Do Canadian Campuses Have Racism Problems?

These responses lay bare the similarities between the black experience in Canada and the United States.

Sandy Hudson (left), Brie Berry, Yusra Khogali and Sefanit Habtemariam of the Black Liberation Collective are seen here on the University of Toronto campus on Wednesday, February 3, 2016. Lucas Oleniuk/Toronto Star  (LUCAS OLENIUK / TORONTO STAR)

When we hear stories about anti-black racism at U.S. colleges, we like to imagine that Canada is a superior place. Not so

When we hear stories about anti-black racism and the struggle against it in the United States, we like to imagine that Canada is a superior place; a place that, with our different history, and has escaped such problems. Sadly that is not the case.

Take the recent controversy at the University of Missouri. The stories of anti-black racism at that school were all too familiar to us. One of us is a graduate of the University of British Columbia and we are both current students at the University of Toronto, and we recognized the plight of black Mizzou students from our own experience. Blackface, a lack of representation, the slow death or complete erasure of programs that focus on black people and thought; these are issues above the 49th parallel, and it’s time we recognize it and do something to fix it.

At our own institution, there are no courses where you can study black people at the graduate level. The school of Global Affairs is completely devoid of programs and courses that focus on the continent of Africa. This is the largest school in Canada, often touted as the best. It’s difficult to imagine such an omission with regard to, say, Europe or Asia. Canada itself has a long and vibrant black history. Should we not be able to study it?

Black students and faculty at the University of Toronto, the University of British Columbia, and other schools across southern and eastern Ontario recognize this, and have begun working with students at institutions across the United States on efforts to resist the racism we experience on our campuses. The success of our movement — and the backlash we have experienced — is telling.

On Nov. 18, black students across the United States and Canada marched, protested and gathered on our respective campuses to share our experiences of what it means to be “black on campus.” From Ottawa to Guelph to Toronto, hundreds of students and faculty participated in the actions. At the University of Toronto, we released a comprehensive list of demands focused on tackling anti-black racism at the school’s core. As a result, the university has agreed that it needs to work on the ways anti-black racism manifests on campus and has committed to begin collecting census data on the representation of black students, faculty, staff and administration.

But the response from some in the academic community was reprehensible. At the University of Guelph, dozens of anonymous attacks on black students were made online in the form of discriminatory remarks, threats and harassment. These responses lay bare the similarities between the black experience in Canada and the United States.

Although the University of Toronto agreeing to collect race-based census data is a great first step, it is only that. It has been two months since we met with administration to discuss our detailed demands. After promising a thorough response to each one, the administration finally responded last week with a disappointing email that did not address our issues in concrete or actionable ways. Our work continues, as it does for the black students on campuses across Canada continuing to organize events and further action.

As a follow-up to their demonstration, black organizers at the University of Guelph held an anti-black racism “teach-in,” exploring the issues black students on Canadian campuses face and how to address them. At Ryerson University, black students are currently working on an anti-black racism poster campaign and a petition for their demands.

It’s time we stop thinking of ourselves as superior to the United States when it comes to racism. We should be looking within and recognizing the racism that exists throughout our society — whether it’s in policing, education, media representation, housing — the evidence is there. Black students know this, and live it. We were encouraged by the University of Toronto’s commitment to collect data, but our demands are far from finished. Working together, black student organizers in both Canada and the U.S. know the changes we’re seeing now are only the beginning.



Sefanit Habtemariam and Sandy Hudson