Anti-Black Racism Town Hall

Share your experience

• Thoughts from a first-time viewer

  by FamilyMan, over 5 years ago

  This post is a bit long, but please read and make immediate changes to durham.ca to more easily access information about these extremely important conversations.

  This was my first time witnessing a Town Hall meeting such as this. Listening and watching it (after finding the new link when the original stream stopped), was both inspiring and frustrating for me. I have lived in Durham my entire life. I grew up here as a visible minority and I've raised my three kids here for almost 15 years, and I wish for them to grow up in a community where they have... Continue reading

  This post is a bit long, but please read and make immediate changes to durham.ca to more easily access information about these extremely important conversations.

  This was my first time witnessing a Town Hall meeting such as this. Listening and watching it (after finding the new link when the original stream stopped), was both inspiring and frustrating for me. I have lived in Durham my entire life. I grew up here as a visible minority and I've raised my three kids here for almost 15 years, and I wish for them to grow up in a community where they have every opportunity to succeed.

  I was inspired when I heard this conversation was happening. As I watched the meeting commence, I couldn't help but initially be disappointed by what I saw overall. This is a time where more people than ever (especially young people) are starting to take a deeper interest into how our communities are governed. I couldn't help but think what other first time viewers were thinking when they saw a big dark room with 3 white people on one side and 3 black people on the other side. Perception is a big deal, and regardless of the actual arrangement, this already looked like a debate, with two sides. Not an open and earnest conversation with both sides ready to listen and be vulnerable (which is what you need in order to talk about something as big as racism).

  If this meeting was to collaborate and raise awareness and find potential solutions to the many deep rooted problems we face, it was definitely missing a lot of dialogue between the actual people in the room.

  I heard great contributions from Celina speaking on education being such a deep rooted problem, but made solving it seem impossible. A start could be as simple as making world culture a required subject in intermediate grades in public schools and concurrently with the religion curriculum in Catholic Schools. Teaching kids to be curious about other cultures and learning how to understand and respect them. You don't have to tear down the whole system to start making positive change. In fact, education would be most effective to kids if it was refreshed often enough to change with the times.

  I was inspired hearing another first time attendee call in a question about education reform, and asking if there was a place to find a transcript, recording or even a (unbiased) written recap. I was disappointed when nobody had an actual answer. Only to say this was being "recorded" and that "someone" would eventually write a recap. Is this normal? Having a recording, transcript and unbiased recap that is easily accessible to the public online seems like a really obvious and mandatory thing if the intent is to actually inform and involve the community. Yet days later I see nothing on the main page of Durham.ca that says anything about this past event and its content.

  It was a relief to see questions about the police force met with sympathy and in some cases remorse. It's great to see those in leadership positions share the concerns of the people in this regard. There was a refreshing exchange when the two sides shared ideas around Youth Police Groups. What was missing were resources for those watching to get more information on the projects and initiatives that were identified as solutions to things like Police Brutality, Police Training and Dealing with mental health. Access to the public brings transparency. Transparency brings accountability. And I don't trust anyone who isn't willing to hold themselves accountable.

  Many of the answers to community concerns about racism were simply references to either:

  1. Funding. But to what end? What specific goals are set out with this funding? What results are we using to measure success and why? How will we keep the community updated to our progress and impact?

  2. Committees. But to what end? What are the specific goals of these committees? Who elects the committees? Who are their members, and how can the community contact them and get more involved?

  3. It's someone else's job. "It's the SIU who handles that", "the Federal/Provincial Government does that", etc. If it's being brought up as an issue, then SOMEONE isn't doing a good enough job and the issue needs to be brought to the attention of people who CAN do something. Also, standing up against injustice including both blatant and systemic is everybody's job.

  Now, I understand that the meeting was only scheduled to be 90 minutes, and that there were technical issues on the live stream so the representatives couldn't go into deep details. But this is no excuse for the significant lack of access of information to the people of this community.

  So although I may be new to politics, I know when I hear an answer that is not an answer. I know when I hear someone pass the buck instead of leading out the responsibility. When Celina mentioned at the start that this is our opportunity to "keep the receipts", I feel like I ended up with a really confusing bill.

  I believe that everyone is here to do good, and I sincerely hope that this conversation doesn't end here. Things need to change, and change is uncomfortable for most. In Oshawa, a black woman's tires were slashed and the car vandalized with "Black Lives Don't Matter FU". We are going to need all the leadership we can get to make Durham a place where this doesn't happen and it starts with leadership. Identifying the injustices in our communities of any kind, and correcting it, will always be the right thing to do.

  Thanks very much for reading, and let's all continue to strive to do better.

• Disappointed

  by MD, over 5 years ago

  I was disappointed to hear the Regions lackluster response to what Ms Caesar-Chavannes reminded everyone, is a global issue. In case you hadn't heard, injustice in it's many forms, anti black and otherwise, is no longer going to be tolerated and swept under the rug.

  Durham has an historic and persistent reputation for discrimination and exclusion of non white people, in general. Take this opportunity to show all the people of Durham, including your growing racialized, tax paying population, who work and raise their families here, that everyone can expect to be treated with respect.

  Frankly, no organizations get brownie... Continue reading

  I was disappointed to hear the Regions lackluster response to what Ms Caesar-Chavannes reminded everyone, is a global issue. In case you hadn't heard, injustice in it's many forms, anti black and otherwise, is no longer going to be tolerated and swept under the rug.

  Durham has an historic and persistent reputation for discrimination and exclusion of non white people, in general. Take this opportunity to show all the people of Durham, including your growing racialized, tax paying population, who work and raise their families here, that everyone can expect to be treated with respect.

  Frankly, no organizations get brownie points anymore for simply doing the right thing. It should always have been a basic expectation for the Region, its leaders, and staff.

  I have made Ajax my home for almost 30 years, I'd like to see my Region land on the right side of history.

• Driving While Black in Durham

  by Jennifer, over 5 years ago

  Greetings,

  thank you to all members on the panel for hosting this very important and well needed discussion and for giving community members an opportunity to engage and share their thoughts and experiences.

  My submission is in the form of a question in relation to an experience(s) our 21 year old son had with a DR Police Officer during an alleged traffic violation earlier this year, and culminates with thoughts and a suggestion.

  Our son was driving a company vehicle while working at his part-time job when he was stopped by the officer, who advised him that he was speeding... Continue reading

  Greetings,

  thank you to all members on the panel for hosting this very important and well needed discussion and for giving community members an opportunity to engage and share their thoughts and experiences.

  My submission is in the form of a question in relation to an experience(s) our 21 year old son had with a DR Police Officer during an alleged traffic violation earlier this year, and culminates with thoughts and a suggestion.

  Our son was driving a company vehicle while working at his part-time job when he was stopped by the officer, who advised him that he was speeding. The exact speed was not given. The officer took our son's information and proceeded to ask him questions - the first question he asked was "Have you ever been in trouble with the Law?" The Officer did not give our son a speeding ticket, but did end up calling his workplace to advise of the alleged offense. Thankfully, because of our son's good reputation and work ethic his superiors did not even address this with him until a much later date, when the phone call was mentioned in passing, during a conversation.

  Just to put this in context - our son is a respectable, polite and law abiding young man who just graduated from University with an Honors BA in Finance. He is a reputable member of our community and is regarded as a leader and example for other young men. Our son has never been in trouble with the law.

  I would like to know if this line of questioning is standard for people driving company vehicles, or is it just reserved for young black men? Interestingly enough, the officer was not black, but he was also a racialized minority.

  We have done our best to raise our children with traditional morals and values. Among those, respecting their elders and authority are highly ranked.

  We have also done our best to instill within them confidence and self worth. However, when these types of encounters take place, especially at the hands of those they've been taught to respect, this diminishes the work that we've done as parents. With repeated occurrences, not only does this chip away at one's self esteem, it breeds mistrust. My son and his friends are also frequetly followed by police officers when driving in Durham. Good young men - none of them have been in trouble with law enforcement. They are not usually stopped, but just followed. Not sure if intimidation is the goal here but if this is unnerving for the average adult, I think most people would agree that for a young black male in this racially charged climate, this practice can be quite worrisome.

  In my opinion, it would be great to see the implementation of plans/services/training/education in Durham that would facilitate more positive interaction and engagement between Police Officers and the black community (especially young men). I believe this would be helpful in rebuilding the rapidly eroding trust of the black community and also provide an opportunity for Officers to realize that not every black male is a perceived threat and need not be treated like a criminal.

  Thank you for your time.

• BlackNorth Initiative

  by Enraham, over 5 years ago

  Wes Hall, Executive and Founder for Kingsdale Initiative has a call to action for CEO's in the private sector, to pledge that they will fill their Boards and Executive positions with 3.5% from the black community. I didn't have a chance to share my story or my position during the call therefore I wanted to ensure I include it here. Will the Durham Region join this pledge which will go a long way in the Black Community?

  Lastly, Harvard Business Review has a free implicit bias test that can be accessed at https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html that will help you identify if you... Continue reading

  Wes Hall, Executive and Founder for Kingsdale Initiative has a call to action for CEO's in the private sector, to pledge that they will fill their Boards and Executive positions with 3.5% from the black community. I didn't have a chance to share my story or my position during the call therefore I wanted to ensure I include it here. Will the Durham Region join this pledge which will go a long way in the Black Community?

  Lastly, Harvard Business Review has a free implicit bias test that can be accessed at https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html that will help you identify if you have any bias' towards older people, people of colour, race, sexual orientation, and more. They have been collecting data for several years to help us identify the bias' we have without knowing...which we consider unconscious bias. I believe this would be an awesome tool that Durham Region can consider sharing with all of their employee's especially the police so that people can better understand and see their blind spots for an issue that has been prevalent for over 400 years. This identifies people's bias' towards black people, indigenous people, LGBTQ community and elders just to name a few. My question: Is this something that Durham Region can consider to include in their diversity and inclusion training for all employees and most importantly the police force?

  Thank you!

• Clear Lack of Black Personnel of Influence on the Side of the Durham Region

  by Leroy, over 5 years ago

  Based on what I have noticed in the townhall, there is a clear lack of Black or other racialized senior personnel who truly understood the experiences of the Black or other racialized groups in order to respond to the questions with authority and authentincity.

  
  

  Based on what I have noticed in the townhall, there is a clear lack of Black or other racialized senior personnel who truly understood the experiences of the Black or other racialized groups in order to respond to the questions with authority and authentincity.

  
  

• Addressing education needs for black children

  by SarahA, over 5 years ago

  Black children need to be at the top of their classes in school. If they have the support from the school and community (meaning funding), they can be given more attention and support in order to be extremely successful in school and have greater opportunities post-high school to do well in society and continue these changes for ridding our society of anti-black racism.The black community do not receive the respect and humanity needed to address the (educational) gap between black and non-black children. Teachers, too, might be racist and give less time and attention to their black students. School teachers... Continue reading

  Black children need to be at the top of their classes in school. If they have the support from the school and community (meaning funding), they can be given more attention and support in order to be extremely successful in school and have greater opportunities post-high school to do well in society and continue these changes for ridding our society of anti-black racism.The black community do not receive the respect and humanity needed to address the (educational) gap between black and non-black children. Teachers, too, might be racist and give less time and attention to their black students. School teachers and administrators can be trained not to be racist.Is there funding to make sure that black children excel from kindergarten on? Scholarships are given to students who are doing well - the students who realize too late how fundamental schooling is for their future will never get a chance to get a scholarship or go to university. This creates a cycle of low education and low income. Start from the youngest age!

• Questions

  by Adeline Cohen, over 5 years ago

  Hi there, I was waiting to receive a call to join the voice call. I didn't get it, maybe because of technical difficulties, so I've typed some of my questions here.

  On police responding to mental health calls:

  Police don’t have the years of training that mental health experts have; receiving training is not the same as receiving a degree. This is an issue, not just because of the risk that there will be violence against a person in crisis, but also because even in a situation where police do everything right, they’re still not able to give the same... Continue reading

  Hi there, I was waiting to receive a call to join the voice call. I didn't get it, maybe because of technical difficulties, so I've typed some of my questions here.

  On police responding to mental health calls:

  Police don’t have the years of training that mental health experts have; receiving training is not the same as receiving a degree. This is an issue, not just because of the risk that there will be violence against a person in crisis, but also because even in a situation where police do everything right, they’re still not able to give the same quality of service and care that a mental health expert would be able to give. An intervention from an expert has the best chance of turning someone’s life around, and if we send police officers instead of experts, we risk depriving vulnerable people of that intervention. We send officers with limited training to respond to mental health calls, instead of having mental health experts with years of education and experience. So my question is this: will the region retask mental health calls to experts who are better-trained to help people in crisis?

  That being said, I would like to point out that the same racism that exists within the police force also exists within mental health experts, and that we must also examine institutions outside of the police.

  
  

  
  

  On support for youth in Oshawa:

  In my 4 years of going to high school in Oshawa, and my 12 years of attending public school in Durham, I have not once seen the police come into my school to educate me and my classmates on how to avoid being trafficked. In the past few weeks, I’ve asked some of my friends, and nobody else can remember being taught how to defend themselves from human trafficking, or how to recognize the signs of someone being groomed for trafficking. Everything we young people know about preventing ourselves from being trafficked, we learnt it ourselves. We taught each other, or we saw it on the internet and social media, but not in our schools. Will the region commit to taking the initiative and working to the DDSB to make sure that young people are educated on how to protect themselves from human trafficking?

  
  

  On body cameras:

  I’ve heard that DRPS has a body camera study (which has been put on hold because of COVID). I would like to raise a point of caution, that the region should be careful not to follow the example that Toronto set. Toronto did not consider implementing penalties for officers who turned off their body cameras. This is counterintuitive to the purpose of body cameras, which is to promote justice and present the truth, to be an impartial witness. But there can’t be impartiality if the police have the ability to decide what gets recorded. Another major problem is that Toronto was fully prepared to let body cameras be the end of the discussion about police reform when multiple studies from other cities have shown that the influence of body cameras on police behaviour is negligible. In one Australian study, in 2016, the implementation of body cameras correlated with an increase in use of force incidents. They support transparency and accountability - retroactive justice instead of preventing violence. Maybe Durham will be different. Even if they work in Durham, body cameras are an attempt at an easy fix that won’t address the systemic problems within North American police departments. So I ask that the region air on the side of caution when it comes to their body cameras, and that if they do choose to implement body cameras, they be careful to have penalties for officers who turn off their body cameras without good cause.

  
  

  On Use of Force policies:

  I'd like to suggest that the region take a look at 8cantwait.org . It’s a collection of 8 changes that police can make to their use of force policy, that have been found to result in 72% fewer police killings in cities that implemented all 8 policies. This organization is American-based, but the policies are easily applicable to non-American police forces.

• Access to Durham Townhall Meeting

  by Leroy, over 5 years ago

  This is a great opportunity for our voices to be heard but access to the townhall is very poor. Instructions are very poor for both telephone and online.

  This is a great opportunity for our voices to be heard but access to the townhall is very poor. Instructions are very poor for both telephone and online.

• Restaurant owner Expereince Racism in Pickering

  by CherylAnn, over 5 years ago

  The restaurant of r. Delicious Cakes establishment was attacked by several individuals spewing racial and hateful language due to music being played. His establish was also thrown ripe bananas etc. How and what will the region of Durham put in place for black business owners to not experience this type of treatment. With the increase in black population, this will also lead to more looking to open their business, racial attacks will discourage from opening businesses in Durham.

  The restaurant of r. Delicious Cakes establishment was attacked by several individuals spewing racial and hateful language due to music being played. His establish was also thrown ripe bananas etc. How and what will the region of Durham put in place for black business owners to not experience this type of treatment. With the increase in black population, this will also lead to more looking to open their business, racial attacks will discourage from opening businesses in Durham.

• 2019-2022 Grants dedicated to antiblack/antiracist initiatives

  by Leroy, over 5 years ago

  Of the almost $7.5M in grants from the Ministry of the Solicitor General to the Durham Region, how much is dedicated to antiBlack/antiracist initiatives?

  Of the almost $7.5M in grants from the Ministry of the Solicitor General to the Durham Region, how much is dedicated to antiBlack/antiracist initiatives?