Madam Speaker, the Tamil community in my riding of Toronto Centre and across Canada is excited to acknowledge the historic accomplishment of reaching $3 million in fundraising to establish a chair in Tamil studies at the University of Toronto Scarborough. It is a first in Canada.
Generously supported by the SJV and EJ Chelvanayakam Charitable Foundation and more than 3,800 supporters from right around the world, including community organizations, private corporations, artists, village and alumni associations, the dream has become reality.
With more than 300,000 Tamils in Canada, we are home to the largest diaspora outside of the Indian subcontinent. It is a rich and storied culture.
I send special congratulations to the Canadian Tamil Congress, Tamil Chair Inc. and U of T Scarborough, which worked so hard on this. What a tremendous example of a grassroots effort and the power of what people can do when they work together.