1 00:00:11,250 --> 00:00:15,090 My name is Moses Gashirabake, and I am 2 00:00:15,660 --> 00:00:19,500 both Rwandan and Canadian. I studied 3 00:00:19,500 --> 00:00:22,170 political science at Concordia University. 4 00:00:22,170 --> 00:00:25,500 I graduated with honors. And then after 5 00:00:25,500 --> 00:00:30,840 that, I pursued law at McGill University. 6 00:00:30,870 --> 00:00:33,810 So I hold two law degrees in common law 7 00:00:33,810 --> 00:00:38,040 and civil law as well. In terms of our 8 00:00:38,040 --> 00:00:42,840 organizations, I am currently a board 9 00:00:42,840 --> 00:00:48,420 member with four organizations: the 10 00:00:49,110 --> 00:00:51,930 Canadian Race Relations Foundation (CRRF) based 11 00:00:51,930 --> 00:00:55,050 in Toronto, the Raoul Wallenberg Center for 12 00:00:55,050 --> 00:00:58,020 Human Rights that's based in Montreal, 13 00:00:59,010 --> 00:01:02,190 the Rwandan Canadian Healing Center (RCHC) based 14 00:01:02,220 --> 00:01:05,430 in Toronto, and then the International 15 00:01:05,430 --> 00:01:08,400 Rwanda Youth for Development (IRYD). And also, the 16 00:01:09,150 --> 00:01:11,040 Foundation for Genocide Education, 17 00:01:11,130 --> 00:01:12,810 actually, it's five organizations and not four. 18 00:01:13,590 --> 00:01:17,160 it's just because I do chair the Rwandan 19 00:01:17,220 --> 00:01:19,740 Canadian Healing Center, so I'm not a board 20 00:01:19,740 --> 00:01:23,370 member, but the chair of the board. And in 21 00:01:23,370 --> 00:01:26,970 terms of my career, I did the legal 22 00:01:27,330 --> 00:01:33,030 practice field. So I advise businesses, 23 00:01:33,030 --> 00:01:35,520 institutions, and governments in different 24 00:01:35,640 --> 00:01:38,250 areas of power in business, environmental 25 00:01:38,250 --> 00:01:41,160 law, and other sectors. 26 00:01:47,130 --> 00:01:51,390 First of all, I am black, originally from 27 00:01:51,390 --> 00:01:54,720 Rwanda, so I came to Canada as an 28 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:59,640 immigrant refugee, so essentially, I am 29 00:01:59,670 --> 00:02:04,980 categorized as, I guess, the racialized black 30 00:02:04,980 --> 00:02:07,890 minority. So that's my identity, as a 31 00:02:07,890 --> 00:02:10,260 black person of African descent, 32 00:02:10,740 --> 00:02:15,600 automatically, you know, falls into the 33 00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:19,860 racialized minority category. And 34 00:02:19,890 --> 00:02:22,020 essentially, you know, I came to Canada, 35 00:02:22,050 --> 00:02:24,120 the reason actually why I'm studying 36 00:02:24,120 --> 00:02:25,980 political science is I wanted to 37 00:02:25,980 --> 00:02:30,540 understand, you know, how policies affect 38 00:02:30,540 --> 00:02:34,830 societies of governance, decision making, 39 00:02:34,860 --> 00:02:38,430 and the outcomes and definitely, especially, 40 00:02:39,060 --> 00:02:42,900 you know, recently, racism and anti-racism 41 00:02:42,990 --> 00:02:46,680 have become quite important, not just in 42 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:49,500 Canada, but across the globe. I mean, we 43 00:02:49,500 --> 00:02:53,820 all know, the unfortunate murder of George 44 00:02:53,820 --> 00:02:58,410 Floyd, which, you know, not only 45 00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:01,260 highlighted something that has been going 46 00:03:01,260 --> 00:03:03,690 on for hundreds of years, beginning with the 47 00:03:04,350 --> 00:03:07,590 transatlantic slave, where black people 48 00:03:07,590 --> 00:03:13,290 and other racialized minorities have faced 49 00:03:13,680 --> 00:03:17,490 discrimination, in policing, in housing 50 00:03:17,490 --> 00:03:21,330 and educational opportunities and in other 51 00:03:21,330 --> 00:03:27,360 sectors. So, you know, my desire to pursue 52 00:03:27,450 --> 00:03:30,420 an education in political science and law 53 00:03:30,420 --> 00:03:32,430 was essentially to understand how I could 54 00:03:32,430 --> 00:03:35,790 help my community. And that, you know, has 55 00:03:35,790 --> 00:03:38,730 been manifested in my community 56 00:03:38,790 --> 00:03:40,830 engagements where, you know, for example, 57 00:03:40,830 --> 00:03:42,930 in the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, 58 00:03:44,340 --> 00:03:48,150 we provide strategic advice on how 59 00:03:49,230 --> 00:03:54,030 research and other resources can be 60 00:03:54,030 --> 00:03:57,840 provided to not only the Government of Canada, 61 00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:00,270 but community organizations across Canada 62 00:04:00,570 --> 00:04:04,890 to look at how institutions and 63 00:04:04,920 --> 00:04:07,740 governments, and this is at all levels, the 64 00:04:07,740 --> 00:04:12,090 federal level, the provincial level and 65 00:04:12,090 --> 00:04:15,840 the municipal level, can eliminate systemic 66 00:04:15,840 --> 00:04:18,870 racism in many sectors in housing, 67 00:04:18,900 --> 00:04:24,870 education, policing, many. So you know, 68 00:04:24,870 --> 00:04:26,640 this, this is an issue that speaks 69 00:04:26,640 --> 00:04:30,750 directly to me as, as a black person of 70 00:04:30,780 --> 00:04:34,140 African descent, somebody who came from 71 00:04:34,380 --> 00:04:37,380 Rwanda as a refugee to Canada, trying to 72 00:04:37,380 --> 00:04:39,270 understand the society that I live in. 73 00:04:44,280 --> 00:04:49,050 The most important topic for me today is 74 00:04:49,050 --> 00:04:52,560 definitely anti-racism and looking at how 75 00:04:53,370 --> 00:04:57,810 racism affects the black population. And I 76 00:04:57,810 --> 00:05:02,280 think the most important two that we can 77 00:05:02,280 --> 00:05:06,660 use is education. So through awareness 78 00:05:06,660 --> 00:05:11,490 campaigns, through academic research, 79 00:05:11,520 --> 00:05:15,150 through community organizations connecting 80 00:05:15,180 --> 00:05:18,840 not just the local scene but on a 81 00:05:18,840 --> 00:05:21,360 national scale. So being able to share 82 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:24,900 information and looking at how, for 83 00:05:24,900 --> 00:05:27,090 example, you know, black Nova Scotians are 84 00:05:27,090 --> 00:05:32,490 doing as compared to black people in 85 00:05:32,490 --> 00:05:35,730 Montreal. You know, we know, for example, 86 00:05:35,760 --> 00:05:39,870 in Montreal, a majority of the black 87 00:05:39,870 --> 00:05:41,820 population in Montreal, if you look at 88 00:05:43,890 --> 00:05:47,760 Anglophone sections of the city, you know, 89 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:50,700 they do not only face racism based on 90 00:05:50,700 --> 00:05:53,550 color, but they also face racism based on 91 00:05:53,550 --> 00:05:55,170 language, because, you know, most of them 92 00:05:55,920 --> 00:05:59,430 tend to be Anglophone. And then they find 93 00:05:59,490 --> 00:06:02,490 themselves in a province or a city that's 94 00:06:02,850 --> 00:06:08,670 predominantly Francophone. So, you know, the 95 00:06:08,670 --> 00:06:10,950 different experiences could definitely be 96 00:06:10,950 --> 00:06:12,840 shared when we are looking at best 97 00:06:12,840 --> 00:06:15,990 practices that communities can use in 98 00:06:15,990 --> 00:06:18,600 their local organizations. So looking at 99 00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:21,180 the needs at the local level, so, the 100 00:06:21,180 --> 00:06:25,740 needs of black Anglophones in Quebec are 101 00:06:26,220 --> 00:06:29,250 similar to the needs of black Anglophones 102 00:06:29,250 --> 00:06:31,050 in Nova Scotia, but they could also be 103 00:06:31,050 --> 00:06:34,230 different, you know, also are different in 104 00:06:34,230 --> 00:06:36,390 Toronto and other cities, but then, you 105 00:06:36,390 --> 00:06:40,290 know, sharing platforms, for example, 106 00:06:40,290 --> 00:06:43,140 recently, there has been the Federation of 107 00:06:43,140 --> 00:06:47,130 Black Canadians (FBC), and the BlackNorth 108 00:06:47,190 --> 00:06:51,960 Initiative that's trying to unite black 109 00:06:51,960 --> 00:06:55,260 community organizations across Canada, not 110 00:06:55,260 --> 00:06:59,040 just, you know, on the social realm of 111 00:06:59,220 --> 00:07:04,260 society, but also business investments, 112 00:07:04,290 --> 00:07:06,660 and also on the political front as well, 113 00:07:06,690 --> 00:07:09,810 because political activism, and actually 114 00:07:09,840 --> 00:07:12,900 black organizations across Canada, at the 115 00:07:12,900 --> 00:07:16,770 local, provincial and federal level coming 116 00:07:16,770 --> 00:07:23,220 together to, to really advocate for their 117 00:07:23,220 --> 00:07:26,370 needs, with the different levels of 118 00:07:26,370 --> 00:07:28,710 government, and obviously, going out to 119 00:07:28,710 --> 00:07:30,270 the federal government, I think is 120 00:07:30,270 --> 00:07:33,390 important. And that will require unity 121 00:07:33,390 --> 00:07:36,240 across the board. So I think, you 122 00:07:36,240 --> 00:07:39,090 know, the work that I've seen with the 123 00:07:39,090 --> 00:07:42,630 Federation of Black Canadians, the BlackNorth 124 00:07:42,630 --> 00:07:44,640 initiatives, and of course, you know, 125 00:07:44,640 --> 00:07:46,560 the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, 126 00:07:46,950 --> 00:07:51,090 coming into polled roundtables, and 127 00:07:51,390 --> 00:07:54,600 bringing in all actors, both local 128 00:07:54,660 --> 00:07:58,560 grassroots organizations, regional 129 00:07:58,590 --> 00:08:00,780 organizations, and national organizations 130 00:08:00,780 --> 00:08:03,750 to come together, is going to be 131 00:08:03,750 --> 00:08:06,810 quite instrumental in raising awareness 132 00:08:06,870 --> 00:08:09,570 and education across Canada. Because one 133 00:08:09,570 --> 00:08:12,210 of the things that has really come out in 134 00:08:12,240 --> 00:08:17,520 the recent survey from the 135 00:08:21,450 --> 00:08:24,360 environment Environics Institute that 136 00:08:24,510 --> 00:08:26,700 highlighted the fact that, you know, 137 00:08:26,700 --> 00:08:29,970 awareness, in regard to racism across 138 00:08:29,970 --> 00:08:33,150 Canada is not at the level that it needs 139 00:08:33,150 --> 00:08:35,010 to be. So you know, a lot of Canadians 140 00:08:35,010 --> 00:08:38,550 don't even believe that racism exists, or 141 00:08:38,550 --> 00:08:41,160 that they are racist, in the sense that 142 00:08:41,160 --> 00:08:44,580 racism is not just the explicit display 143 00:08:44,580 --> 00:08:47,040 where someone is, for example, called the 144 00:08:47,040 --> 00:08:51,840 N-word, or, you know, being directly 145 00:08:52,080 --> 00:08:54,360 denied a job opportunity or an educational 146 00:08:54,360 --> 00:08:59,250 opportunity. But we also have racism that 147 00:08:59,250 --> 00:09:03,870 manifests first in unconscious bias, and 148 00:09:03,870 --> 00:09:09,960 microaggressions and other types of, you 149 00:09:09,960 --> 00:09:14,970 know, not explicit, but implicit bias and 150 00:09:15,600 --> 00:09:18,330 covert racism. So these are the things 151 00:09:18,330 --> 00:09:21,120 that, you know, we think that every 152 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:24,060 Canadian needs to know and of course, you 153 00:09:24,060 --> 00:09:25,950 know, within the black community, it's 154 00:09:25,950 --> 00:09:27,300 based on experience, you know. 155 00:09:27,300 --> 00:09:30,900 We've seen racism, we've experienced 156 00:09:30,930 --> 00:09:33,570 racism, and it continues to be a part of 157 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:36,270 society, not just the institutional level, 158 00:09:36,270 --> 00:09:39,720 but at the individual level. But with 159 00:09:40,410 --> 00:09:42,930 organizations coming together and raising 160 00:09:42,930 --> 00:09:45,960 awareness through education and educating 161 00:09:46,110 --> 00:09:49,530 all affected communities, and communities 162 00:09:49,530 --> 00:09:52,440 that are perpetrating racism. I think it's 163 00:09:52,470 --> 00:09:54,480 one of the most important things we can 164 00:09:54,480 --> 00:09:54,660 do now. 165 00:10:00,000 --> 00:10:04,140 There have been a myriad of effects to the 166 00:10:04,140 --> 00:10:07,020 different community organizations that I am part 167 00:10:07,020 --> 00:10:11,700 of. And of course, the effects have been 168 00:10:12,990 --> 00:10:15,270 different for each community organization. 169 00:10:16,290 --> 00:10:19,530 In terms of the Canadian Race Relations 170 00:10:19,560 --> 00:10:26,790 Foundation, we've definitely received a 171 00:10:26,790 --> 00:10:31,500 heightened level of interest in the work 172 00:10:31,500 --> 00:10:35,430 that we do. So across Canada, from all the 173 00:10:35,430 --> 00:10:41,610 way from Vancouver to Nova Scotia. So 174 00:10:41,640 --> 00:10:44,490 you know, St. John's, we've received 175 00:10:44,550 --> 00:10:47,610 requests from Canadians, you know, most of 176 00:10:47,610 --> 00:10:49,530 them expressing support and saying, you 177 00:10:49,530 --> 00:10:51,600 know, "We want to support your work. And we 178 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:53,430 want to empower you to continue doing the 179 00:10:53,430 --> 00:10:58,170 work that you do." So we've seen a rise in 180 00:10:58,440 --> 00:11:02,520 people coming to, you know, to ask us, and 181 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:08,700 that shows that the issues of racism and 182 00:11:08,700 --> 00:11:12,690 race relations, somewhat coming to the 183 00:11:12,690 --> 00:11:14,760 attention of Canadians, because obviously, 184 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:17,550 we have a 24 hour news cycle that, you 185 00:11:17,550 --> 00:11:19,260 know, raises an issue, you know, the death 186 00:11:19,260 --> 00:11:22,440 of George Floyd in the US, and all of a 187 00:11:22,440 --> 00:11:25,590 sudden you have different communities and 188 00:11:26,160 --> 00:11:29,070 Canadians acting, but I think that there's 189 00:11:29,070 --> 00:11:31,020 still more than that's going to be done. 190 00:11:31,020 --> 00:11:33,630 Because when you look at the requests that 191 00:11:33,630 --> 00:11:36,120 we receive within the Canadian 192 00:11:36,120 --> 00:11:39,330 Race Relations Foundation, these are requests 193 00:11:39,360 --> 00:11:42,600 from either communities or community 194 00:11:42,600 --> 00:11:45,930 organizations or members that are, in most 195 00:11:46,740 --> 00:11:49,680 cases aware, or they, you know, they have 196 00:11:49,680 --> 00:11:52,620 an interest in, in the issue of race and 197 00:11:52,620 --> 00:11:55,980 racism and race relations. So even though, 198 00:11:56,100 --> 00:11:57,960 you know, we're receiving more requests, 199 00:11:57,960 --> 00:11:59,970 and people wanting to understand the work 200 00:11:59,970 --> 00:12:02,610 that we do, more needs to be done, to get 201 00:12:02,640 --> 00:12:05,700 to every corner,to everyone across Canada. 202 00:12:05,700 --> 00:12:07,290 For example, I think one of the most 203 00:12:07,290 --> 00:12:10,260 important things that we can do is 204 00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:14,130 initiating a national awareness campaign, 205 00:12:14,370 --> 00:12:16,920 you know, some sort of campaign that you 206 00:12:16,920 --> 00:12:20,640 see on TV, or billboards across Canada, on 207 00:12:20,700 --> 00:12:25,830 radio, and on websites and major use of 208 00:12:25,890 --> 00:12:28,920 innovations in order for us to bring the 209 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:32,910 issue really from the cities to the rural 210 00:12:32,970 --> 00:12:37,140 areas of Canada. In terms of other 211 00:12:37,140 --> 00:12:39,840 organizations that I work with, for 212 00:12:39,840 --> 00:12:41,700 example, the Rwandan Canadian Healing 213 00:12:41,700 --> 00:12:45,180 Center, the Raoul Wallenberg Center for 214 00:12:45,180 --> 00:12:48,270 Human Rights, and the International Rwanda 215 00:12:48,270 --> 00:12:51,060 Youth Development, and the Foundation for 216 00:12:51,060 --> 00:12:54,060 Genocide Dducation, I think there has 217 00:12:54,060 --> 00:12:57,450 been, you know, to some extent, because of 218 00:12:57,450 --> 00:13:00,510 the global pandemic, you know, that 219 00:13:00,540 --> 00:13:03,270 coronavirus pandemic has affected the 220 00:13:03,270 --> 00:13:06,240 ability for those organizations to raise 221 00:13:07,350 --> 00:13:09,990 funds and resources. And obviously, 222 00:13:10,440 --> 00:13:13,140 available resources were dedicated to 223 00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:16,140 adapting to the new reality. So ensuring 224 00:13:16,140 --> 00:13:21,120 that the programs that we have, for 225 00:13:21,120 --> 00:13:27,750 example, with the you know, the board 226 00:13:27,750 --> 00:13:31,350 meetings, the engagement events, and 227 00:13:31,350 --> 00:13:36,030 conferences had to be adapted to online 228 00:13:36,030 --> 00:13:40,020 situations with the costs. Staff are 229 00:13:40,020 --> 00:13:42,300 working from home and these are effects that are 230 00:13:42,300 --> 00:13:44,070 happening across the board. But I think 231 00:13:44,370 --> 00:13:47,940 community organizations have been affected more 232 00:13:47,940 --> 00:13:50,010 significantly. And of course, the 233 00:13:50,010 --> 00:13:55,050 Government of Canada provided funding for 234 00:13:55,050 --> 00:13:57,420 community organizations through the 235 00:13:57,420 --> 00:14:02,880 Canadian Red Cross, United Way [Centraide Canada], and 236 00:14:03,510 --> 00:14:05,400 Community Foundations of Canada, but 237 00:14:05,430 --> 00:14:09,000 unfortunately, that money did not go to 238 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:10,710 all community organizations. So we're 239 00:14:10,710 --> 00:14:13,890 looking for ways that, you know, those who 240 00:14:13,890 --> 00:14:15,960 are left behind, because some of the ones 241 00:14:15,960 --> 00:14:18,570 that I'm even involved in did not receive 242 00:14:18,570 --> 00:14:21,630 any funding. So this is, you know, a 243 00:14:21,630 --> 00:14:28,230 continued discourse that is going to be 244 00:14:28,230 --> 00:14:31,260 looked at and see how the recovery phase, 245 00:14:31,500 --> 00:14:34,710 post COVID-19, is going to happen in 246 00:14:34,710 --> 00:14:39,600 ensuring that the services and resources 247 00:14:39,660 --> 00:14:43,080 and programming and funding that these 248 00:14:43,080 --> 00:14:47,010 organizations were accustomed to before 249 00:14:47,010 --> 00:14:49,770 the pandemic continue to be available. 250 00:14:51,390 --> 00:14:53,340 So essentially, you know, that's the 251 00:14:53,340 --> 00:14:55,260 summary with the Canadian Race Relations 252 00:14:55,260 --> 00:14:57,750 Foundation, the national organization that 253 00:14:57,750 --> 00:15:01,050 has been working on race and racial 254 00:15:01,050 --> 00:15:03,690 issues and race relations for a long time. 255 00:15:05,340 --> 00:15:07,080 We received more requests, then the 256 00:15:07,080 --> 00:15:10,500 other organizations needing more capacity 257 00:15:10,500 --> 00:15:12,840 building and looking at recovery post 258 00:15:12,900 --> 00:15:20,190 COVID. So in addition to having a national 259 00:15:20,190 --> 00:15:25,350 campaign to fight against racism and 260 00:15:25,590 --> 00:15:30,300 systemic racism, I think we also need a 261 00:15:30,300 --> 00:15:34,740 national organization that is specifically 262 00:15:34,950 --> 00:15:40,320 charged with advocacy. And if you call it 263 00:15:40,350 --> 00:15:44,610 even losses, you know that institutions 264 00:15:44,880 --> 00:15:49,020 that are charged with holding power. I 265 00:15:49,020 --> 00:15:53,880 think advocacy and raising awareness go 266 00:15:53,910 --> 00:15:56,880 hand in hand. And we need to go beyond, 267 00:15:57,600 --> 00:16:00,060 you know, the 24 hour news cycle where, 268 00:16:00,750 --> 00:16:03,750 you know, a policeman in the US or Canada 269 00:16:04,050 --> 00:16:09,000 kills a black man or an Asian man, an 270 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:11,700 indigenous person, and then the 24 hour 271 00:16:11,700 --> 00:16:15,060 news cycle runs for one week, and then forget 272 00:16:15,060 --> 00:16:18,600 about it. This is absolutely unacceptable. 273 00:16:18,600 --> 00:16:23,250 So human life is sacred, and human life 274 00:16:23,910 --> 00:16:26,880 has to be protected at all costs in the 275 00:16:26,880 --> 00:16:29,430 Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, 276 00:16:29,670 --> 00:16:32,760 guaranteed equal rights to all Canadians, 277 00:16:32,790 --> 00:16:35,010 including, you know, the fundamental and 278 00:16:35,010 --> 00:16:40,110 basic right to life. So I think we need to 279 00:16:40,650 --> 00:16:44,910 find a way to, to consistently find an 280 00:16:44,910 --> 00:16:47,910 organization that works to consistently 281 00:16:47,910 --> 00:16:53,220 hold accountable local municipalities, 282 00:16:53,400 --> 00:16:55,830 provincial governments, across Canada, 283 00:16:56,130 --> 00:16:58,440 from coast to coast, and the federal 284 00:16:58,440 --> 00:17:01,020 government, holding them accountable and 285 00:17:01,080 --> 00:17:06,150 asking them to, you know, to respect and 286 00:17:06,150 --> 00:17:09,900 to create a harmonious Canada, you know, a 287 00:17:09,900 --> 00:17:12,300 race free Canada. So I think, you know, 288 00:17:12,330 --> 00:17:14,220 these are, of course, you know, continuing 289 00:17:14,220 --> 00:17:20,580 conversations that I think, will need local 290 00:17:20,580 --> 00:17:23,370 organizations, regional organizations, and 291 00:17:23,370 --> 00:17:25,680 national organizations to come together 292 00:17:25,770 --> 00:17:29,220 and work to consistently raise awareness 293 00:17:29,340 --> 00:17:34,770 and even advocate for the needs of 294 00:17:36,030 --> 00:17:39,270 racialized minorities in order to end 295 00:17:39,330 --> 00:17:45,120 systemic racism. That's it think I'm calling upon, 296 00:17:45,120 --> 00:17:48,900 you know, all Canadians to educate 297 00:17:48,930 --> 00:17:51,330 ourselves. I mean, I also need that 298 00:17:51,330 --> 00:17:54,300 constant education. I cannot, you know, 299 00:17:54,300 --> 00:17:57,720 pretend to know, the needs of all black 300 00:17:57,720 --> 00:18:00,240 communities across Canada, every, you 301 00:18:00,240 --> 00:18:02,940 know, local community across Canada has 302 00:18:03,150 --> 00:18:05,370 its own specific needs, you know, based on 303 00:18:05,370 --> 00:18:07,350 their history, how long they've been in 304 00:18:07,350 --> 00:18:09,450 Canada, for example, if you look at the 305 00:18:09,480 --> 00:18:13,230 African Canadian, you know, the recent 306 00:18:13,230 --> 00:18:15,390 wave of African Canadian immigrants, they 307 00:18:15,390 --> 00:18:19,080 have completely different needs. If you 308 00:18:19,080 --> 00:18:20,880 look at people from the Caribbean, or 309 00:18:20,880 --> 00:18:23,790 people who recently came to Canada, people 310 00:18:23,790 --> 00:18:26,490 who came here as a result of the 311 00:18:26,490 --> 00:18:31,590 unfortunate transatlantic slave trade, so 312 00:18:31,950 --> 00:18:34,170 being able to educate ourselves and 313 00:18:34,170 --> 00:18:36,630 understanding it, I think, is 314 00:18:36,630 --> 00:18:40,200 important. And in terms of, you know, 315 00:18:40,200 --> 00:18:43,470 Extra items self-education, and 316 00:18:43,470 --> 00:18:46,320 acknowledging that systemic racism exists. 317 00:18:46,350 --> 00:18:50,340 Unfortunately, we have lots of people that 318 00:18:50,430 --> 00:18:52,800 have recognized that systemic racism 319 00:18:52,890 --> 00:18:57,270 exists, but we're aware awareness, and 320 00:18:57,690 --> 00:19:00,360 education, we can be able to bring 321 00:19:00,510 --> 00:19:05,550 attention to the situation that exists. So 322 00:19:05,550 --> 00:19:07,440 I think, you know, those are the concrete 323 00:19:07,590 --> 00:19:09,420 actions that we can take, you know, 324 00:19:09,420 --> 00:19:11,430 educating ourselves and hopefully 325 00:19:11,430 --> 00:19:14,610 educating others, and then having an 326 00:19:14,610 --> 00:19:18,120 institution that is charged with doing 327 00:19:18,120 --> 00:19:20,880 that work to make it more formalized. In 328 00:19:24,720 --> 00:19:27,720 terms of resources, I would definitely 329 00:19:27,720 --> 00:19:31,470 invite everyone to look at our sites, you 330 00:19:31,470 --> 00:19:34,050 can google CRRF, we have 331 00:19:36,870 --> 00:19:38,520 a clearing house where you know, we 332 00:19:38,520 --> 00:19:41,220 provide different resources and materials, 333 00:19:42,270 --> 00:19:47,520 research papers, that could be useful to 334 00:19:47,550 --> 00:19:50,040 community organizations, institutions to 335 00:19:50,040 --> 00:19:52,380 look at, you know, the best practices in 336 00:19:52,380 --> 00:19:55,200 education and also research on existing 337 00:19:55,980 --> 00:19:58,440 forms of racism in different sectors of 338 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:02,280 Canadian masses and soceity. I think there's also 339 00:20:02,280 --> 00:20:05,700 another excellent organization in Montreal so also 340 00:20:05,700 --> 00:20:08,850 the Black Community Resource Center (BCRC), based 341 00:20:08,850 --> 00:20:11,490 in Montreal, and they invite you to also 342 00:20:11,490 --> 00:20:13,980 look at other organizations such as 343 00:20:13,980 --> 00:20:16,590 the Rwandan Canadian Healing Center. If you go 344 00:20:16,590 --> 00:20:19,200 on google and type that you could be able 345 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:22,170 to see the work that we do. And 346 00:20:22,170 --> 00:20:24,810 essentially, you know, looking at how, for 347 00:20:24,810 --> 00:20:27,720 example, with the Rwandan Canadian Healing Center, 348 00:20:27,840 --> 00:20:31,170 how Rwandans who came to Canada following 349 00:20:32,190 --> 00:20:34,680 ,and even before the war, 1994 genocide against 350 00:20:34,680 --> 00:20:38,850 the Tutsi are affected in terms of mental 351 00:20:38,850 --> 00:20:44,130 health. Mental health is made worse by 352 00:20:44,490 --> 00:20:47,910 systemic racism. When you come in as a 353 00:20:47,910 --> 00:20:50,790 refugee. You don't have equal access to 354 00:20:51,030 --> 00:20:53,670 housing. Or if you have housing, you know, 355 00:20:53,670 --> 00:20:56,340 it impedes you from being able to access 356 00:20:56,370 --> 00:20:58,770 other opportunities, because housing is 357 00:20:58,770 --> 00:21:02,190 expensive, is a shortage of affordable 358 00:21:02,190 --> 00:21:04,950 housing options for new immigrants. So, 359 00:21:05,820 --> 00:21:08,310 you know, and how all of that affects 360 00:21:10,320 --> 00:21:13,650 people from a mental perspective. So those 361 00:21:13,650 --> 00:21:16,680 are some of the resources to share.