GRSJ224: Racial Discrimination at Universities

Racism and Discrimination

You may consider the topic of racism to be a very negative and controversial discussion. The act of racism produces many different forms of preconceptions towards other race's and the belief that some races are better than others. Often times, you may witness acts of racism in the form of prejudice thoughts, discriminative acts, and even hatred/harassment due to these preconceptions that are created by society. Racism occurs in many different parts of society and is an ongoing issue that countries all around the world struggle with.

The University of British Columbia

The University of British Columbia located in Vancouver, BC. is known as one of the top universities in Canada and was ranked the 34th best University in the world in 2020. UBC is a school that prides itself among its commitment in creating a learning experience/environment that consists of zero discrimination. This is a matter that is taken very seriously at UBC and policies have been put in place to try and mitigate all forms of discrimination. The University implemented Policy No.3: Discrimination and Harassment which prohibits discrimination on 13 grounds. UBC strictly "opposes and denounces anti-Black racism, racial profiling, harassment and discrimination of any kind."

Anti-Black Racism: UBC Congress 2019

Although UBC is a very proactive school and is working towards putting an end to all forms of racism and discrimination, the University did experience some controversy in June of 2019. The University of British Columbia was the host venue for Congress 2019, which is an where different scholarly associations come together for an annual conference, making it the largest academic gathering in Canada. Unfortunately, it was noted that a student from Nova Scotia attending the conference had been subjected to anti-black Racism, racial profiling, and harassment by two other congress participants at the UBC hosted event. The Nova Scotia attendee, Shelby McPhee, states that two white attendee's were harassing him by constantly taking photos and videos of him without his consent, and he was racially profiled when he was accused of stealing a laptop. The two white attendee's had contacted the RCMP "suggesting that a black guy who didn't seem to fit the 'profile' of a conference attendee... had stolen a laptop" It was very clear to McPhee and other conference attendee's that these two individuals had targeted McPhee simply based off of his race and skin colour. The University of British Columbia was deeply concerned by the incident, and apologized not only to McPhee, but as well to all racialized individuals who frequently are subjected to emotional and physical violence due to their race.

UBC Struggles with Racist Graffiti Acts

In November of 2017, the University of British Columbia struggled with anonymous forms of racism around the Vancouver campus. Around the time of the University's yearly Remembrance Day celebrations, Pro-Nazi remarks were being plastered around the University's forestry building, and at War Memorial Gym where the university holds their Remembrance Day events. The graffiti placed around campus included images of Swastikas and racial words including 'heil hitler'. The University did not tolerate the acts of racism, and quickly involved the UBC RCMP to investigate.

Queens University

Queens University located in Ontario, is another University that is greatly concerned with the topic of racism and the issues that racism present. The University works toward putting an end to discrimination towards race and created strict guidelines presented in the Principal's Advisory Committee Report on Race Relations". Queen's University has reflected that they are taking ongoing measures to ensure that everyone apart of the Queen's community are able to thrive in an environment without discrimination based on race or race related grounds.

Systemic Racism Towards Faculty of Colour and Aboriginal Faculty at Queen's University

Doctor Francis Henry and Professor Emerita from York University, conducted a study in 2004 to examine the University to understand why a faculty woman of colour and 5 others left Queen's University due to experiencing racism. After presenting a questionnaire survey to 1748 individuals, in which 53 of those individuals identified themselves as belonging to a visible minority group, it became clear that the University still struggled with discrimination towards other races. It was suggested that many felt discriminated in the Queen's community when it came to hiring positions and student acceptance/rejection due to the fact that white privilege was heavily present in the community. Students stated that they felt when going to Queens, it was very 'mono-cultural' and many of the students had never encountered a multicultural experience before Queens.It was clear to researchers that the University struggles to "overcome deeply entrenched cultural beliefs, values, norms and structures that preserve the continued dominance of whiteness."

Western University

Western University in London, Ontario has faced much backlash recently due to the occurrence of racial slurs being made in lectures by professors. Although Western University has implemented non-discrimination/harassment policies it is clear that the University still struggle with staff and students abiding to these policies. An undergraduate student, Chizoba Oriuwa, politely called out her white professor in October 2019 for using the N-Word during a lecture as using this language was hateful and wrong. An apology was made by the professor, but Oriuwa began to receive racist and hateful emails anonymously from other members of the Western University community. The situation raised Western President, Alan Shepard's attention, and he was quick to recognize that the University needed to make more effort in putting a stop to racism and discrimination in it's community.

Anti-Racism Working Group

In response to the series of racist online attacks directed towards Chizoba Oriuwa, President Alan Shepard and other members of the Western community constituted towards a Anti-Racism Working Group that would start in January 2020. The Anti-Racism Working Group is a program comprised by students, faculty, and staff members of the University that will work towards building a more inclusive and safe environment for all member of the campus community. The group with present a series of 'listening sessions' where students, staff and faculty are welcome to discuss their experience with racist encounters on campus. As well, community members are able to share anonymously their experiences by answering an online survey.

External Links for More Information

• https://www.ubc.ca/about/our-place.html
• https://globalnews.ca/news/3857951/nazi-posters-discovered-at-ubc-on-remembrance-day/

• https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/ubc-rcmp-investigate-2-racist-graffiti-incidents-on-campus-1.4398152
• https://www.uwo.ca/arts/news/apology.html
• https://lfpress.com/news/local-news/western-university-student-who-called-out-professor-over-n-word-facing-racist-backlash

References

• Discrimination and Harassment. (2019). The University of British Columbia Board of Governors. Retrieved from https://universitycounsel-2015.sites.olt.ubc.ca/files/2019/08/Discrimination-Policy_SC7.pdf

• Doane, A. (2006). What is Racism? Racial Discourse and Racial Politics. Critical Sociology, 32(2–3), 255–274. https://doi.org/10.1163/156916306777835303

• Ha, A. (2019, June 7). Black Congress attendee is allegedly racially profiled, harassed. The Ubyssey. Retrieved from https://www.ubyssey.ca/news/congress-presenter-allegedly-profiled/

• Henry, F., & Emerita. (2004, April). Retrieved April 8, 2020, from https://www.queensu.ca/inclusive/sites/default/files/assets/Henry Report, 2004.pdf

• Non-Discrimination/Harassment Policy. (2017). Manual of Administrative Policies and Procedures. Retrieved from https://www.uwo.ca/univsec/pdf/policies_procedures/section1/mapp135.pdf

• Principal’s Implementation Committee on Racism, Diversity, and Inclusion. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.queensu.ca/principal/sites/webpublish.queensu.ca.opvcwww/files/files/PICRDI-Final-Report-accessible.pdf