Youth Development
BIPOC community groups collaborate, to address existing forms of oppression found in Toronto schools
BY PAUL JUNOR
There is a focus on anti-black racism that has motivated many students who have suffered silently for years, to come forward to seek: remedy, restitution and healing from the pain they endured.
The newly formed Students Standing for Justice is a collective of community members that have decided to speak up, and to defend themselves and others, against the violence experienced within the TDSB.
The collective is committed to addressing existing forms of oppression committed by the TDSB, its administrators, and faculty, against marginalized students and faculty members. They plan to issue letter campaigns in phases. The first phase is directed at the specific allegations against a principal at MBCI and subsequent phases will focus on anti-Indignity, racism, sexism, misogyny, Islamophobia and homophobia.
The group has issued the following calls to actions:
- Accountability
- Third-party investigation conducted by TDSB community members
- Resignation
- Reallocating funds into the Equity Division of the TDSB
- Compiling a list of submissions so if there is a meeting, you can list the experiences
The group has written letter to officials within the TDSB as well to the trustee Chris Moise. The letter states, “We are: black, white and non-black former students and community members of MPCI. We are writing this open letter to bring attention to a culture of white supremacy, and anti-black supported and facilitated by former Principal Cynthia Abernethy, who is now the principal of Harbord Collegiate Institute.”
The letter goes on to list some of the alleged racist incidents that she has been involved in that the group wants investigated. Ms. Abernethy responded that, “I am willing to cooperate with any formal process and as such, it would not be appropriate to speak specifically to the allegations at this time.”
Toronto Youth Council (TYC) represents youth between the ages of 13-24 who identify as: black, brown or Indigenous. They have launched a campaign to hear stories of racism that they face in schools. Students can fill out a form at @stephen mensah.
TYC started a petition in late February to bring attention to the need for more response to systematic anti-black racism affecting BIPOC communities within Ontario’s education system. There have over 40,000 signatures so far. They want the following to be done:
- For the Ontario Ministry of Education to reform the K-12 curriculum to include the TRC recommendations on education and the history and contributions of black Canadians.
- For all Ontario school boards to collect disaggregated race-based data for 2021.
- To end the practice of streaming, the practice of grouping students by ability that leads to black students being placed in non-academic courses by 2023.
- And to immediately remove police or “resource officers” from daily posts in Ontario schools.
The empowerment of former students and current students to speak out against injustices and racist incidences within the public-school systems is a good sign. They have endured emotional, mental and psychological trauma and pain as their concerns, issues and struggles were pushed aside. In this climate of global awareness, their pain is finally being acknowledged, validated and confirmed.
This is only the first step in their healing.