Racial Justice Training
Meeting One Personal Awareness, Racism & Racial Justice Introductions: The host The facilitators How to Use the Online System
How to ask a question How to respond to a poll How to add comments to the discussion How to work in small groups Norms & Standards for our Meetings
Holy manners Confidentiality Today's Agenda: 90 minutes
Introductions to the process Why are we doing this? Why is it mandatory? Small group discussion Understanding Privilege Using the polls Walk through History Small group discussion about the history ofracism in Canada Theological Reflection Why are we doing this? (statement from General Council's website)
Elected commissioners (ministry personnel and lay people) at the39th General Council 2006 passed a motion to "develop andimplement mandatory training in racial justice for all ministrypersonnel." General Council Office staff have been charged withdeveloping and implementing these racial justice workshops. In keeping with The United Church of Canada's polity, presbyterieshave been asked to decide how they will implement the"mandatory" nature of the proposal that was passed at the 39thGeneral Council Presbytery is the court of the church withthe authority of oversight and discipline of ministry personnel, soit falls to the members of presbytery (lay and ministry personnel)to determine what constitutes fulfillment of this mandate. Small Group Discussion 10 mins
What is your name? Church? Role? Share a story about how racism has touchedyou personally. Why is talking about racism important? Why is talking about racism difficult? Choose one person to report back via thediscussion board for your group We'll hear reports on the last two questions Understanding Privilege
Respond to the poll questions with Yes or No Keep track of how many yes's you entered, andhow many no's Small Group Discussion 10 mins
What did you personally notice? How are we affected by white privilege? How are our neighbours affected? What happens when we take our privilege forgranted, or are not even aware of it? Walk Through History: Legalized Racism in Canada AND Resistance to Racism
Created by Jennifer Janzen-Ball; original idea by RusaJeremic; with material from Historical Overview of Prejudice and Racism in Canada, by Dorothy Wills, Timeline,by Wenh-In Ng, in That All May Be One: A Resource for Educating Toward Racial Justice (Toronto: UnitedChurch Publishing House, 2004), and from Legalized Racism from Canadian Race Relations Foundation, en/pub/faSh/ePubFaShLegRac.pdf, accessed 23 October2009 Additional information & graphics added by Stephen Fetter Sources noted on the appropriate slides Objective: The idea of this exercise is for folks to review together history and key moments of the history of legalized racism in Canada AND resistance to racism, and to share their knowledge. Right of white colonists in Canada
to own and sell people as slaves Photo: archives of Ontario 1600's 1833 In 1628 the first recorded slave in Canada was brought by aBritish Convoy to New France. Olivier le Jeune was thename given to the boy originally from Madagascar By 1688 while slavery was prohibited in France, it waspermitted in its colonies as a means of providing themassive labour force needed to clear land, constructbuildings and (in the Caribbean colonies) work sugarplantation. As white Loyalists fled the new American Republic, they tookwith them about 2000 black slaves: 1200 to the Maritimes(Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island),300 to Lower Canada (Quebec), and 500 to Upper Canada(Ontario). Black and White United EmpireLoyalists flee to the Maritimes; landgrants based on skin colour
A Black Wood Cutter at Shelburne, Nova Scotia, . Library and Archives Canada / 1780's In the 1780s, Birchtown Nova Scotia harboured the largestconcentration of free Black settlers anywhere in BritishNorth America. Britain had promised freedom and land to Blacks whosupported the British cause in America, and 3,550 formerslaves had taken them up on the offer. The land grantswere slow in coming, however, and proved to be small,poor and isolated. Many of the Black Loyalists starved while waiting. And, when these Black settlers offered labour to Whitesettlers, violence erupted among white competitors forwork. Some desperate Blacks sold themselves intoindentureship virtual slavery Source: Parks Canada Successive Indian Acts to civilize and Christianize Aboriginals
Our Indian legislation generallyrests on the principle that theAborigines are to be kept in acondition of tutelage and treatedas wards or children of thestate... It is clearly our wisdomand our duty, through educationand other means, to preparehim for a higher civilization byencouraging him to assume theprivileges and responsibilities offull citizenship. Annual Report of the Departmentof the Interior Boys from the Williams Lake residential school in Williams Lake, British Columbia, date unknown. Library and Archives Canada/PA Indian Acts of 1876, 1880, 1884 and later.
* In 1884, the potlatch ceremony, central to the cultures of west coast Aboriginal nations, was outlawed. In 1885, the sun dance, central to the cultures of prairie Aboriginal nations, was outlawed. Participation was a criminal offence. * In 1885, the Department of Indian Affairs instituted a pass system. No outsider could come onto a reserve to do business with an Aboriginal resident without permission from the Indian agent. In many places, the directives were interpreted to mean that no Aboriginal person could leave the reserve without permission from the Indian agent. Aboriginal children in Residential school, Photographer: Unknown, National Archives of Canada, Neg no.C26448. Head tax imposed on every Chinese person seeking to enter Canada.
Head Tax certificate Chinese Canadian National Council 1885 Head tax imposed onevery Chinese personseeking to enterCanada.Set first at$50; increased to $100in 1900 and $500 in 1903 An example of a Chinese head tax certificate, which must be presented in order to be receive compensation. Canadian authorities attempt to limitBlack enlistment and participation inthe armed forces Black people wererejected at enlistmentoffices until 1916,when Canada's onlysegregated Black unitwas formed in July1916 Photo: Pictou, N.S., 1916: The band of No. 2 Construction Battalion, CEF. National Defence Government completely barred the Chinese from entering Canada
Government completely barred the Chinesefrom entering Canada. Chinese peoplealready in Canada were not allowed tosponsor family members A political cartoon showing a Chinese man being barred entry to the "Golden Gate of Liberty". The caption reads, "We must draw the line somewhere, you know." July 1, 1923 Chinese Immigration Act, finally repealed in 1947
This piece of legislation, alsoknown as the Exclusion Act,was the last of a series oftactics used by theGovernment of Canada to limitimmigration to BritishColumbia from China. This Act barred all Chinesepeople from entering Canada,except for diplomats, universitystudents and merchants. Library & Archives Canada A United Church national staff person(for youth ministries), was refusedhotel accommodation in EssexCounty because he was Black 1930s Rev. Wilbur Howard Jews excluded from employment, elitesocial clubs, beaches, holiday resorts,Universities 1930's Jews excluded from employment inmajor institutions, such as banks andthe police force, and barred from elitesocial clubs, beaches, and holidayresorts in Montreal, Toronto, andWinnipeg. Universities set limits onJewish enrolment Abella, Irving and Troper, Harold. None Is Too Many: Canada and the Jews of Europe , 1982 . fleeing Hitlers Europe.
Canada has worst record of anyWestern country for providingsanctuary to Jews fleeing Hitlers Europe. \\ This picture dated June shows the M.S. St. Louis inHavana, Cuba. The St. Louiscarried 930 Jewish refugees fromNazi Germany to Cuba where allbut 22 were denied landing. Afterbeing refused refuge in the U.S.and Canada, the ship returned toEurope where the refugees werescattered in Great Britain,Belgium, France and theNetherlands. Canada was the only western country to completely close its doors to Jewish people fleeing Nazi persecution Over 22,000 Japanese- born, Japanese- Canadians, andforeigners werestripped of theirrights and forciblyre-located tointernment camps inBC's interior orsugar beet farms inAlberta. 1942 Japanese internment After the war, theywere not allowed toreturn to the westcoast , but had to re- locate east of theRockies or return toJapan, a countryunknown to thoseborn in Canada BC Conference voted against a motion which would have protested this government decision First Nations peoples obtain the rightto vote in federal elections withoutlosing their treaty status. First Nations people obtain the right to vote unconditionally
July 1, 1960 First Nations people obtain the right tovote unconditionally Native women retain their treaty statuseven if they marry a non-native man 1986 Native women are allowed to retaintheir treaty status even if they marrya non-native man Government Report Recommends
Recognition of an Aboriginal order ofgovernment, Creation of an Aboriginal parliament. Expansion of the Aboriginal land and resourcebase. Recognition of Mtis self-government,provision of a land base, and recognition ofMtis rights to hunt and fish on Crown land Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples report
1996 Royal Commission on AboriginalPeoples report Note that none of the recommendations highlighted in the previous slide have been implemented As Commissioners we urge our fellow Canadians to commit the required resources to the actions we describe, to close the economic gap between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people by 50 per cent and improve social conditions in the next 20 years. Perhaps it will take longer. But within the 20-year timeframe, enormous momentum for change can be generated. By 2016, Aboriginal people can be very much better off than they are today and moving steadily forward. The result will be a large gain in human and financial terms for Aboriginal people - and, in the long term, much greater savings for all Canadians. -- Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples Over 500 Chinese from FujianProvince arrive by boat on the Westcoast ; the public backlash that aroseled to their detention as illegalmigrants. Chinese from Fujian Province arrive by boat on the West coast
1999 Chinese from Fujian Province arrive byboat on the West coast Nisga Nation treaty with government of British Columbia enacted Nisga nation treaty with government of British Columbia
2000 Nisga nation treaty with government ofBritish Columbia The Toronto Star publishes a series of stories claiming that black people are still being stopped by police and accused of certain crimes far more frequently than white people. 2002 Racial Profiling A series of articles published in 2002 in the TorontoStar caused a sensation. The articles were based onstats collected by the police. Analysis of those figures by Star reporters suggestedthat blacks in Toronto were over-represented in certainoffence categories like drug possession and in whatwere called "out-of-sight" traffic violations, such asdriving without a licence. The analysis also suggestedthat black suspects were more likely to be held incustody for a bail hearing, while white suspects; facingsimilar charges were more likely to be released atthe scene Prime Minister of Canada apologizes to
First Nations peoples for Indian Residential Schools June 2008 Prime Minister of Canada apologizes toFirst Nations peoples for Indian Residential Schools Members of Ardoch Algonquin and K-IFirst Nations in Ontario charged andfined (over $25,000 for one person)for refusing toallow developers anduranium mining companies access toland under treaty negotiation 2008 Ardoch & K-I First Nationsin Ontario protest;members charged,fined, and some areimprisoned). Chargesdismissed in late Mayagainst K-I First Nationsmembers; Bob Lovelaceis freed A few contemporary issues and examples where racism and racial justice are live issues in Canadian life today. Employment Equity Act Annual Report 2008
In the federally regulated private sector, therepresentation of members of visible minoritiesexceeded labour market availability. However,workforce representation gaps existed for the otherthree designated groups, with particular challengesfor persons with disabilities and Aboriginal peoples. In the federal public sector, the representation ofAboriginal peoples exceeded labour marketavailability. However, the greatest challengecontinued to be the gap in the representation ofmembers of visible minorities. source: Water & Wastewater for First Nations
The number of high-risk drinking watersystems has increased from 48 to 49 in the pastyear, but this number is significantly belowthe193 identified in 2006 in March 2010, there were 61 high-riskwastewater treatment systems in First Nationcommunities. Source: Indian & Northern Affairs, Canada First Nations Water & Wastewater Action Plan ProgessReport, April 2009 March 2010 Aboriginal Adults: rates of incarceration 2005 - 2006
4% of the total Canadian adult population -(2006 Census) 24% of admissions to provincial/territorialsentenced custody 18% of admissions to federal prisons 19% of admissions to remand 21% of male prisoner population 30% of female prisoner population source: drawn from Juristat, Statistics Canada Theological Reflection
In small groups Where is God in this history? Is there a story from the Bible that comes to mindfor you as you go through this exercise Please choose one person from each group toreport back to the plenary Thank you for joining us today.
Please join us tomorrowat the same time for Part Two