Anti-Racism in Action

We have a responsibility to act, and the Ontario NDP is committed to stopping the violence and saving lives – from changes that we as legislators can make immediately, to a broader vision for the future. If we come together – ensuring that Black, Indigenous and racialized communities are centred as architects of change – we can build a future where we spend less on armed response to crises and failed approaches to community safety, and more money, resources and energy are dedicated to the health and wellbeing of our communities.

THIS IS OUR PLAN OF JUSTICE FOR BLACK, INDIGENOUS, and RACIALIZED PEOPLE IN ONTARIO.

Parkdale-High Park NDP MPP Bhutila Karpoche was a speker at the Stop Asian Hate Rally. From her Facebook Post: Anti-Asian racism didn’t start with the pandemic, Canada has a long history of systemic anti-Asian racism. Thank you to everyone who joined us in person and online and took a stand against anti-Asian racism. Let this not be where it ends. Speak out, because being silent is not an option. Speak up, so we may feel not just the hate, but also the love. #StopAsianHate

Anti-Racist Motion

Presented at the March 20, 2021 Scarborough-Rouge Park Ontario NDP AGM.

Preamble

Whereas Asian women working in Asian massage parlours were targeted and murdered in Atlanta.

Whereas White Supremacy in public spaces is creating unsafe, hateful conditions for members of the Asian Community.

Whereas Anti-Racism calls for the emancipation and solidarity of all Black, Indigenous, People of Colour, and Racialized Folks.

Motion

Let it be resolved that the Scarborough-Rouge Park Ontario NDP stands strongly against White Supremacy as a series of systems, actions, and ideas that are the major contributor to Anti-Black, Anti-Indidgenous, Anti-Asian, Anti-Newcomer hatred and more. We as a Riding Association do not tolerate this hatred and actively seek emancipation for all peoples and the dismantling of oppressive systems, ideas, and policies. We acknowledge and grieve the targeted murder of Asian women in Atlanta and condemn White Terrorism that can and does happen in Canada.

Moved: Brian Chang

Seconded: Ellen Jaaku

Passed Unanimously 

NDP critic for Indigenous and Treaty Relations Sol Mamakwa (Kiiwetinoong) has released a statement in response to the Ford government’s sudden decision to close 26 youth justice facilities:

“The abrupt closure of 26 youth justice centres is horrifying and dangerous. Many of these centres are in northern Ontario and these young people are now being sent further from home, away from their support networks and families that are essential for their welfare.

This decision by the Ford government will have a devastating impact on many young people in Northern Ontario, many of them Indigenous youth.

The Ford government has once again demonstrated that it doesn’t care about the lives of Indigenous youth and their families. This will make the child welfare to prison pipeline in our province even worse, and is another example of institutional anti-Indigenous racism and colonialism within the child welfare and youth justice systems. More young people will be put at risk, and this will do nothing to help them rebuild their lives with the support they need from their families and communities.”

The Ontario NDP Black Caucus is the first Black caucus in the Ontario Legislature. Chaired by MPP Dr. Laura Mae Lindo (Kitchener Centre) and includes MPPs Dr. Jill Andrew (Toronto-St Paul's), Kevin Yarde (Brampton North), Rima Berns-McGown (Beaches-East York), and Faisal Hassan (York South - Weston). Within their own communities and across Ontario, these Black leaders are demonstrating anti-racism in action in the policy priorities they advance, leadership in their advocacy and presence, and ensuring Black communities have a voice in the Ontario Legislature.  

NDP critics Sol Mamakwa (Indigenous and Treaty Relations) and Teresa Armstrong (Children and Youth Services) issued the following statement after the Parliamentary Budget Office released their report on Tuesday that showed hundreds of thousands of First Nations children are eligible for up to $15 billion in compensation due ​to delay and denial of government services.

“If anyone doubts that the vestiges of colonialism towards First Nations people still exists in Canada today, the Parliamentary Budget Officer’s report shows in stark terms that hundreds of thousand of First Nations children have been denied life saving and life giving, essential public services in this country,” said Mamakwa.

Despite orders from the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT) for government​s to protect the right​s of First Nations children to access public services through Jordan’s Principle, and despite the constant promises ​from government​s, more than 250,000 children were denied the services that every other Canadian child accesses daily.

“How much suffering and oppression must First Nations children endure in this country before they are treated as equals to other Canadian children? How much indignity and racism must Indigenous families suffer before they are respected?” said Mamakwa.

A new report by the Parliamentary Budget Officer (PBO) has revealed the shocking truth that Indigenous households in Canada are living in a significantly higher rate of unaffordable and unsustainable housing.

The findings of the report confirmed that close to 20 per cent of urban, rural and northern indigenous households in Canada are in unaffordable or unsuitable housing, a rate far above the national average. 124,000 Indigenous households in housing need, including 37,500 who are homeless in a given year. The annual affordability gap for indigenous households is $636M.

“Action speaks louder than words. Indigenous peoples are 11 times more likely to use a shelter. Vancouver East has the largest homeless encampment in the country with 40 percent identify as Indigenous,” said Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East), NDP Critic for Housing. “It is disgraceful how the Liberals fail to follow through with their promise that adequate housing is a basic human right and their empty promise of a dedicated housing strategy for Indigenous people.”

After successfully putting pressure on the Liberal government to shut down the Proud Boys in Canada, Jagmeet Singh and the NDP continue to fight to shut down online hate.

On Wednesday, joined by people who signed the NDP petition to ban the Proud Boys in Canada, a right-wing extremist group that promotes white supremacist views, the Leader of the NDP Jagmeet Singh said that the fight against hate isn’t over. While celebrating the fact that because of the pressure the Proud Boys were designated a terrorist organization in Canada, Singh unveiled the NDP’s next steps for Justin Trudeau’s Liberals to finally take action against online hate.

“Because of our work, because of every share and signature, because of the pressure we built, the government designated the Proud Boys and a few other alt-right groups as terrorist organizations,” said Singh. “Together, we literally saved lives. We showed that when we work together, we can achieve great things. But we cannot stop there. Hate and far-right groups continue to spread like wildfire online. We must fight online hate to keep our communities safe.”

Today, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh was joined by Mustafa Farooq, Chief Executive Officer of the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), to mark the fourth anniversary of the Quebec City mosque shooting.

On the evening of January 29th, 2017, a gunman killed six and injured 19 others at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec City. People died just because they were Muslim. To mark this day, Singh and Farooq renewed their calls for the Liberal government to take action to tackle hate in our communities.

“The Muslim community is still reeling from the horrific attack that took place at the mosque in Quebec City four years ago,” said Singh. “For communities to feel safe, the Liberal government must tackle head-on hate and alt-right groups that are growing in numbers in Canada. Without action today, it will just be a matter of time before the next attack. We need action now. People deserve to feel safe in their communities.”

Official Opposition NDP Leader Andrea Horwath, along with Attorney General Critic Gurratan Singh and Anti-Racism Critic Laura Mae Lindo, released the following statement:
 
“Black, Indigenous and racialized Ontarians are more at risk of getting COVID-19, yet Doug Ford is refusing to give those communities the supports they need to stay safe — and now is bringing in vague enforcement orders that can be used to disproportionately target BIPOC folks.  
 
According to experts, paid sick days, isolation centres, banning evictions, access to testing in your own neighbourhood, and ramping up vaccinations are all absolutely necessary to stop the spread.
 
Yet, while denying folks those things, Doug Ford is doubling down on enforcement demands. BIPOC communities and research from the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) have highlighted the ways enforcement of COVID-19 rules has disproportionately impacted Black, Indigenous and racialized people — and enforcement measures announced Tuesday will only make that worse. Because the government’s orders have been vague, confusing and contradictory, they could increase the kind of carding and racial profiling that has long targeted BIPOC folks in Ontario, and still continues to this day.

The Official Opposition Ontario NDP Black Caucus released the following statement in response to Toronto police arresting and charging a man in relation to two nooses found at a construction site at Michael Garron Hospital:

“It is incredibly important that hateful acts like this and the grave, violent threat they present be taken seriously. This crime was hate-motivated and hate crime charges should absolutely be laid in this case.

This goes far beyond mischief and harassment. Nooses have a clear, painful, meaning and context to Black communities. They represent the very real threat of lynching – of murder and white supremacist terror. This is what the perpetrator of these crimes intended to invoke and evoke.

Toronto police have noted that this arrest is part of a ‘hate-motivated mischief and criminal harassment’ investigation that includes multiple similar incidents at other Toronto construction sites. This context is important. This cowardly act was not an isolated event – there were seven nooses found on GTA construction sites over just a few months in 2020.