After Bastarache report, dismantling the RCMP sounds like a public service
OTTAWA—Last week, the Final Report on the Implementation of the Merlo Davidson Settlement Agreement was released by former Supreme Court justice Michel Bastarache, and its contents were appalling. “One of the key findings of this report is that the culture of the RCMP is toxic and tolerates misogynistic and homophobic attitudes amongst its leaders and […]
In Quebec, a wilful blindness to racism against Indigenous people
KAMOURASKA, QUE.—The death of Joyce Echaquan on Sept. 28 in the Joliette, Que., hospital, northeast of Montreal, drew national headlines for the way she died: Facebook Live streaming nursing staff as they hurled racist insults at her in a hospital bed. When the 37-year-old Atikamekw woman received morphine for stomach pains, she complained to the […]
The good old days are gone–and were never really there
OTTAWA—In the months leading up to the U.S. presidential election, the campaign itself, and the post-election day chaos, the one point upon which media pundits could agree was the fact that the “United States” of America are, in fact, deeply divided. President Donald Trump took every opportunity to pour gasoline on these glowing embers of […]
Tackling systemic racism starts with an overhaul within government institutions
In recent months, there has been increased attention to systemic racism brought on by demonstrations worldwide since the killing of George Floyd in June. In Canada, the recent death of Joyce Echaquan due to alleged racially motivated negligence and the brutal killing of Mohamed-Aslim Zafis outside a Toronto mosque, have led to calls for changes […]
The N-word is hate speech, not free speech
CALGARY—The aroma of burning crosses dotting the landscape of this “multicultural” nation sure smells like the anti-Black racism most “leaders” are purported to stand against. The proliferation of N-word usage, primarily among educators in publicly funded institutions is becoming a crisis of mental and emotional abuse that manifests itself in structural violence. Coined in the […]
Time for a more inclusive innovation economy
TORONTO—Canada performs below its innovation potential. We have exceptionally well-educated and creative people producing world-class research and a handful of innovative and growing firms making a mark on the world stage. Yet, innovation and commercialization across the economy more widely are lacklustre. Canadian firms continue to falter on business spending on research and development, technology […]
Failure and success in Indigenous health
OTTAWA—On Monday, Sept. 28, Joyce Echaquan from Atikamekw died in the Joliette Hospital while nurses taunted her with racism. Joyce was expecting to experience racism; that is why she took the video. Systemic racism across provincial ministries has already been documented in the Public Inquiry Commission on relations between Indigenous Peoples and certain public services […]
New Senate art display is the first ever to feature Black artists
The portraits of past Speakers and monarchs—white man, after predominantly white man, aside from Queens Victoria and Elizabeth and two Speakers—have long decorated the halls of the Senate, but a new display is breathing new life, and representation, into the space. “I’m a firm believer that the arts are an international language, along with movement […]
Throne Speech a missed opportunity to signal real action on tackling systemic racism
A Throne Speech isn’t meant to be much more than a high-level outline of what the government intends to do in the coming session of Parliament. But there is room for specificity, and the government has taken advantage of that for other initiatives. For example, this time around, the Liberals zeroed in on the creation […]
Driving right-wing extremism out of the Canadian Armed Forces
OTTAWA—Last week Army Commander, Lieutenant-General Wayne Eyre presided over the annual army council meeting. Although the sessions were held in Ottawa, the majority of the attendees participated virtually due to the COVID-19 travel restrictions. Reaching out directly to 450 top- to mid-level army officers, Eyre outlined to his chain-of-command a new set of explicit directions […]
