Black Lives Matter

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2 Responses to “Black Lives Matter”

1. 

   Sherri Spelic

   June 27, 2020

   Hi Sue, thanks for putting your support for Black Lives in writing. It matters and I appreciate it. Without knowing your specific context, one thing I think may be worth considering is in your role as leader to look around among your faculty and staff and ask them and yourself: how well does our organization practice equity? Who holds power and who holds the least influence? The power differentials always tell a story that may or may not have a lot to do with race. The point is that as we rally around Black Lives, especially in contexts where Blacks are few and far between or even absent, ask yourself why that is but also what you areas for equity growth are for all concerned.
   I hope you are well. Take care,
   Sherri

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   1. 

      Sue Dunlop

      June 29, 2020

      Hi Sherri – thank you so much for commenting. I really appreciate it.

      The question of how well the school board I work in (Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board in Hamilton, Ontario) practices equity is such a good one. Like all school boards in Ontario, we are required to have an Equity Action Plan, and there are some within the board who are actively working on anti-racism and equity. There is still so much to do, especially in the area of hiring for all parts of the organization. We need many more Black, Indigenous, and racialized people in teaching, in the principalship, in management and in our senior level leadership. The next key area for me is how we are actively anti-racist in the classroom, in the hallways, on the playing field, in meetings, in parent/guardian interviews, in counselling sessions – everywhere.

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