The Delta School District is committing to five actions for how they will address racism that more than half of surveyed staff say they had witnessed or directly experienced while working in the district.
Damaging stereotypes, jokes, assumptions and beliefs were among the racist behaviours identified by more than 50 per cent of the 430 respondents, as well as structural and systemic concerns embedded within the district’s policies and procedures.
“The role of education in building intercultural understanding, empathy and mutual respect is vital in advancing the journey of reconciliation, and addressing and eliminating racism,” said co-chairs of the district’s Antiracism Committee Satnam Chahal, Nancy Gordon and Brooke Moore in a recent press release.
Following the survey, which was conducted last fall by the Antiracism Committee, the district consulted with this committee to commit to five actionable items, which include:
- Educating staff on the recently approved Antiracism Procedure and their duty to uphold it
- Helping staff learn more about antiracism
- Recognizing and celebrating more culturally significant days and months
- Supporting work sites to become more antiracist
- Using an antiracist lens when purchasing future learning resources and prioritizing content created by BIPOC folks.
“We believe there is a need for action on all fronts – from addressing the ways in which racial bias makes its way into everyday interactions and understanding how best to intervene when witnessing racism, to thinking carefully about how it is reflected in our systems and structures,” said the co-chairs in the release.
“If we want every student and staff member in Delta to feel valued, seen and heard, we know that it’s not enough to be ‘not racist.’ We must proactively strive to be anti-racist. The survey results have been extremely helpful in identifying areas where the district needs to deliberately focus time and attention in order to move forward.”
Some findings and personal stories shared from the survey highlighted that folks can not bring their full skills and gifts to work if they feel unsafe, that being more self-aware can contribute to a safe and inclusive environment and that being anti-racist means educating and challenging ourselves to take action against racism systems, structures and behaviours.
Last year, a group of Delta educators created a website containing valuable resources on anti-racism, and this year, anti-racism committee school teams in the district’s secondary schools are conducting student surveys and working on antiracism initiatives.
For more information on what the Delta School District is doing with their anti-racism efforts, visit their website at https://www.deltasd.bc.ca/news-events/news/ensuring-an-antiracist-environment-is-essential-for-student-and-staff-success/.
