Harleen Mann recalls standing outside her Grade 10 classroom, waiting for her teacher to allow her into the room.
“I didn’t know I didn’t need permission,” said Mann, who had newly arrived in Canada with her family from Punjab. The instance was just one of many things Mann had to learn as she navigated the systems of a new country.
Overwhelmed by a new culture, Mann eventually found her home in Calgary, where she’s gained a sense of independence prized in many countries around the globe.
“I have more opportunities,” said Mann, who now works as a nurse in Drumheller. “I had more resources. There are more support systems.”
Ten years later, she can now call herself Canadian.
Mann was one of 56 people honoured with Canadian citizenship at Heritage Park on Canada Day.
“It indeed is a very special day for you, truly a significant milestone in your life,” Patrick Jarvis told the group of newly inducted citizens.
“You have embraced this country. And now you’re about to take this exciting next step to formally complete that embrace,” added Jarvis, a recipient of the Order of Canada — the highest civilian award in the country — who presided over the ceremony.
The sound of bagpipes filled the room at the beginning of the ceremony as special guests walked to the dais. The list included Frank Turning Robe, Indigenous elder; Shuvaloy Majumdar, MP for Calgary Heritage; Nagwan Al-Guneid, MLA for Calgary Glenmore; and Mahum Tariq, talent manager at Heritage Park.
The introduction was followed by a presentation, which highlighted the history of Indigenous peoples and the importance of truth and reconciliation.
“With the exception of Indigenous people, we are all immigrants to this land,” Tariq said toward the end of the ceremony. “We are part of the fabric of the nation built by immigrants from every corner of the world.”
Julia Guitti, seated in the crowd, was touched by the presentation. Guitti, who arrived in Canada with her husband five years ago and has some Indigenous roots in Brazil, was impressed by the acknowledgment of past harm to Canada’s First Nations communities.
“I feel that now everyone is addressing truth and reconciliation with immigrants,” said Guitti, who said she’s passionate about the cause. “I think that’s important because we are all part of the same land.”
Guitti said she was thrilled and relieved at the same time as she took the oath of citizenship.
For her first three years, she and her husband moved to several cities in search of a home. Finally, they settled in Calgary. “We saw the energy that the city has and soon we made the move,” said her husband, Pedro Finkler, who works as a software developer.
After building their life in the city and now having become officially Canadian, the couple feels they have “crossed the finish line.”
“I just feel that I can finally say that I belong,” Finkler said.