Lethbridge, AB
Immigrant
Bangladesh
30-39
Sayma
Originally from Bangladesh, Sayma arrived in Saskatoon in 2017 and later moved to Lethbridge in 2019, and has since lived there with two young children.
I am very aware of my own heritage and culture because that is my identity. I tried to be friends with people here but some of the local people are racists. I felt that. That's why I came back to my culture.
Cultural Dresses Represent My Identity
I used to be shy about introducing my culture to locals as I’ve had many experiences where I do not feel welcomed by the locals. But now I will not be shy anymore to wear my costume for locals to see how beautiful my culture is. We should feel proud to represent our culture and practice. I celebrate my culture and I will be proud to introduce myself.
 I was wearing this dress for a multicultural video filmed for Asian Heritage Week to talk about my culture. |  This pink dress was sent from my mom in Bangladesh. In Bangladesh we often wore that kind of dress so I was thinking I should wear it. I did. |
|---|
Cultural Celebrations
I try to teach my kids our culture which is very beautiful. We have many celebrations almost every month. We had Eid celebration; my kids dressed up in traditional clothing; they made a card for the Bengali New Year; we did face painting as it is very popular for cultural festivals in Bangladesh. As Bangladeshi-Canadians, my kids should learn and celebrate the culture of Bangladesh. If so, they will never be frustrated in life because they will feel that they have their own culture, right here.
We celebrate the Bengali Spring Festival on February 14th. In Bangladesh, our culture is related to love and we call it the Season of Flowers. The first day, we wear traditional saris and flower crowns, put some color on our faces, and all meet together. We also decorate our house with flowers.
I put henna on my hand. My neighbor’s daughter came to me to put henna on and she likes it. I am very aware of my own heritage and culture because that is my identity. I tried to be friends with people here but some of the local people are racists. I felt that. That's why I came back to my culture.
We make this kind of cultural food every weekend. In Lethbridge, there are a few Indian restaurants but no Bangladeshi restaurants. I would sometimes order from the Indian restaurants downtown, but I prefer to make homemade food that is more authentic to me.