What Toronto can learn from Chinatown’s fight for cultural preservation

Is your neighbourhood facing gentrification-driven displacement, and you’re not quite sure how to save it?

Ethnic enclaves in Toronto have long been sources of comfort and belonging for diasporic groups and the generations that come afterwards. When coming to a new country, people look for familiarity — in food, in clothing, in faith and more. They often establish cultural neighbourhoods with businesses and other meaningful places to connect.

But many of these neighbourhoods face gentrification-driven displacement, development pressures, rising costs and city planning that leaves them out — which threaten their unique identities and characters.

Local leaders have long pushed back against changes where residents have no say. And in fighting displacement, generations of settlers in Toronto’s Chinatown have created and adapted strategies from land stewardship and civic engagement to art and businesses.

Part one: Stewarding land with the Toronto Chinatown Land Trust

Find out how the Toronto Chinatown Land Trust partners with longstanding Chinese family associations to revitalize spaces in the neighbourhood and manage ownership to keep land off the speculative market and in the hands of community members.

Part two: Deputing at City of Toronto public meetings

Looking for a way to fight gentrification-driven displacement at the municipal level? Attending public meetings is accessible and possible for residents across the city. You don’t have to be an activist to do it. Find out how Joanna and Jeanette Liu, second-generation restaurant owners, found themselves at a Toronto and East York Community Council meeting — and what lessons they can share with all of us.

Part three: Using art and culture as acts of resilience

Engaging in cultural art practices and sharing history through art forms isn’t a new strategy to fight erasure. In Toronto’s Chinatown, local artists have started a kung fu club, a lion dancing club, a community gardening initiative, a gift shop and more to fight displacement by being loud and proud. Learn from these artists, like Hannia Cheng, on how art is a form of resistance.

Part four: Keeping local businesses alive to serve the community

Businesses are more than just places to eat and shop. They act as constants in peoples’ lives, holding memories and comfort in an alienating city. We talked with Hannia Cheng from Thank You Chinatown, and Joanna and Jeanette Liu from Yueh Tung, on the importance of keeping long-standing businesses alive when gentrification-driven displacement threatens to take Chinatown away.

Did our series on Chinatown inspire you to get to work in your own neighbourhood? Let me know by emailing me at aia@thegreenline.to.

Want to learn more about Toronto’s Chinatown and its community leaders? Check out the stories below.