I originally started Lavender Library Press as a side hustle and a way to empower the 2SLGBTQ+ community and allies (really anyone with an open mind.) 

 

I wanted to teach the 2SLGBTQ+ all this cool stuff I had learned when I was abroad, and I wanted us all to be empowered to live our best lives...(I know I am so idealistic, but....in my defence, I didn't have all the information...)

​​

I had recently come back from teaching in China for 10 years! In case you're curious, I taught at an offshore Canadian BC school and then helped change it into an international school system where I got to learn curriculum from all over the world. I was not in an ESL school, teaching kids English. I was teaching them exactly what we learn in Canadian BC high schools, and then I was teaching teachers and writing curriculum.)

 

(And yes, I realize how colonial this all sounds as I am writing it, and that is a whole other story, but I will say this: I was teaching the students Literature and Critical Thought. I was not imposing my beliefs on them, but rather getting them to question the social, political and economic systems as they are by using literature....Facts over fear. We discussed, shared and learned from each other, by blending Eastern and Western ways of thinking and interpreting what we were reading...within limits, of course, because it was China after all, which again is another story, LOL.)

So needless to say, I was unaware and not up to date with what was happening over here in my home country of Canada, other than my Professional Development in Truth and Reconciliation, SOGI, World History, and a few other topics that I engaged with during my Master's degree....Inevitably, I thought Canada was really growing and going in the best way forward...they were learning from the past and thinking critically...I was so excited and proud!

​

Well, flash forward to coming home, and what I thought was happening, is well.....kinda happening...but kinda not....kinda like turning a cruise ship around, it's about as slow as molasses...

I definitely find myself asking all too often:

"What has been going on for the last 10 years while I was gone?​ 

Why is there so much anger and hate? Why is everyone so defensive? Why is there so much prejudice against me educating the 2SLGBTQ+ community? Why are people mad that I am trying to uplift others who may be struggling? Why are we hating on immigrants when we are known to be multicultural? Why is everyone's nervous system so destroyed that we are hating on each other like Americans??? And then it clicked....

​

Because we are STILL fighting each other over a dollar, chasing the "American/Canadian Dream" and trying to 'Keep up with the Kardashians'!

(Don't get me wrong here, because I am a reality TV junkie, LOL)

But seriously, when will we ALL start learning to think critically? When are we all going to be the Canadians we say we are, and the Canadians we are known to be around the world? 

​

Well, I have decided, there is no better time than the present, so here I am being the change I want to see in the world....sharing my Canadian culture shock...sharing my education....sharing what I have learned along my journey...

​

And, of course, being the teacher my country trained me to be; the teacher I was indebted to my country for to become; the teacher I had to leave my own country for, to make sure I could afford the bill....Soaking in my dream, just like all us hardworking Canadians, right? 
 

All I know for sure, is this is not the Canada I remember learning about. This is not the Canada I teach about. And this is not the Canada people outside of Canada think Canada is.....

​

So if you want to make 'Canada Strong', and 'Elbow's Up' and truly be proud of our CANADIAN nation, we deal with facts here, not fear. 

 

You are welcome at the Lavender Library Press table located here in Treaty 6 territory, the travelling route, gathering place and meeting grounds for Indigenous Peoples, including the Nehiyaw, Denesųłıné, Siksikaitsitapi, Nakota Sioux, Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, Métis Otipemisiwak and Esikisimu Nunangat, whose histories, languages, cultures and traditions continue to influence our vibrant community. You are welcome to learn, grow, and change that fixed mindset into a growth mindset.  If that interests you, pull up a chair, and come have coffee, where we deal with facts and not fear.

Cheers!

Ashley ​​​​​