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The clincher came in a National Post analysis claiming her as “the ideal of the immigrant success story, one repeated the world over: The parents leave in search of a better life, and they find it in a new country. In this case, they have a child, and she has opportunities to grow and nurture her talent in a way she otherwise might not have had.”

While a lot of this may be true in essence, as a statement it is rather condescending, particularly from the receiver’s perspective. By origin, Bianca originally hails from Romania but was born in Canada where her parents moved well before her birth. She moved back to Romania as a child for a few years with them, but her life has been firmly ensconced in Canada, as she herself notes.

In a time when immigration has captured the world’s attention and an election looms in Canada, framing this remarkable win as one of immigrant origins makes sense for those who choose to use the topic as a campaign header.

But as an immigrant myself, who moved to Canada at a much later stage in life, I don’t see Bianca’s story as one of immigration. It is simply one of a young woman who had a skill and passion her parents saw, honed it, and eventually, owned it.

Photo by MOE DOIRON / REUTERS

Using immigration as a narrative when it suits us, will not help the cause of immigration. In fact, it plays dangerously into stereotypes that pit us against non-immigrants. Stereotypes made famous by the Asian tiger moms whose drive for success feeds into their children’s educational attainments anywhere in the world. Stereotypes that have framed Syrian refugees who have found their calling in Canada’s restaurants, as born-again chefs and entrepreneurs, but thanks to Canada. Stereotypes that perpetuate the myth that immigrants are more determined because it’s somehow in our blood.