150+ Canadians Day 08: We Are One Canada

We Are One Canada contributes to peace by teaching Canadian children words in Arabic to welcome Syrian refugees to our country.#Canada150

Founded by ten year-old Benjamin from Mississauga, Ontario, We Are One Canada offers a website for Canadian children to learn Arabic words of welcome to speak to newly arrived Syrian refugee children.  Ben has a passion for social justice and has experienced communication difficulties of his own.  Benjamin is on the Autism Spectrum, and despite some challenges he has faced (or perhaps because of them), he has a desire to encourage people to break through communication barriers and treat all people with respect and tolerance.  He believes that we are ALL equal, and sometimes people need to make a little extra effort to help others feel included.

“Sometimes it takes time and effort to be inclusive, but we have to try.  Let’s remove the barriers.”

All are welcome to watch Benjamin & friends’ basic arabic learning videos at  weareonecanada.ca.

Back in the spring of 2016, we got the chance to interview Benjamin for CFRC Radio in Kingston. See the full story here.