#BlackLivesMatter #IndigenousLivesMatter
We are an organization that has people at the forefront of everything we do. People are capable of fantastically wonderful things. There have been some incredibly dark events over the past few days but on the other side of these events a more galvanized community is coming forward. In light of the #BlackLivesMatter and #IndigenousLivesMatter movements, we felt compelled to share our thoughts, what it means to us and how we can do better.
As a white male, I have lived with incredible privilege. Full stop. The events of the past few weeks have taught me that qualifiers to that statement are not needed or at all warranted. While, I have always considered myself to be a supporter of racial equality and considered it to be a part of my moral fabric, I have been blind to how prevalent racism is within our own country and abroad.
Thanks to my privilege, my exposure to racism has come primarily through my television in the movies or tv shows I have consumed. As these acts of prejudice play out on screen, I am outraged yet it is all too fleeting, and I can comfortably retreat to a reality where this ugliness is not right in front of me. The time for being comfortable is over. I have not done enough to educate myself on the prevalence of systemic racism and what role I can play in supporting those who endure it daily. I will be better. I will move out of my comfort zone and I will be a better ally for people of colour. I will be part of the solution to make our world a better place. The best of places.
~ Drew Stewart
It should go without saying, but here we are: #blacklivesmatter. #indigenouslivesmatter.
I am in solidarity with all black leaders and individuals working to end violence and oppression of the black community. I am in solidarity with indigenous leaders and individuals working to end violence and oppression of the indigenous community. I remind myself (and my white children) on the regular how much privilege we have just by virtue of being born white, but I will never truly understand the magnitude of that privilege.
Until we dismantle the systems that perpetuate the racism that our country was built on by white colonization, violence and oppression will continue to keep people down, keep people in poverty, keep people wanting for justice and equality, keep people wanting for clean water. and keep people searching for plummeting suicide rates. Although in Canada we often tell ourselves that we embrace multiculturalism, we in fact build our country on the backs of the indigenous people from whom we stole this land.
We must build something better. A system that lifts others up, that sees the contribution of black and indigenous people as seen, understood, and valued. I don’t yet know what that system is but I know that it requires amplified voices from the back and indigenous communities across our country. I’m listening and learning and am ready to take action.
~ Christina Stewart
