Powell Street Festival: Arts, Identity, and Community

Liza J. Lee | WBN News Vancouver | June 23, 2025

The Powell Street Festival began in 1977 as a celebration of Japanese Canadian heritage. It has become one of Canada’s longest-running community arts festivals, bringing together culture, collaboration, and resilience in the heart of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside—on the unceded lands of the Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, and Musqueam Nations.

📌 At A Glance

23,000+ attendees gather annually for 2 days of immersive arts, cuisine, and culture on August 2 & 3, 2025
Located in Vancouver’s historic Japanese Canadian neighborhood, Paueru Gai
Signature matsuri-inspired atmosphere with sumo, dance, music, and more
Year-round programming connects artists across disciplines and continents
Values rooted in accessibility, heritage, inclusion, and community resilience

🔍 What Is It?

The Powell Street Festival is a free, multi-disciplinary cultural event presented by the Powell Street Festival Society (PSFS), a nonprofit arts organization and registered charity. Held annually, the event honors Japanese Canadian traditions while fostering cultural exchange in the Downtown Eastside—once known as Paueru Gai.

💡 Why It Benefits Users or Small Biz

More than a festival, it acts as a platform for Japanese Canadian artists—from amateurs to professionals—to gain exposure. The ecosystem nurtured by PSFS strengthens creative economies, fosters inclusivity, and celebrates cultural heritage while attracting foot traffic to local small businesses.

Visitors can expect food vendors, a craft marketplace, and two outdoor stages, with over three dozen events showcasing traditional and contemporary music, dance, literature, film and performances by local and international talent and more in the festival events calendar.

🛡️ Trust, Safety, and Regulation

The Society builds trust through transparent nonprofit operations and ongoing collaboration with local nations, community stakeholders, and artists. By acknowledging the broader histories of displacement and colonization, it models ethical cultural engagement.

PSFS has an ongoing program called the 360 Riot Walk, an interactive walking tour of the 1907 Anti-Asian Riots in Vancouver. It utilizes 360 video technology to trace the history and route of the mob that attacked the Chinese Canadian and Japanese Canadian communities following the demonstration and parade organized by the Asiatic Exclusion League in Vancouver.

Participants are brought into the social and political environment of the time where racialized communities were targeted through legislation, as well as physical acts of exclusion and violence. The soundtrack is available in four languages of the local residents of the period: English, Cantonese, Japanese and Punjabi.

🌍 Broader Impact

Powell Street Festival redefines how arts and culture events can catalyze healing, inter-community dialogue, and resilience. Its success offers a model for other heritage-based festivals to become year-round drivers of equity, belonging, and artistic excellence.

🧩 Signature

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Tags: #WBN News Vancouver #Liza J Lee #Powell Street Festival #Paueru Gai #Japanese Canadian Art #Cultural Resilience #Vancouver Festivals