The Air India bombing and the contours of public memory
Mon. Nov. 27, 2023
In June, an Angus Reid Poll pointed to how few Canadians remember the 1985 Air India bombing, which the Canadian government has called the “worst terrorist attack in Canada’s history.” The poll indicated Canadians knew very little about Air India Flight 182, which was en route from Toronto, Ontario to Delhi, India via London, England. All 329 people aboard were killed, including 280 Canadians of South Asian descent.
The University of Winnipeg’s Dr. Angela Failler, Canada Research Chair in Culture and Public Memory, has been examining why this attack continues to be a largely forgotten narrative in Canada.
On Sunday, November 26, Dr. Failler participated in a reading and conversation on this subject at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Burnaby, B.C. She was joined by award-winning author Renée Sarojini, who lost her aunt and uncle in the attack, and by Shachi Kurl, President of the Angus Reid Institute.