Community responses to systemic racism in Ontario We are all a part of one Community responses to systemic racism in Ontario

Systemic Racism Created and maintained within socio-cultural sectors (education, justice, employment, etc.) Perpetuated through institutions (schools, police forces, workplaces) and public spaces Intentional and unintentional with objective conditions for racialized peoples Objective conditions means that there are measurable differences between racialized and non-racialized peoples. For example, researchers have measured Grade 12 graduation rates for racialized and non-racialized students and they found that the graduation rate was disproportionately lower for racialized students (not as many graduate). The same is true for leaving school before finishing. These are the objective conditions of systemic racism.

Community responses How are immigrant-serving agencies observing or experiencing systemic racism? What problems have been identified? What anti-racism initiatives and responses are you taking across the province? Have people get into groups as an ice-breaker? Answer three questions Put onto flip chart and mention that these issues will be taken up more fully in the survey we will distribute at the end of the session

Thunder Bay Problem Identification A Community Of Acceptance: Respect for Thunder Bay’s Diversity (2002) http://www.thunderbay.org/article/a-community-of-acceptance-respect-for-thunder-bays-diversity-175.asp Police, education, retail establishments This research report has guided Diversity Thunder Bay’s work since 2002 Roberts “A plan developed through the collaboration of community members is also more likely to be sustainable over the long term than a government report written and developed by experts” (p. 21)

Diversity in Policing Project To respond to needs identified within police/community racial relationships 4 year project (January 2004—March 2008) funded by Heritage Canada Project documented through website Coalition work between community leaders of organizations serving Aboriginal and other racialized peoples and the Thunder Bay Police Services (TBPS)

Diversity in Policing Experiences of working with Thunder Bay Police Services’ project of Bias-free policing Evaluation Training Next Steps (for Project Management Team) Language differences—community uses anti-racism versus TBPS uses bias-free Power differences—consensus model breakdown when TBPS’ reverted to a hierarchical model (like TBPS) when they didn’t like community leaders’ criticism that the project had not reached members Expectation differences—evaluation found that half of the consultants’ recommendations had been implemented—TBPS not willing to bring in dedicated staff to continue the work remaining

Anti-racism framework Goal: full civic engagement of racialized groups through 4 strategies: Community/organizational capacity building Full civic participation and engagement Public understanding and education Institutional change Frank & Smith (1999) The Community Development Handbook Merrill Cooper, Guyn Cooper Research Associates (2006) Pathways to change: Facilitating the full participation of diversity groups in Canadian society Roberts (2004) Alliances, Coalitions, and Partnerships: Building Collaborative Organizations Civic engagement needs to be a two-way street—it can’t be laid on to organizations or citizens

Anti-Racism Framework 5 premises of the capacity building framework: Community-based partnerships Inclusive—guided by groups traditionally excluded Measurable results Praxis-based (theory and action) Holistic (systemic nature means city-wide) Capacity building as the means by which we are aiming to bring about stronger communities to overcome systemic racism, and foster active civic engagement, and inclusivity for all peoples.

Anti-Racism Framework The role of organizations in social change in 4 areas: In neighbourhoods In cities In institutions In sectors (housing, employment, education, etc.) Civic engagement is holistic and requires removing barriers to all forms of participation

Anti-Racism Framework 6 steps to change: Problem identification (mapping) Motivation to act (leadership/collaboration) Resources (members & funding) Planning Doing Evaluating and documenting for sharing PI—what problems exist in our society that can’t be solved by individuals or groups acting alone? M—need a champion to take on the project and requires a collaboration (not here to fix the organization) R—need to have inclusive membership (determined at outset but fluid) need funders (Canada’s Action Plan Against Racism) P—environmental scan, research study, to determine the resources that exist and the gaps D—collaborative work of the project, determined by members’ plan E—critical to have a results-based framework (formative and summative) (process and outcome measurement) Sustainability is a key issue for projects

We are all a part of one Community-based, anti-racism framework Partners are funders as well as organizations Sites are communities across Ontario If interested, please fill out a survey The purpose of this project is to create and find partners for a community-based anti-racism framework for social change. Institutional and cultural racism preclude the full participation (civic engagement) of racialized individuals and groups within communities. This project will work with communities to build and/or enhance the capacity to develop projects identified by those traditionally excluded. If you are interested in contributing to this anti-racism framework as a community site, please see Cathy or Leisa any time throughout the conference to fill out a survey