June 15, 2020 | Notice of Motion: Calgary's Commitment to Addressing Anti-Racism
The following Notice of Motion will be introduced at the June 15, 2020 City Council Meeting by Coun. Carra at 7:15 PM. Watch: http://video.isilive.ca/calgary/live.html
These documents contain links to all references in efforts to remain fully transparent and accountable in our actions moving forward. The work is ongoing, but we clearly need to and must do more to ensure that our City is truly a place for Calgarians of all ages, wages, and stages.
WHEREAS recent protests as part of the Black Lives Matter movement have articulated the clear and compelling reasons to redouble our efforts to achieve structural adjustments to existing inequalities within our City and our society by listening to and learning from those who have been impacted by systemic racism;
AND WHEREAS the City of Calgary has worked to identify and address structural inequalities experienced by our citizens through a variety of policies and initiatives, including but not limited to: the Social Wellbeing Policy, Welcoming Communities Policy, Gender Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, Multicultural Communications & Engagement Strategy, Resilient Calgary Strategy and the White Goose Flying Report;
AND WHEREAS in 2006, The City of Calgary became a member of the Canadian Coalition of Municipalities Against Racism and Discrimination (CCMARD, now known as Canadian Coalition of Inclusive Municipalities (CIM)), committing to undertake initiatives to eliminate all forms of discrimination with a view to building open and inclusive societies;
AND WHEREAS in Fall 2019, Calgary City Council unanimously opposed Quebec’s Bill 21 (An Act Respecting the Laicity of the State) and agreed to continue to support building a welcoming city where everyone has access to opportunity and prosperity;
AND WHEREAS on February 3 2020, City Council established a Community-Based Public Safety Task Force “that will report back to Council with its best advice and recommendations relating to identifying and addressing community concerns around violence, including gangs and gun violence, based on the Task Force's engagement with community groups, review of existing programs and services locally and in other relevant jurisdictions”, understanding that the Task Force will be engaging with marginalized communities, including Black and Indigenous communities, as part of this work.
AND WHEREAS the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association’s (AUMA) Welcoming & Inclusive Communities Toolkit, in partnership with the Government of Alberta, “supports municipalities to implement policies and practices to help overcome issues or racism and discrimination”;
AND WHEREAS despite the prevalence of these aforementioned policies and programs, structural inequalities persist and further marginalize many Calgarians, particularly those who are Black, Indigenous and People of Colour, who find themselves unable to live lives of full potential and dignity;
AND WHEREAS the Alberta civil liberties research centre has defined "anti-racism" as being "the active process of identifying and eliminating racism by changing systems, organizational structures, policies and practices and attitudes, so that power is redistributed and shared equitably."
AND WHEREAS in Action Dignity’s latest report, COVID-19 Related Racism and Xenophobia (released 2020 April 29), 84% of respondents indicated they had either seen, heard or experienced incidents of racism or xenophobia related to COVID-19;
ND WHEREAS citizens around the world are demanding more accountability from public safety and policing organizations regarding the implementation of anti-racism practices and policies, and Calgarians would benefit from a more transparent discussion around the many efforts of the Calgary Police Service in working toward a citizen-overseen, community-policing, community-based participatory police service models
AND WHEREAS Calgary City Council and the Administrative Leadership Team are currently not reflective of our community in terms of gender and racial diversity, which means we need to be much more intentional about actively working to advance the ideals and actions set out in the policies and strategies referenced above, and must be held accountable by everyone we serve;
AND WHEREAS Municipal governments in Canada have responsibilities under Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as the Alberta Human Rights Act and play an important role in combating racism and discrimination while fostering equality, equity in opportunity, and respect for all citizens.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Calgary respond to citizen requests to hold a public consultation on systemic racism through a meeting of the Standing Policy Committee on Community and Protective Services which would include presentations from an expert panel and opportunities for public submissions;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the city of calgary establish an anti-racism action committee, to be appointed at its organizational meeting in october 2020, to develop and implement a community-based anti-racism strategy that will:
(a) identify systemic barriers to accessing city of calgary programs and services;
(b) identify language barriers in accessing information regarding the city of calgary program and services
(c) identify opportunities to work with community partners and organizations on actions to address structural racism on a community-wide level; and
(d) be diverse and inclusive, and a true reflection of calgary's residents
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that as a part of the work above, and informed by the aforementioned public consultation through the community and protective services committee, council direct Administration to immediately engage in meaningful re-evaluation of City of Calgary internal practices and policies through the Diversity and Inclusion Framework lens. This includes but is not limited to budget deliberations, organizational structure, human resource practices, and procurement.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Calgary City Council (including Council Staff) and the Administrative Leadership Team demonstrate a commitment to meaningful change by undertaking mandatory training on anti-racism best practices as soon as possible, and commit to recurring training no less than once every four years.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Calgary City Council formally request the Calgary Police Commission to report to Council as soon as possible on the anti-racism work currently underway and contemplated within the Calgary Police Service, and any plans for engaging in a broader conversation with the community on the future of policing in a diverse city.
AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Council request the Community-based Public Safety Taskforce to consider issues of systemic racism in its work.
