New community roundtable to tackle racism in B.C. schools
Anew &ommunity 5oundtable on Anti 5acism in education has been created to support the de velopment of an anti racism action plan and to strengthen the . 12 curriculum, ensuring the culture, beliefs and ancestry of all students and staff are accepted, cel ebrated and understood.
There is no place for racism, discrimi nation or intolerance in British &olumbia in our schools or anywhere else,” said 3remier -ohn Horgan. :e are bringing important voices to the table to help us bolster culture based learning in the edu cation system and build a better and more inclusive future for B.&.”
5ob Fleming, 0inister of Education, has brought together community lead ers from a wide range of groups to better understand the impact of racism on B.&. students and provide input into strength ening and developing new policies and programs that promote anti racism. The roundtable held its first meeting on Fri day, -uly 2 , 2020, and will continue to meet as the action plan is developed. 1ow is the time to listen, learn, engage and act,” Fleming said. :e are commit ted to working with community and edu cation partners to build a meaningful and lasting anti racism action plan to ensure schools are safe and welcoming places where diversity is celebrated.”
This is the first in a series of conversa tions to guide the ministry and B.&. edu cation partners in understanding barriers faced by Indigenous students and stu dents of colour. Fleming has asked the First 1ations /eadership &ouncil, the First 1ations Education Steering &om mittee and 0ptis 1ation B& to help set up a distinct I ndigenous table and co develop its ap proach. A new student advisory group will also be formed in the fall to hear di rectly from students on their e periences. Through this roundtable, we are hopeful for a more inclusive tomorrow by sup porting students, families and educators today,” said Anne .ang, 0inister of &iti ens’ Services and responsible for 0ul ticulturalism. By listening and learning from the e periences of others we can all work together to build an environment that is understanding and respectful of our differences.”
The &ommunity 5oundtable on Anti 5acism in education builds on a series of community dialogues led by 5avi .ahlon, former parliamentary secretary for sport and multiculturalism, last sum mer. The feedback from these meetings informed the development of 5esilience B&, a provincewide anti racism network announced in 1ovember 201 . The net work connects communities with the information, supports and training they need to respond to and prevent future in cidents of racism and hate at a local and regional level. 5esilience B& is being es tablished in 0 communities.
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