Delta’s Organizing Against Racism and Hate (OARH) committee is hosting a second awareness session for anyone who would like to learn how to practically respond to the various forms of racism they might witness at any given moment.
Given the high level of community interest and engagement from OARH’s first session in June, the committee decided to host a second session of this valuable workshop.
On Thursday, July 30 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. education consultant Angela Ma Brown will lead a free online workshop for preteens, teenagers and adults living in Delta and on the Tsawwassen First Nation Lands. Limited tickets will be available through Eventbrite, https://www.eventbrite.ca/o/deltas-organizing-against-racism-and-hate-committee-30434095766.
The goal of this training is to increase awareness of racism and to give people skills and tools to respond in a helpful way. The session will engage participants in experiential learning and empathy-building activities to deepen understanding of hate and racism. The training will address questions of: How can we respond to racist comments or harassment with concrete action?
According to Delta Police, there have been at least 20 incidents since January 2019 that qualify as hate crimes, from racist graffiti to vandalism of Pride flags to threats. Delta Police believe that hate crimes are underreported. This training comes at a time when these types of hateful incidents and assaults continue to be front and centre in the news cycle and in our minds.
“There have been times when I’ve encountered racism and those who witnessed the incident did not help me,” said Kate Henderson, community member, teacher and OARH committee member. “I often think that is because many people just don’t know what to do in such uncomfortable situations. Participating in Angela’s workshop will not only give people a basic understanding of key anti-racism concepts, it will also equip people with some very practical strategies to safely and thoughtfully intervene during or after a racist incident.”
Brown is an anti-racism, diversity and equity consultant. She held the position of anti-racism and diversity mentor for the Vancouver School Board for seven years. The ‘Active Witnessing Model’ is based on the Anti-discrimination Response Training Program (A.R.T.) developed by F. Ishu Ishiyama, PhD.
This experiential learning session will equip participants with some skills to respond with active solidarity, assertiveness, and care.
Delta’s primarily volunteer run OARH Committee is part of a provincial initiative to combat racism and hate across B.C. Recently, the program has transitioned to Resilience BC. There is now a central hub in Victoria and communities across B.C. have their own spoke committee to identify community specific needs and respond to racism and hate.
For more information, contact: Delta OARH at [email protected].
