Progress report
This progress report marks one year since the release of the Task Force recommendations. It is an accountability tool to measure progress and gauge the ground we have yet to cover. It demonstrates the depth and breadth of partnerships to advance Task Force recommendations over the past year.
Introduction
Released in the fall of 2022, the final report of the President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism presented 88 recommendations organized under four pillars and categorized by themes. The Task Force report and recommendations are the foundation to support dismantling systemic and structural anti-Black racism across Concordia University. They represent two years of collective knowledge building through a consultative community and a people-centred approach to understanding the necessary actions and transformations to create a flourishing Black community.
The report is possible because of university partners and champions who worked independently and alongside the Task Force implementation team to bring about meaningful change. It’s the first of many to document Concordia’s milestones and achievements in honouring its public commitments to Black students, faculty, staff, alumni and the public.
While the history of many institutions, including Concordia, includes starts and stops and abandoned initiatives intended to address anti-Black racism, a dedicated implementation team and an advisory committee were formed in the summer of 2023 to ensure accountability, continuity, and delivery of the recommendations.
I applaud their consultative approach, tenacity, and focus on transversal collaborations.
I am impressed with the ground covered by the implementation team in such a short period of time.
It’s inspiring when faculty, students and staff approach us asking how they can do their part to reflect the diverse experiences and voices of Black Concordians in their respective areas of the university.
Summary
The progress report is organized along the four pillars of Driving Institutional Change, Fostering Black Flourishing, Supporting Black Knowledges, and Encouraging Mutuality. The order of these pillars is meaningful.
A special thanks to Task Force Chair (2020-22) Angélique Willkie who was instrumental in nearly every project outlined in the progress report.
Driving Institutional Change |
|
|---|---|
| Public Recognition and Commemoration | |
| Formal apology for mishandling of the 1969 Sir George Williams Student Protest | Complete – October 2022 |
| Commemorative plaque marking the Hall Building as the historic site of the 1969 Sir George Williams Student Protest | Installation in January 2024 |
| Website and teaching materials commemorating the Sir George Williams University student protest | Complete – October 2023 |
| Public Art Program: Honouring Black Presence at Concordia | Ongoing. The program jury shortlisted the first three artists in August 2023. |
| Governance, Policies and Procedures | |
| Establishing a Task Force implementation team | Complete – May 2023 |
| Extending the position of Special Advisor to the Provost, Black Integration and Knowledges | Complete – October 2022 |
| Establish Financial Aid: Scholarships, Bursaries, Prizes and Awards for Black Students | 10 scholarships on offer for PhD students. Fundraising for awards and scholarships for undergraduate and masters’ students continues. Ongoing |
Fostering Black Flourishing |
|
| Student Community, Academic Thriving and Safety on Campus | |
| Black Student Centre | Complete – July 2023 |
| Black Student Advisor to work through the Black Student Centre | Complete – November 2023 |
| Expand faculty or program-specific career development initiatives for Black students and communities | Ongoing — Working with The Institute for Co-operative Education and external partners on developing co-op and mentoring opportunities for Black students. |
| Rename Campus Security to Foster a Sense of Community Rather than Policing | Complete – December 2022 |
| Provide training for Campus Security and other units to build long-lasting, positive and supportive relationships with Black Concordians | Complete – December 2023 and ongoing training provided |
| Mental Health and Wellbeing Community Mental Health and Support | Complete for Campus Wellness and Support Services (CWSS) – October 2023 |
Supporting Black Knowledges |
|
| Research and Scholarship | |
| Promoting Black-led and Black-centred research from Concordians, national and international Black scholars, visiting speakers and artists | Ongoing – one event held in October 2023. Future projects will be planned that support and promote Black-led and Black-centred research. |
| Black Knowledge Resources and Sources | |
| Infusing Black Scholarship in Curriculum (Pilot Project) | The first cohort completed the pilot in the summer of 2023. A call for the next cohort will take place in 2024. |
| Archiving of Historic Task Force (2020-2023) Materials | Complete. |
| Black Knowledges Hub | In progress. |
Encouraging Mutuality |
|
| Community Engagement and Outreach | |
| Ethical Guidelines for Community Engagement and Research with Black Communities | Ongoing. The first planning meeting was held in the summer of 2023. |
| Inter-university Community of Practice | Ongoing. The first meeting was held in March 2023. |
| Task Force Website | Complete. The website was delivered in November 2023. The next phase of development involves a hub-like structure to centralize university offerings for Black students, faculty and staff. |
Driving Institutional Change
Systemic racism predates the creation of Concordia University as we know it today; it is woven into the (colonial) institutional fabric of the university’s founding institutions, Sir George Williams University and Loyola College. Addressing anti-Black racism and its structures across the university therefore requires a long-term commitment to systemic, transversal and innovative change that is sustained through cross-institutional strategies and mechanisms that are embedded, transparent and accountable to the university community.
In year one of implementing the Task Force on Anti-Black Racism recommendations, we have made notable progress in key areas that will ensure the work and the desired change through the recommendations is sustainable and sustained, cross-institutional and structural. We continue to work on the suggested actions around our key category of developing data strategy, and across the other five categories of our Driving Institutional Change rubric. Many important actions have been taken.
Public Recognition and Commemoration
The Task Force Report acknowledges the importance of public recognition of Concordia’s history of anti-Black racism and commemoration of the student and community–led protest as one of the first steps towards a process of healing and bridge-building with Montreal’s Black communities.
Progress: Complete
In October 2022, a formal and public apology was issued to Concordia’s Black community for the university’s mishandling of the 1969 student protests and the impacts on the students involved.
The apology, endorsed by Concordia’s Board of Governors, was delivered by university President Graham Carr during the Task Force Final Report launch event in the presence of community members, including some of the original protesters who shared their responses to the apology.
Progress: Installation in January 2024.
In February 2023, Task Force Chair (2020 – 2022) and Special Advisor to the Provost on Integrating Black Knowledges, Angélique Wilkie, Concordia University President Graham Carr, and Provost Anne Whitelaw led a public unveiling of the commemorative plaque marking the Hall Building “as a historic site of student protest.”
A permanent version of the plaque recognizing the events of the 1969 Sir George Williams student protest and the historical significance of the Hall Building as the site of Canada’s largest student protest against anti-Black racism will be installed alongside an accompanying bench in the lobby of the Hall Building in January 2024.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Andrea Hurtarte, signage design, Facilities Management
- Mana Hemami, facilities planner, Strategic Planning and Development
- Alexandra Laurent, interior design technician, Facilities Management
Gem Silver, manager, Consulting Team, Facilities Management
Next Steps: Installation in January 2024.
Progress: Complete
In October 2023, in collaboration with University Communication Services, the implementation team launched an expanded website commemorating the 1969 Sir George Williams University student protest.
The site includes a historical component that recounts crucial local and international events leading up to the protest, its aftermath, the psychological and social impact on protestors and communities more broadly, and consciousness-raising and solidarity across the Black communities of Montreal. The website also includes teaching and learning resources for teaching the protest through various contexts and themes to keep the learnings of the protest living in scholarship at Concordia today.
Project Leads
- Tallie Segel, project lead, implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Johanne Cadorette, manager, Institutional Communications, University Communications Services
- Shelagh Peden, webmaster/digital content advisor, University Communications Services
Next Steps: Promotion of the website and teaching materials to the Concordia community and public.
Progress: Ongoing. The program jury shortlisted the first three artists in August 2023.
Under the leadership of Task Force coordinator Cynthia Alphonse and Concordia’s Public Art Lead, Sandra Margolian, along with the support of University Advancement, Concordia has created a public art program to honour the past and present. Through this juried public art initiative, selected works will be installed for display in the Hall Building for three years. The program issued an open call for artists' interest statements in May 2023 and shortlisted three artists/collectives to develop proposals in August 2023. The selected artist/collective is scheduled to be announced in the Spring of 2024, and an installation unveiling is planned for 2025.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Sandra Margolian, public art lead, Concordia University
Project Partners
- Sylvain-Jacques Desjardins, director of communications, University Advancement
- Annie Gérin, dean, Faculty of Fine Arts
- Emily Grillo, development officer, Affinity and Community Programs
- Marie-Claude Lavoie, associate vice-president, Facilities Management
- Leisha Le Couvie, senior director, Alumni Relations, University Advancement
- Melodie Le Siege, manager, Strategic Content, 50th Anniversary, University Advancement
- Cherry Marshall, associate vice-president of Development, University Advancement
- Luke Quinn, senior communications advisor, Fundraising and Special Projects, University Advancement
- Marta Samuel, manager, Publications and Projects, University Advancement
Olivia Wyllie, development officer, Leadership Annual Giving, University Advancement
Next Steps: The selection and announcement of the artist in spring 2024.
Governance, Policies and Procedures
The Task Force recommendations on university governance, policies and procedures aim to build resources and accountability structures into the institution.
Progress: Complete
As of May 2023, reporting to the Equity Office, James Roach started his role as director of the Task Force implementation. He leads a team comprised of a coordinator and two project leads.
Project Leads
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Désirée Rochat, community educator and transdisciplinary scholar, and Task Force implementation project lead
- Tallie Segel, project lead, implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: The team continues to collaborate daily to oversee and deliver on recommendations outlined in the Task Force Final Report.
Progress: Complete
Upon returning from sabbatical in 2024, Angélique Wilkie, chair of the President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism (2020-2022), is slated to resume her role as Special Advisor to the Provost, Black Integration and Knowledges.
Progress: Complete
This Task Force advisory committee is a consulting body anchored in Concordia’s Black community. The committee's purpose is to provide counsel and accountability in the implementation phase of the Task Force recommendations.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Maurice Riley Case, manager of the Black Perspectives Office
- Christiana Abraham, assistant professor, Communication Studies
- Désirée Rochat, community educator and transdisciplinary scholar
- Marlihan Lopez, program outreach and events coordinator, Student Advisor for Interdisciplinary Sexuality Studies, Simone de Beauvoir Institute
- Teeanna Munro, manager of the NouLa Centre for Black Students
- Jacqueline Peters, part-time professor, Department of Classics, Modern Languages and Linguistics; chair of the Caucus of Black Concordians
- Tanou Bah, student life coordinator, Concordia Student Union
- Isaiah Joyner, student, Master of Science in Finance, John Molson School of Business
- Olivia Wyllie, development officer, Leadership Annual Giving, University Advancement
Progress: The advisory committee meets monthly. Their second meeting was held in mid-November and featured a question-and-answer period with the provost.
Progress: Ongoing
Concordia University Advancement is supportive and actively fundraising for student awards and scholarships, for a Bridging Program to assist local mature-entry, first-generation, and low-income Black students and for the public art project commemorating Black presence at Concordia.
Project Leads
- Sylvain-Jacques Desjardins, director of communications, University Advancement
- Melodie Le Siege, manager, Strategic Content, 50th Anniversary, University Advancement
- Cherry Marshall, associate vice-president of Development, University Advancement
- Marta Samuel, manager, Publications and Projects, University Advancement
- Olivia Wyllie, development officer, Leadership Annual Giving, University Advancement
Project Partners
- Sandra Margolian, public art lead, Concordia University
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: University Advancement and the Task Force implementation team meet regularly and are making steady progress on securing funding for student initiatives. An announcement is anticipated in 2024.
Progress: Complete for PhD students. Fundraising for awards and scholarships for undergraduate and masters’ students continues.
The School of Graduate Studies has established 10 PhD scholarships for Black students in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math).
Eight awards range from $30,000 to $35,000 annually for four years. The funds include two awards each from the Faculty of Arts and Science, the Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science, the Faculty of Fine Arts, and the School of Health.
Two of the scholarships, the Indigenous and Black Engineering and Technology (IBET) Momentum Fellowships, are also open to Indigenous PhD students.
Project Leads
- Faye Diamantoudi, dean, School of Graduate Studies
- Mamoun Medraj, associate dean, Recruitment and Awards, School of Graduate Studies
- Cynthia Raso, manager, Graduate Awards and Postdoctoral Studies
Project Partners
- Faculty of Arts and Science
- Faculty of Fine Arts
- Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science
- John Molson School of Business
- Office of the Provost
- School of Health
Next Steps: Widely promoting the availability of scholarships to prospective Black PhD students.
Fostering Black Flourishing
Black flourishing, a term borrowed from the Scarborough Charter, is fostered through the provision of optimal conditions and environments for advancement, a sense of belonging, ambitions and initiatives of Black community members, in their full intersectional complexities. This is accomplished by the removal of structural barriers to the Black community’s growth. At Concordia, this implies that black faculty, staff and students require a university environment that respects and fosters their human dignity, traditions of excellence and need for community; acknowledges the additional labor and emotional toll imposed upon them by institutional anti-Black racism; and engages actively in creating a context in which they can joyously fulfil their potential and contribute meaningfully to the university community.
The work to build institutional structures to support Black flourishing has been building incrementally before and during the two years of the Task Force. In this first implementation year, much of that hard work and investment was mobilized leading to success in accomplishing recommendations and suggested actions in the categories of student community and academic thriving and safety on campus.
Student Community, Academic Thriving and Safety on Campus
Progress: Complete
The NouLa Centre for Black Students was launched in fall 2023. The name comes from the Haitian Creole phrase, nou la which means “we are here.” The centre provides a physical space for Concordia students who identify as Black to gather and connect. NouLa provides programming, services, and resources to support students' collective success and well-being.
Project Lead
- Teeanna Munro, manager, NouLa Centre for Black Students
Project Partners
- Black Perspectives Office
- Equity Office
- NouLa team members
- Office of the Provost
- Student Services
- Student Success Centre
Next Steps: The fall 2024 NouLa Open House and relocation to their permanent space.
The Task Force recommendations include hiring at least one dedicated Black student advisor to work through the Black Student Centre in tandem with student support services across the university. The role of the advisor is to provide guidance, support, and resources to improve students' success.
Project Status: Complete
In the Fall of 2023, the NouLa Centre for Black Students hired a coordinator, Black Student Success Student Services.
Project Lead
- Teeanna Munro, manager, NouLa Centre for Black Students
Project Partners
- Office of the Provost
- Student Success Centre
Next Steps: Introduction of the new Black Student Success coordinator to the university community.
Project Status: Ongoing
The Task Force implementation team has been working with The Institute for Co-operative Education and external partners on developing co-op and mentoring opportunities for Black students.
Project Leads
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Cherine Zanarini, director, The Institute for Co-operative Education
Next Steps: Finalize an agreement with our corporate partner.
Project status: Complete
In the spring of 2023, Concordia renamed Campus Security and Emergency Services to Campus Safety and Prevention Services to help shift the focus for campus security personnel from policing to community safety.
Project Leads
- Michael di Grappa, vice-president, Office of the Vice-President Services and Sustainability
- Darren Dumoulin, director, Campus Safety and Prevention Services
Project Partners
- Black Perspectives Office
- Campus Safety and Prevention Services
- University Communications Services
Next Steps: The continued focus of Campus Safety and Prevention Services on community safety.
Project status: Complete and ongoing
In December 2023, Concordia’s Equity Office completed training with Campus Safety and Prevention Services on de-escalation, anti-racism and equity, and that consider issues of mental health.
Project Leads
Michael di Grappa, vice-president, Office of the Vice-President Services and Sustainability
Darren Dumoulin, director, Campus Safety and Prevention Services
Project Partners
Black Perspectives Office
Campus Safety and Prevention Services
Equity Office
Next Steps: Ongoing training continues to be provided.
Project Status: Complete for Campus Wellness and Support Services (CWSS) in October 2023. Training will be provided to future staff at CWSS.
To improve its models of care to support Black student mental health, Campus Wellness and Support Services offered its staff relevant training. The training provided staff with a better understanding of the impact of racial trauma, erasure and exclusion, discrimination and microaggressions as they relate to the lived experiences of Concordia students. Staff also learned about concepts and models of care to support welcoming interactions with Black students.
Project Leads
- Elana Bloom, director, Campus Wellness and Support Services
Project Partners
- Maurice Riley Case, manager, Black Perspectives Office
- Myrlie Marcelin, wellness counsellor, Counselling and Psychological Services
- Teeanna Munro, manager, NouLa Centre for Black Students
Next Steps: Campus Wellness and Support Services will continue to put into practice the training received.
Project status: Focus groups are planned to have Black students weigh in on the student-facing staff areas of the university where they would like staff to receive culturally appropriate training on working with students in crisis.
This Task Force recommendation involves establishing an interdepartmental initiative that provides a holistic approach to mental health services and support for Black students.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Elana Bloom, director, Campus Wellness and Support Services
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Ashley Allen, director, Residence Life
- Maurice Riley Case, manager, Black Perspectives Office
- Darren Dumoulin, director, Campus Safety and Prevention Services
- Julie Foisy, director, Student Success Centre
- Myrlie Marcelin, wellness counsellor, Counselling and Psychological Services
- Teeanna Munro, manager, NouLa Centre for Black Students
- Franceso Rizzo, manager, Access and Delivery Services, Concordia Library
- Aisha Topsakal, director of the Office of Rights and Responsibilities
- Andrew Woodall, dean of students
Next Steps: Additional research on Black student experiences with student services and holding focus groups with Black Students.
Supporting Black Knowledges
The historical foundations of our society and, consequently, of our institution are anchored in a colonial past that has had catastrophic consequences on global Black communities and on the value ascribed to their epistemologies. The societal exclusion of Black peoples and their experiences has meant the consequent exclusion from university curricula of their contributions to knowledge and its production. Deliberately countering this historical reality and recognizing Black knowledges as an asset requires direct actions that acknowledge and promote the value of Black experiences and their contributions to society. Supporting the plurality of Black knowledges is anchored in the recognition and integration of Black intellectual traditions within curriculum and research. Supporting the plurality of Black knowledge-makers is sustained by investing in the development, transfer, access to and preservation of multidisciplinary knowledges by Black scholars and communities. These recommendations are anchored in the need for an expanded experience of Black knowledges, knowledge makers and knowledge disseminators through research, scholarship and curriculum across the university community.
A dedication to Black Flourishing in the university includes a deep investment in Black Knowledge production and a valuing of Black scholarship. The Task Force implementation team is working closely with many units across the university to build innovative and necessary tools, resources and programs that house, teach, and inspire synergies in Black knowledge production.
Research and Scholarship
Project Status: Ongoing. Other projects will continue to support and promote Black-led and Black-centred research.
This Task Force recommendation aims to develop and implement mechanisms to improve access to and visibility of Black-led and Black-centred research. This includes promoting Black-led and Black-centred research from Concordians, national and international Black scholars, and visiting guest speakers and artists in collaboration with one or more academic units.
In October 2023, Harambec and the Simone de Beauvoir Institute launched the Dr. Esmeralda Thornhill Black Feminist Speaker Series designed to bring scholars, artists and community organizers who work on Black feminisms to Concordia University. This annual event serves as a platform for Black feminist research, art, and activism, inviting speakers to present their current work and works in progress that center on race, gender, and sexuality.
Project Leads
- Marlihan Lopez, Simone de Beauvoir Institute, co-founder, Harambec
- Jade Almeida, Research Affiliate at the Simone de Beauvoir Institute, co-founder, Harambec
Project Collaborators
- Kimberley Manning, principal, Simone de Beauvoir Institute
- Nathalie Batraville, assistant professor, Simone de Beauvoir Institute
Next Steps: Visit the Harambec website to keep up to date with its events, activities and news.
Black Knowledge Resources and Sources
Project Status: The first cohort completed the pilot in summer 2023. A call for the next cohort will take place in 2024.
The project aims to provide Concordia faculty with the support and resources necessary to infuse Black scholarship in curricula to provide students with an education that is inclusive of Black peoples' experiences, perspectives and realities whose contributions continue to be historically excluded and underrepresented in the classroom.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Maurice Riley Case, manager, Black Perspectives Office
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Luigi Allemano, associate professor, Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema, Faculty of Fine Arts
- Hélène Brousseau, assistant librarian, Concordia Library
- Dianne Cmor, associate university librarian, Teaching and Learning, Concordia Library
- Elaine Cheasley Paterson, associate dean, Programs and Pedagogy, Faculty of Fine Arts
- Jill Didur, associate dean, Faculty Affairs and Inclusion, Faculty of Arts and Science
- Frederica Martin, manager, programs, Internationalization and Sustainability, Faculty Relations, John Molson School of Business
- Katharine Hall, associate librarian, Concordia Library
- Isabella Richmond, graduate student, Faculty of Arts and Science
- Fernanda De Cassia Alves Salgado, graduate student, Faculty of Fine Arts
- Tanja Tajmel, Centre for Engineering in Society, Gina Cody School of Engineering
- Carly Ziter, assistant professor, Department of Biology, Faculty of Arts and Science
Next Steps: The second round of the pilot will be launched in 2024.
Project Status: Complete
Records Management and Archives joined forces with the Task Force implementation team to preserve the materials generated by the President's Task Force on Anti-Black Racism and its subcommittees. These archives pertain to the work of the Task Force between 2020 and 2023, encompassing its final report and recommendations, which will benefit future research and researchers.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Jasmin Cormier-Labrecque, records management analyst, Records Management and Archives
- Julie Daoust, Records Management and Archives lead, Records Management and Archives
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: The archiving was completed in December 2023 and promotion will follow.
Project Status: In progress.
The goal of the Black Knowledges Hub is to foster the creation of communities of practice that actively participate in the transformation of the university by ensuring the advancement of the production, preservation, dissemination and accessibility of knowledges centered on Black lives, histories and intellectual traditions.
Project Lead:
- Désirée Rochat, project lead, Implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Dianne Cmor, associate university librarian, Teaching and Learning
- Jean-Marc Edwards, associate university librarian, Information Systems and Technology
- Rajiv Johal, associate university librarian, Research & Graduate Studies
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: A multi-year phased approach and project plan is being developed.
Encouraging Mutuality
Mutuality is encouraged through concerted efforts to foster mutually beneficial collaborations, the circulation of resources and reciprocal knowledge exchanges. Mutuality also acknowledges the multiple social relations in which the university is embedded, that are produced withing and outside of it and for which they are accountable. With respect to Black communities both insider and outside of the university, Concordia must ensure ethical and responsible relations that actively contribute to the development of these communities.
All of the work of addressing anti-Black racism and investing in Black flourishing happens in community, as is evidenced by all of the collaborations highlighted in this progress report. Encouraging Mutuality is the fourth pillar under which recommendations for transversal collaboration rooted in principles of anti-oppression were proposed. Success highlights from the first year of implementation include:
Community Engagement and Outreach
Project Status: Ongoing. The first planning meeting was held in the summer of 2023.
The goal of developing and implementing ethical guidelines is to provide prospective research partners with concrete guidelines for ethical and accountable community engagement with Montreal’s Black communities and Black community institutions.
Project Lead
- Désirée Rochat, project lead, Implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Susan Edey, senior director, Community Engagement and Social Impact, Office of Community Engagement
- Karen Gregg, coordinator, Research Ethics, Office of Research
- Monica Toca, manager, Research Ethics, Office of Research
- Monica Mulrennan, associate vice-president research, Development and Outreach, Office of the Vice-President Research & Graduate Studies
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: Continued meetings with the Office of Research and the Office of Community Engagement.
Project Status: Ongoing. The first meeting was held in March 2023.
The goal of the inter-university community of practice is to develop a collaborative network focused on exchanging best practices to address anti-Black racism at higher education institutions in Montreal.
Representatives from Concordia University, McGill University, Université de Montréal, Université du Québec à Montréal and Réseau interuniversitaire québécois pour l’équité, la diversité, et l’inclusion (RIQEDI) were present at the first meeting held in spring 2023.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Karen Diop, associate director, Black Inclusion, Success and Strategic Initiatives, Office of the Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic), McGill University.
Project Partners
- Pascale Caïdor, assistant professor, Department of Communication, Université de Montréal
- Terri Givens, Academic Lead and Advisor on the Action Plan of the Anti-Black Racism Working Group (2021-2023) and professor in Political Science, McGill University
- Charlene (Char) Lewis-Sutherland, senior advisor, Faculty Development and Inclusive Pedagogies, McGill University
- Gina Lafortune, professor, Department of Education, Université du Québec à Montréal
- Jacqueline Peters, part-time professor, Department of Classics, Modern Languages and Linguistics; chair of the Caucus of Black Concordians
- Bibiana Pulido, cofonder and excutive director of the Réseau interuniversitaire québécois pour l’équité, la diversité, et l’inclusion (RIQEDI)
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: The next meeting will take place in early 2024.
One of the Task Force recommendations includes releasing an annual progress report to update the community on its activities.
Project status: Complete. The first report was published in November 2023.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- Tallie Segel, project lead, implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Next Steps: The publication of the next report in 2024 documenting continued progress on recommendations.
Developing a web presence for the implementation team helps provide the Concordia and Montreal community with more information on work in progress and project details.
Project status: Complete. The website was delivered in November 2023.
Project Leads
- Cynthia Alphonse, coordinator, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
- James Roach, director of implementation, President’s Task Force on Anti-Black Racism
Project Partners
- Johanne Cadorette, manager, Institutional Communications, University Communications Services
- Shelagh Peden, webmaster and digital content advisor, University Communications Services
Next Steps: The next development phase involves a hub-like structure to centralize university offerings for Black students, faculty and staff.
Conclusion
Following the murder of George Floyd, the world witnessed a surge of interest in fighting anti-Black racism. As a result, many statements and promises that are familiar to generations in the Black community were made.
While working to combat anti-Black racism was, unfortunately, a trend for some who have long since moved on to other passion projects, for Black people, it’s a life project. It continues to be a struggle to be heard, reflected at decision-making tables, in hiring, in curriculum, and the delivery of services.
Despite the momentum to fight anti-Black racism slowing down, it remains a burning passion for Black Concordians, the implementation team, the advisory committee, and our many partners throughout the university. We remain laser-focused on delivering Task Force recommendations and ensuring their continuity beyond the point of delivery so that with cycles of repetition and practice, the recommendations will become embedded in the fabric of university life.
Black peoples have faced the continued challenge of having their scholarship included in academia. This remains a significant struggle alongside fighting for inclusion in various other areas such as access to housing, bank loans, and immigration.
A current focus for the implementation team and advisory committee is to make curriculum and hiring practices more inclusive. This includes the normalization of including Black scholarship in the classroom and seeing qualified and experienced members of the Black community recruited, considered, and hired in key staff roles, as senior leaders and tenured faculty.
While the progress report outlines close to 20 projects, there are also several new collaborations on the horizon, including with Concordia Continuing Education in areas ranging from anti-racism and anti-bias training for its staff, a review of hiring practices, and the integration of Black knowledges in course offerings and the recognition of acquired competencies (RAC) program.
We look forward to working with more units and sectors to support initiatives to combat anti-Black racism at Concordia.
Territorial acknowledgment
Concordia University is located on unceded Indigenous lands. The Kanien’kehá:ka Nation is recognized as the custodians of the lands and waters on which we gather today. Tiohtiá:ke/ Montreal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. Today, it is home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples. We respect the continued connections with the past, present and future in our ongoing relationships with Indigenous and other peoples within the Montreal community.
Honouring Our Ancestors
We call upon our ancestors, remembering all who came before us. We honour you, our African ancestors, who paved the way for us in the diaspora and in the Mother Land, cradle of civilization, Mother Africa. Your bodies, blood, flesh and bones, then and now, nourish the earth and colour great and small, fresh and salted waters. African, Caribbean and Black people, no matter where in the world we are, share a common bond of courage, determination, indomitable spirit and greatness, and we acknowledge our differences and similarities embedded in the bloodlines of kings and queens, inventors, warriors and philosophers. Some of you endured the brutality of transatlantic enslavement, forced to give free labour, built nation states worldwide in bare backs and still manage to be victorious in achievements. We honour you today and call upon your wounded and triumphant spirits to share this space and bask in our glory of you — all our fore mothers, fathers, parents and relations.
We know that you fought alongside Indigenous peoples yesteryear for freedom, so we know that our liberation is tied to the liberation of Indigenous peoples across Turtle Island and the world. We cannot ever be liberated if our Indigenous relations remain in bondage under the tyranny of historical and modern colonialism. We will not let your toil and service to humanity and to Black peoples go in vain, so we carry on in your footsteps, reaching for higher heights, creating memories and deeper prints for those of us here now and babes unfertilized yet to come.
Written by Dr. Delores V. Mullings. Offered to the Inaugural Inter-Institutional Forum of the Scarborough Charter on Anti-Black Racism and Black Inclusion in Canadian Higher Education, May 2022, Vancouver, Canada