Mayo Lumber Company maps the South Asian Canadian and other communities across Canada.
With archives proving this community is a part of Canada, people all across the country have acknowledged the South Asian Canadian and other communities at Mayo Lumber Company.
Kamloops, BC- March 17, 2024
The South Asian Canadian community residing in Paldi, British Columbia, has demonstrated that there are individuals who have been left out of history despite having a legitimate place in it. With the help of the Mayo Lumber Company, the community now has the chance to fill in the gaps in its history and show the next generation how important their ancestors were to the past. By opposing racial immigration laws and giving jobs to South Asians as well as other communities like Chinese, Japanese, and Europeans, they have given this community the chance to come together.
Dr. Satwinder Kaur Bains, the University of the Fraser Valley’s Director of the Institute for South Asian Studies, discovered the archives. She arrived in Canada as an immigrant in 1975. She was a self-reliant, hard-working woman who experienced racism at a young age. She felt alienated and unwelcome in the Canadian community since she was referred to as Hindu or East Indian. Through Joan Mayo Fonds, she was able to obtain the community photographs. She has always thought of Paldi as a special and distinctive place to live. “Within that city is the lived experience of South Asian Canadians” , Bains stated. She believed that getting to know the community well and raising awareness of it were crucial. Not only the community members but also the public can access these archives to learn about the historical context of the community and the company’s significant contributions to the advancement of employment opportunities, anti-racism, and equal rights for its members.
It was observed that there was not just one community, but also several communities living side by side, all of which belonged to the same community regardless of race. This was Mayo Singh’s vision when he founded the Mayo Lumber Company. Singh also contributed to the development of the company’s charitable and community services. “We built the country as well”, says Bains.
Mayo Singh founded the Mayo Lumber Company in 1916 after visiting Vancouver Island in quest of a new mill site and a supply of lumber. Workers from various communities, including Chinese, Japanese, and European ones, were attracted to the company, ultimately contributing to the community’s and the town of Paldi’s growth and development. Mayo Singh constructed Buddhist and Sikh temples, schools, hospitals, and community services as part of the town’s and the nation’s overall development with a motive of inclusiveness of all communities.
For more information, contact Harshika Gupta, Media Relations specialist. (hgupta21@mytru.ca)