In 1988, Sashar Zarif immigrated to Canada from Turkey as a Stateless Refugee of the United Nations. With the assistance of his parents he had escaped from Iran through the mountains and sought asylum in Turkey. After three years in a refugee camp in Turkey, he arrived in Canada alone. One of the most difficult things about immigrating to Canada was not seeing either of his parents for 13 years.
Sashar has lived in many different countries, including India, Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkey. He arrived in Canada carrying the traditions of those cultures and bearing the mental and physical burdens of imprisonment and torture he had witnessed and suffered as a teenager.
In Canada, Sashar faced financial hardship and isolation. Despite being alone in this country, he managed not only to make up - while working - the three years of schooling he had missed, but finished high school with an A average. He was then offered admission to a very prestigious engineering school - the University of Waterloo.
But in the end, engineering lost out to dance. For as long as he can remember, Sashar has been a dancer -- and an activist. As an artist, he has a commitment to "contribute to social and individual expression concerning pressing cultural issues: issues that impact the health of our society, our environment and our individuality -- including the well-being of our souls." His belief that the artist can create works that "express and promote the human urge towards living in harmony" has led him to extensive research and field work in dance and music ethnology throughout Central Asia, Eurasia and the Near East. Through teaching and performing - from Mongolia in the east to Europe and across South and North America - he has widely reflected and represented Canadian diversity.
Eighteen months after arriving in Canada, Sashar received an award from the East York Board of Education for his contribution to multiculturalism and diversity at Eastern High School of Commerce, where he was finishing his schooling. In 1993, he founded and directed the Sashar Zarif Dance Theatre and the Canadian Academy of Azerbaijani Dance. In 2001, Sashar founded, and continues to direct, Dancers for Peace, an international festival reflecting a vision of hope and peace that transcends barriers between nations, races and religions. In 2003, he was awarded the Chalmers Professional Development Grant and in 2004, he received his MA from York University, Faculty of Fine Arts, in Dance and Dance Ethnology. That same year, he began teaching at York University with the Dance Department, Faculty of Fine Arts, where he started a successful credit course called "Introduction to World Dance Practices: Dances of North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia".
Sashar's message - that art can have an impact on social issues and play a significant role in change - resonates with the community at large. It is vital that newcomers insert themselves into their new culture in a positive and affirming way. Sashar leads by example; as an artistic ambassador for multiculturalism and diversity, he is a valued role model for new Canadians who have been through horrific experiences.
Skills for Change
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4:22"Crossing" by Mi Young Kim and Sashar Zarifby KoreanDanceNet781 views
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