Harrison, CEO of the KWMC.
The weekend-long event drew thousands of attendees on Saturday, showcasing the myriad of cultures that contribute to the city’s unique tapestry.
“If the weather permits, we can see 70,000 people through this park over the weekend,” Harrison said. “Every year we do different things. We have different performers. We've gotten bigger. It's just like every year just builds on the previous year and it's just very exciting.”
The festival featured an eclectic mix of performances, culinary delights, and artisan crafts from over 30 different cultural groups.
“We've got the marketplace, we've got over 200 vendors who are selling various kinds of products. And then, yes, the food, lots of performances,” Harrison said.
“We get a combination of everything so it’s nice to learn about the different cultures too,” one attendee said.
Bhupi Panesar has been a vendor at the festival since 2005. It’s an event she says is near and dear to her heart.
“I moved from London, England in 2004, so this was my way to connect to the community and honestly, I don't know how I would have done it if it wasn't for events like this,” she said.
As an experienced mehndi artist, Panesar thought she could share her talents to the community of Waterloo Region. Her business Henna4You has now been a part of the community for over 20 years.
“Henna is the leaves of the henna tree, and what they do is they dry them, they crush them into a really fine powder, like icing sugar…it starts off like a really light orange and then the color develops 24 to 48 hours later.”
Other hhighlights of the festival included a series of stage performances featuring Bollywood numbers, traditional Irish dance and a display of African drumming. Additionally, the culinary offerings were a major draw. Attendees lined the grounds in front of different food stalls serving everything from spicy Caribbean jerk chicken to delicate Japanese sushi, allowing festival-goers to embark on a global culinary journey without leaving the park.
In addition to entertainment and food, the festival also emphasized cultural education and community engagement.
“It brings us together for all our similarities, not our differences. So I think that in itself is what makes it so special,” Harrison said.
Panesar remarked on the festival’s role in fostering a sense of belonging and community pride.
“We're all from somewhere. Our roots are from somewhere else. And if we don't have events like this, we'll never find out what a different culture does or what's important to them,” she said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6937020.1719020847!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Maximum-security prison in Quebec evacuated due to forest fires
More than 200 inmates were relocated after a maximum-security prison on Quebec's north shore was evacuated due to the threat of raging forest fires in the region.
Blue Jays rookie infielder Orelvis Martinez suspended 80 games for doping violation
Toronto Blue Jays rookie infielder Orelvis Martinez has been suspended for 80 games by Major League Baseball.
A woman is accused of attempting to drown a 3-year-old Muslim child in possible hate crime incident
A woman in Texas has been charged with attempted capital murder and injury to a child after trying to drown a three-year-old child at an apartment complex pool and making racial statements, according to police.
Why Mount Rainier is the U.S. volcano keeping scientists up at night
The snowcapped peak of Mount Rainier, which towers 4.3 kilometres (2.7 miles) above sea level in Washington state, has not produced a significant volcanic eruption in the past 1,000 years. Yet, more than Hawaii’s bubbling lava fields or Yellowstone’s sprawling supervolcano, it’s Mount Rainier that has many U.S. volcanologists worried.
Conservative surge combined with ballot confusion could crack a Liberal stronghold in Toronto byelection
Growing political discontent in a Liberal stronghold could lead to a Conservative breakthrough in an Ontario byelection that may put Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s leadership to the test. On Monday, voters in the riding of Toronto-St. Paul's will head to the polls to elect a new member of Parliament.
'I feel like I have my life again': Canadian woman describes her freedom from a life controlled by OCD
What set Rima Youssef on the path to freedom, she says, was a novel treatment — a form of brain surgery — to shut down the overactive thoughts and compulsions using focused ultrasound.
Untreated water available for residents, businesses at 2 Calgary locations as water consumption continues to drop
An outbreak of summer weather didn’t deter Calgary from turning off the taps Saturday.
Ontario may now be Canada's tornado capital, researchers say
A Prairie province previously thought to be the tornado capital of Canada has been dethroned by Ontario, according to new data by tornado researchers out of Western University.
B.C. First Nations involved in salmon farming demand apology from William Shatner, Ryan Reynolds
A coalition of B.C. First Nations involved in open-net salmon farming have called on Canadian actors William Shatner and Ryan Reynolds to apologize for a profanity-laced video criticizing the wider industry.