Vyas Saran returns to Downtown Eastside to continue his pursuit of justice for marginalized British Columbians

One of B.C.'s bright, young antiracist activists will be spending this summer with the Pivot Legal Society.

Vyas Saran, currently a law student at the University of Victoria, is working as a legal intern at the Downtown Eastside–based nonprofit group. 

"He is excited to join Pivot and learn how directly impacted communities can be supported to unleash their collective power and achieve systemic change," the Pivot Legal Society website states. "He owes his ongoing understanding of community and care to his time in Chinatown, working with Indigenous-led direct action movements, and to the groundwork laid by anti-racist, labour, and feminist activists. Vyas hopes to contribute to Pivot his background in activism, communications, policy research, and political strategy."

Saran is a descendant of Girmitiya, who were indentured Indian labourers sent to Fiji, Mauritius, South Africa, and British-ruled Caribbean islands in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

He's written for several publications, worked at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, and been the race and democracy lead at the Hua Foundation.

"Pivot inspired me to enter law school in the first place," Saran tweeted, "and is one of VERY few places that has shown there is room for people like me in this trade. It's a genuine blessing every day to get to work with people on the things that make me tick."

https://twitter.com/vyassaran/status/1270040437059809291