The Massey College Diversity Committee is partnering with the UofT Graduate Students Union Race & Ethnicity Caucus (REC) to host a panel on Access to Justice and Safety for Minority Groups in Canada.

Panelists Prof. Sherry Farrell Racette, Prof. Akwasi Owusu-Bempah, Mohamed Boudjenane, and Nana Yanful will discuss how systemic discrimination impacts various minority groups in Canada. This panel will be moderated by Prof. Rinaldo Walcott.

In the last few years, Canada has witnessed the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement in response to widespread anti-black racism, cases of Islamophobia being taken before the Supreme Court, a public outcry over the lack of inquiry into the hundreds of missing and murdered Indigenous women, and a backlash against Jian Ghomeshi’s acquittal. These recent developments have undermined public confidence in the justice system and led to rising anxiety about the safety of particular minority groups. Most recently, Donald Trump’s rise to the White House has emboldened the forces of xenophobia, racism, homophobia, and sexism in America. The reach of U.S. domestic politics extends beyond the border to influence outcomes of laws, immigration policies, and social attitudes in Canada—as evidenced by Kellie Leitch’s pronouncement that Trump’s “exciting message needs to be delivered in Canada as well”. The objective of this event is to contribute to the current discourse surrounding justice and safety for minority groups in Canada, while also encouraging interaction between Massey Fellows, UofT graduate students, and the greater community in an informal panel setting that will allow us to discuss these timely concerns on the eve of Trump’s inauguration.