City of Calgary unanimously votes to pass a new anti-racism motion
Via Unplash James EadesVia Unplash James Eades
Change is coming! Monday, Councillors of the City of Calgary unanimously voted to pass an anti-racism motion that will require that officials formally listen, learn and reevaluate internal procedures.
As protests become less frequent, and social media feeds return to its familiar state of vacation TBT’s and pet photos, it’s important to continue believing and fighting for equality. The heart of the Black Lives Matter Movement beats on, and with it, so should the empathy, compassion, and activism of the privileged.
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This new motion includes 6 necessary actions, as well as a promise to do better systematically.
As part of this major step forward, council members will now have to take and repeat anti-racism training. This training will also have to be taken by senior administration and be taught by professionals.
The motion also asks that Calgary police report all anti-racism work to the city council, who will also hold a public consultation on systematic racism with an expert panel in attendance.
An anti-racism action committee will now be established to develop and implement a community action strategy, and the city will also begin reevaluating its budget, HR and organizational structure to make more room for diversity and inclusion for all.
Lastly, the community-based public safety task force will now be asked to consider any and all issues of systematic racism within its work.
The motion will be discussed further during a council meeting Tuesday, where they will talk about adding two additional motions brought forward by Councillor Evan Woolley. According to CBC News, one of these motions would ask the city to invest $120,000 in the creation of four murals that represent the movements started by People of Colour including the Black and Indigenous communities.
Although equality should have been for all since the beginning of time, we appreciate that they are actively trying to make Calgary a better and more inclusive place going forward. It’s never too late to become a better person, a better city or a better country, so we’ll take this as a win.
