MONUMENT TO MULTICULTURALISM Symbol of Multiculturalism Monument to

MONUMENT TO MULTICULTURALISM

"Symbol of Multiculturalism” - "Monument to Multiculturalism” - located in front of Union Station at 65 Front Street West, Toronto, Canada Photo: http: //spacingtoronto. ca/2009/03/20/monument-to-multiculturalism/

The monument was unveiled on July 1, 1985, Toronto’s 150 th anniversary by then Toronto mayor Arthur Eggleton. Photo: http: //www. thegridto. com/city/places/whats-the-meaning-of-this-monument-to-multiculturalism/

Commissioned by the Congress of Iitalian Canadians, the monument was designed by Italian sculptor Francesco Perilli, the founder of an art movement Nuetral-ism (2009), atop a base by Nino Rico. The monument, according to its name, honours the multicultural heritage of Toronto. Photo: http: //guerra. exto. org/index/15777245_NEUTRAL-ISM. html Photo: http: //spacingtoronto. ca/2009/03/20/monument-to-multiculturalism/

In 1983 Perilli came to Toronto and gave a talk on the topic of multiculturalism: ". . . multiculturalism is not only positive, but it is a means of developing interreligious dialogue and peaceful collaboration among men of different ancestries and convictions. And that because its own objective is in fact aimed at overcoming all hatred, both long-standing and nascent. In other words, multiculturalism is conceived as contrary to every racist attitude and fanatical fundamentalism; it stands against every act of terrorism; it is opposed to any evidence, great or small, of overt struggle between individuals, from violence to conflict to genocide; it is adverse, in short, to any supremacy of one over the other that can lead appallingly, as has sometimes and even recently occurred, to the moral indecency of ethnic purging. “ [2]

Perilli (about the monument): "I conceived the monument to be cast in bronze, and, stylistically, in a postmodern vein. It represents a man who, at the center of the globe, joins two meridians; while the remaining meridians are held aloft by doves, a peace symbol in themselves. Moreover, the doves are symbolically meant to represent the cultural vitality of the people who, with the man, construct a new world, under the banner of dialogue and mutual respect”. [2] Photo: http: //spacingtoronto. ca/2009/03/20/monument-to-multiculturalism/

The monument consists of a 3 metre–tall, bronze nude male attempting (with the help of doves) to pull lines of longitude above his head and make a globe shape. It has a symbolic meaning of creation of a new world that is a home place for the people from different countries. Photo: http: //spacingtoronto. ca/2009/03/20/monument-to-multiculturalism/

There also bronze inscriptions at the base of the sculpture that bear quotes from the United Nations Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. A part of the inscription reads: "This monument, a tribute to multiculturalism, was presented to the city of Toronto on the occasion of its sesquicentennial by the national congress of Italian Canadians on behalf of the Italian Canadian Community”. Photo: http: //levynewsnetwork. wordpress. com/2011/11/08/monument-to-multiculturalism-union-station-toronto-exploring-toronto-part-iv/

The monument was replicated in Buffalo City, South Africa, Changchun, China, Sarajevo, Bosnia, and Sydney, Australia. Photo: http: //levynewsnetwork. wordpress. com/2011/11/08/monument-to-multiculturalism-union-station-toronto-exploring-toronto-part-iv/

The presentation is made by Svetlana Panfyorova, the librarian of the Department of literature in foreign languages Tula regional universal research library

Bibliography 1. Corey, A. Photo of the day: monument to Multiculturalism rises to meet the Royal York [Electronic resource] / by Alex Corey. – 2012. – http: //www. urbantoronto. ca/news/2012/08/photo-day-monument-multiculturalism-rises-meet-royal-york 2. Merritt, Sh. Monument to Multiculturalism [Electronic resource]/ by Shaun Merritt. - 2009. http: //spacingtoronto. ca/2009/03/20/monument-to-multiculturalism/ 3. Monument To Multiculturalism Outside Union Station Toronto: Exploring Toronto Part IV // LNN: Levy News network : [the site]. – 2011. - http: //levynewsnetwork. wordpress. com/2011/11/08/monument-to-multiculturalism -union-station-toronto-exploring-toronto-part-iv/ 4. Rutka, J. What’s the meaning of this? : monument to Multiculturalism [Electronic resource] / by Jacob Rutka. – 2012. - http: //www. thegridto. com/city/places/whats-the-meaning-of-this-monument-to-multiculturalism/