family | The Walrus

An illustration of a woman, sitting at a window inside an apartment. In front of her is a laptop with an open window that says "stay home." Outside the window is a park and a block of buildings, in which people socialize, picnic, play basketball, and talk, not bothering to maintain any physical distancing measures.

Family on the Front Lines of a Pandemic

April 7, 2020April 8, 2020 - by Judy Ziyi Gu

Until my uncle was sent to care for patients in Wuhan, the outbreak didn’t feel real to me. If only we had all paid attention sooner

A photo of a Black woman with her hair in a bun, looking to the right of the frame. The image is slightly blurred.

First Person / Society

The Pressure to Describe My “Background”

March 24, 2020March 24, 2020 - by Eternity Martis

As a Black child in a brown family, I had to learn how to define my identity in a new way

Illustration of an elderly woman sitting in a chair with her back to the viewer. She is surrounded by animals––an owl, a leopard, a turtle, a goose, and a dog, which she pets while it sits at her feet.

April 2020 / First Person

What I’ve Learned from What My Mother Has Forgotten

March 19, 2020March 27, 2020 - by Damian Rogers

My mother’s dementia made me think about my own future in a new way

A brown kitchen chair seated at a round table, covered in a yellow checked tablecloth. On the table are two glasses of wine, a slice of cake, and several face-down playing cards with the ace of spades facing up.

First Person / January/February 2020

How Euchre Healed My Family

December 12, 2019March 27, 2020 - by Jessica Myshrall

We have played through illness, arguments, divorces, and death

Several candy bars, partially unwrapped and bitten, against a purple background.

Society

Why We Get Nostalgic About Junk Food

December 2, 2019December 10, 2019 - by Emily Baron Cadloff

Modern diets are obsessed with nutrition. But there’s a reason we crave our childhood favourites

A portrait of two men and four children smiling and sitting on a couch

Society

Growing Up Mulroney

November 7, 2019November 8, 2019 - by Tessa Lloyd

Their father was prime minister for nearly a decade. What was it like to be his sons?

Three women stare across a sea at a group of businesspeople in front of a cityscape on the opposite shoreline

November 2019 / Society

When Canada’s Immigration Policies Pull Families Apart

November 5, 2019March 27, 2020 - by Kate Yoon

After years of training in Canada, my dad still had to go back to South Korea to get the job he deserved

Bright silhouettes overlaid on top of each other.

Memoir

Talking to My Family About Race

February 13, 2019November 14, 2019 - by Eternity Martis

For a long time, I was the only Black biracial person in my family. My relatives didn’t always accept that we shared different experiences

Oil painting of an older male against a sea background.

December 2018 / First Person

The Importance of a Family Cottage

February 11, 2019March 31, 2020 - by Ian Brown

When my son was born with a rare genetic syndrome, our secluded summer home became the one place he could be himself

Society

Why I Won’t Tell My Grandmother I’m Gay

January 28, 2019November 14, 2019 - by Erica Lenti

Sometimes staying in the closet is just as liberating as stepping out of it