We feel increasingly isolated.

  • gentrificationBecause of the lack of public gathering places, people have come to rely on businesses and malls as social spaces. The closure of long-standing, Chinese-speaking stores deeply fractures the sense of community people have built over time.
  • There is not enough community activity space in Chinatown, especially for families and seniors. While benevolent associations are social gathering spaces, they are private, male-led institutions with closed memberships and do not provide public programming like community centres.
  • The lack of culturally competent and language-appropriate services from both government and non-profit organizations reinforces social isolation and inequality, as well as divides the community along racial lines.
  • Seniors make up a large proportion of Chinatown’s population and struggle to age in place because the neighbourhood does not support intergenerational relationships and spaces.