Event Report: The Changing Landscape of Race Relations in Canada

This is the third of five focus groups over the last three years aiming to gather recommendations for effective anti-racism initiative development targeting the millennial generation. The first pilot focus group was held on February 28, 2018 where students from diverse disciplines and cultural backgrounds convened in three cohorts coast-to-coast for the third annual, national, live dialogue held under the auspices of the CRRF. The student cohorts convened at King’s College in Halifax, Hart House at the University of Toronto and at SFU’s Morris J. Wosk Centre for Dialogue in Vancouver. The topic was on “Freedom of Speech on Campus: Expression of Oppression?” The second focus group was held in Winnipeg on May 27, 2018 with 23 youths in partnership with the Asian Heritage Society of Manitoba where they emphasized the importance of more education in race relations.

On August 28 2019, the CRRF in partnership with The Mosaic Institute invited 15-20 participants for this third session. Approximately thirteen young working professionals, of different ethnic backgrounds, including two CRRF Youth Ambassadors and a Prime Minister Youth Council member attended this session. These individuals, active or working in the areas of equity, diversity, inclusion, education, law, and research gathered to speak on the directions and trends of race relations, inclusion, cross-cultural relationship building, and the obstacles they see in building a more inclusive and equitable Canada.

Below are some of the highlights and quotes from this session:

• Sources of prejudice and discrimination are often rooted in historical and social contexts, which are then shaped, by institutional structures and practices.
• The millennials feel that their generation is politically and socially active than the older generation and therefore more sensitive about the direction of race relations in Canada.
• It is important for the younger generation to be educated by an informed and sound curriculum so that they can make decisions that are more informed.
• Leadership can shape social norms, but it takes courage and determination to live up to our virtues.
• “It is a cliché sometimes to say that youth are our future, but it really comes down to the future you create.”

In summary, the millennial generation represented in our focus groups are aware of the challenges we face in fighting racism.  They feel that they can try to improve race relations by better equipping themselves with the application of knowledge through insightful conversations.

The CRRF would like to thank The Canadian Heritage for their funding, The Mosiac Institute for their work at the event and all the participants for their input. Future focus group sessions will be taking place in Lethbridge, Alberta in late 2019 and Quebec in early 2020.