Stories that Shape Us
Narratives of Intergenerational Resilience and Chinese Canadian Families
By Fred Chou, Carmen Huang, Mikaela Chia, and Wendy Ma
2024
ISBN: 978-1-55058- 734-0 (print); 978-1-55058- 735-7 (ePub); 978-1-55058-733-3 (PDF)
127 pages
This work is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC)
This book covers stories of intergenerational resilience in Chinese Canadian families, how these stories were cultivated, and reflections from the researchers and participants involved in this project. Together with four family dyads, individual and family stories were developed using a collaborative research process. The stories presented here are holistic and written in a manner that strives to honour the voices of the participants. Not only were these stories imparted to us as researchers to witness and co-develop, these stories were also shared within the family dyads—a process of witnessing that is represented in this book.
Dr. Fred Chou (周敏浩) is an Associate Professor in Counselling Psychology at the University of Victoria and a Registered Psychologist in British Columbia. He is a second-generation Chinese Canadian with ancestral roots from the Guangdong province. His research interests include the mental health of Asian Canadians, intergenerational trauma and resilience, and youth mental health literacy. As a community-based researcher, he specializes in using participatory and narrative research to facilitate tangible solutions and elevate under-represented voices.
Carmen Huang (⻩ 嘉 雯) is a second-generation Chinese Canadian born to immigrant parents living on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh). She is a Registered Clinical Counsellor and a BC certified teacher. Her personal and professional experiences inspired her to foster collective healing and to address issues of identity, power, and privilege through listening and storytelling. Carmen is committed to creating safe spaces for individuals and communities to share, be heard, and grow together.
Mikaela Chia is a second-generation immigrant settler currently living on the ancestral and unceded Coast Salish Territory of the Lək̓ʷəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ People. As a Peranakan woman, she has ancestral roots in Singapore, the Malay peninsula and Southern China. Mikaela is passionate about co-creating spaces that honour the voices, stories, and lived experiences of people and communities in the ways that they feel most heard and safely witnessed. As a Clinical Counsellor and in research, Mikaela centers her work in identity, intergenerational resistance, racial trauma, and the power of collective healing and liberation.
Wendy Ma (⾺凱怡) is a second-generation Chinese Canadian with ancestral roots from Toisan, Guangdong. She is a Clinical Counsellor practicing on the the stolen, traditional territories of the the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlilwətaɬ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh). She is passionate about contributing to the destigmatization of mental health in the Asian diaspora and works with clients to reclaim their cultural identity and unique stories of intergenerational trauma and resilience.
I Introduction
Stories that Shape Us Project
Meet the Storytellers
II Stories
George & Audrey — If I didn’t persist / Enduring, with faith
Alex & Samantha — It’s just a hiccup / It’s okay, we’re all human
Cecilia & Isabelle — You do what you need to do / My becoming
Eleanor & Emma — Enduring to resilience / Healing for future generations
III Reflections
Participant Storytellers
Alex
Isabelle
Eleanor
Emma
Research Team
Wendy
Mikaela
Carmen
Fred
IV Invitation
A Storying Guide for the Offspring Generation
A Storying Guide for the Parental Generation