Chatham-Kent Civic Centre. January 18, 2017. (Photo by Natalia Vega) Chatham-Kent Civic Centre. January 18, 2017. (Photo by Natalia Vega)
Chatham

CK council to receive diversity and inclusion training

Chatham-Kent council members will be getting some further education when it comes to diversity and systemic racism.

On Monday night, Councillor Brock McGregor put forward a successful motion directing staff to develop ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion training.

McGregor said Chatham-Kent already has a history of working to build an open and inclusive community and notes that those goals are part of the municipality's strategic plan.

In 2016, Chatham-Kent was recognized as Canada's first "Welcoming Community" by the federal government for its efforts in helping government-assisted Syrian refugees resettle and integrate into Southwestern Ontario.

McGregor said he recently heard from residents who asked how Chatham-Kent is keeping that momentum going and how the municipality was going to work to address systemic racism.

"It's really about meeting that commitment," he said. "So by making those types of proclamations and making those strategic directions, there's some accountability on our part to take those next steps. "

McGregor said the outcomes of systemic racism can still be seen in institutions and policies that impact residents on a day-to-day basis in the municipality.

When people go about the daily lives, McGregor said he recognizes that addressing systemic racism may not be top of mind or it may not be apparent what type of policies are impacted by historical issues surrounding racism.

However, he's hoping the training will give council members a better upstanding of what challenges people are still facing as a result of systemic racism and is confident it can have a positive impact on decision-making in the future.

"Even if we think of something as simple as zoning. There are examples across Canada, across Ontario and in our own communities where historically zoning has been a tool that's been used or had aspects or racism involved and the outcomes of that policy is still visible today," he explained. "So, understanding how those things were initially developed and understanding the impacts that we've seen I think is really important to make sure we're thinking about that as we're changing policy or going through some of those processes. "

Ted Rutland, Associate Professor of Geography, Planning and Environment at Concordia University in Montreal has devoted much of his time to analyzing the link between anti-black racism and urban planning and how throughout history, projects have consistently benefited the white population.

According to Rutland, racism was a central part of the founding of professional planning in Canada. Professional urban planning started to develop in the 1910s, which coincided with the height of scientific racism in North America.

The first municipal zoning ordinance in North America was passed in the city of Los Angeles in 1908 to prevent factories from being built beside houses.

Specific examples of urban planning projects that have relied on racist conceptions, according to Rutland, include moving polluting and harmful industries from white to Black neighbourhoods.  Rutland also cited that white neighbourhoods were often provided with paved streets, sidewalks and parks, while those amenities were denied to Black neighbourhoods.

According to Rutland, professional planning was structured like this at its conception and its problematic foundations have never seriously been dealt with or removed.

"For many of us, maybe it's not a personal experience that we have and when it's not your personal experience, often it does take some real education for the opportunity to be exposed to those ideas and those thoughts," McGregor said.

According to McGregor, the municipality's human resource department is working on a similar initiative for municipal staff.

As part of McGregor's motion, a pilot project will kick off this year for councillors, which will become part of ongoing and updated training opportunities as well as orientation for new council members.

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