SPEAKING UP ON RACISM
Symposium at university
The University of Windsor student group Making It Awkward: Challenging Anti-Black Racism hopes to stir a little more of that discomforting feeling Friday with its second annual speakers panel at the Social Work Faculty in downtown Windsor.
This year’s topic is the criminalizing of black youth.
“The topic of race is awkward and this is the opportunity to have those conversations that make everyone feel uncomfortable,” said Chanel Beckford, a third-year social work and disability studies student.
“We want to discuss what our youth are dealing with, what issues our community is dealing with. “Our goal isn’t to place blame. It’s to start the conversation on how do we find solutions together.” The free event runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and includes an opportunity for those in attendance to question the panel of speakers. Serving as moderator for the evening will be LaSalle town Coun. Michael Akpata.
The panellists include lawyer Linda McCurdy, Windsor Police Service diversity officer Sgt. Neil McEachrane, University of Windsor assistant law professor Jillian Rogin, probation/parole officer Tawnie Walker, Youth Advocate Windsor representative Salem Berhane and human rights and equity activist Charles Campbell. Beckford, who serves as the group’s external co-ordinator, feels this year’s topic is particularly important with the shifting discussions around racial issues. While the debate involving the black community’s relationship with legal authorities has been fuelled by scenes from the U.S. in the past three years, Beckford said the issue is one that knows no border. “Criminalizing of black youth to me means not going to the proper extent to ensure that innocence is the first priority,” Beckford said. “I think automatically when skin colour is shown, there’s a connotation of violence or illegal activity. My blackness doesn’t mean I break the law.”
Beckford said in Canada, racism comes more in the form of carding in cities like Toronto, the suspicious glances or questions or the lack of weight afforded an opinion. “It’s more covert,” Beckford said. “People will greet you with a smile and be politically correct, but that doesn’t mean you’re accepted.” Beckford points out as a spokeswoman she frequently gets pushback when forcefully expressing her opinion on an issue. However, it often seems it’s the messenger not the message that dictates how the stated point is received. “I’ve been in situations where someone, who doesn’t look like me, says the same thing and has a dominant personality like me but is received differently,” Beckford said. “It’s you’re so smart, so intelligent that you challenged that. “That’s one of the issues I deal with.”
The 26-year-old said she hasn’t been carded, manhandled or disrespected by police in Windsor similar to such high-profile incidents in the U.S and Canadian cities like Toronto.
However, she argues personal experience is not the point. “These are my people that it’s happening to and whether it’s overt or covert it still needs to be addressed because it’s not right,” Beckford said.
“Even if we as a community in Windsor can find a way to help other communities, that’s what Making It Awkward is about on Friday — talking about what we can do to find solutions.”