"So Tell Me, What is BYF All About??"

The Bangladesh Youth Federation was established in September of 1995 as an organization by and for young North Americans with Bangladeshi heritage. We act as a support group and a networking group, as well as a social organization. Our membership consists of a diverse group of people: some who grew up here, some who came later in life, men, women, students, working people, single, married... just about everything.

We created this group not only to keep our heritage active in our lives, but also to deal with the many issues of being multi-cultural in this world. We have the heritage of Bangladesh, but live, work, go to school, and create lives in North America. The combination of the two makes our members unique, and we try to provide the necessary support for people undergoing this experience.

We have an active listserver (mailing list) for those members with e-mail access, a quarterly newsletter, a semi-annual literary magazine, and a site on the world-wide web ("www.byf.com"). A mentorship program is in development, and local chapters are being formed around North America. In December of 1995, 27 people met for an extended New Years gathering in Poughkeepsie, New York. But the highlight of our activities is our annual convention.

The BYF First Annual Event was held in Washington, D.C. during the Fourth of July weekend of 1996. Approximately 300 people were in attendance. Our discussions ranged from work and career, gender issues, the history of Bangladesh, and the assimilation process. The cultural show featured acts from young Bangladeshi North Americans, and highlighted Ferdousi Rahman and other artists from Bangladesh.

This year, the convention was held during the July 4th weekend in Ottawa, Canada. Attendance was amazing - a sellout crowd was on hand to watch the excellent showcase of seminars, discussions, and cultural programs put on by BYF. We also added a fashion show and had various booths selling or displaying different Bangladeshi products and crafts.

BYF is a membership-based, non-profit organization. The benefits of being a member are plentiful, including free admittance to the convention, access to the listserver, and free subscriptions to the two publications. But the best thing about BYF, we have found, is meeting so many people from all across the US and Canada.

We hope this gives everyone an idea of what we're about, and that we get everyone's whole-hearted support on this endeavor. If anyone is interested in joining, or helping out in any way please contact us at the addresses below.

Shahid Chowdhury
Toronto Byf Chairman - Canada
yu119520@yorku.ca

Emdad Chowdhury
Toronto Webmaster & design - Canada
mmcl@myna.com

Faisal Khna
Co-webmaster & Listserver Administrator
faisal@chetona.com