ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER

CapU chooses inaction on a groundbreaking anti-racist charter

Santa Ono joined over 40 universities across Canada in the signing of the Scarborough Charter on Anti-Black Racism and Black Inclusion in Canadian Higher Education.

Through the Charter, the signing universities commit to four principles that “should guide the letter and spirit of all university and college policy making and action.” (3): Black Flourishing, Inclusive Excellence, Mutuality and Accountability. Surprisingly, given our generally strong focus on equity, diversity and inclusion, Capilano University (CapU) has yet to sign the Scarborough Charter. It’s hard to say what could be behind this decision, but the ripples it created can be felt across CapU’s BIPOC community.

“Part of me thinks it’s not on purpose,” said an African-Canadian second-year student. “It may have been just another paper chucked on an ever-growing pile. It’s still not good, not by any stretch of the imagination. It means that we’ve been forgotten, and especially right now, that’s not okay.”

CapU president Paul Dangerfield did not respond to requests for comment.

Given the amount of publicity put out by UBC concerning the signing of this document, it seems unlikely that the waves did not reach CapU’s beach. The University has, or had, a chance to set a good example and show its support for its burgeoning BIPOC community, and only time can tell whether or not CapU will take this document into its EDI policies, or whether it will leave it behind.

In CapU’s Envisioning 2030 plan, as outlined on their website, they list one of their future goals to be “(to) instill a culture of equity, diversity and inclusion in all of our operations and outreach.” Future plans aside, the chance to make a bold first step towards that goal, alongside over 40 Canadian universities, was presented to them. What they did with that chance, or rather, what they didn’t do, does not inspire confidence in the University’s future EDIrelated plans. While no interviewees had previously heard of the Scarborough Charter, when confronted with the news of CapU’s inaction, supportive words were few and far between.

“It’s a sheet of paper,” said a first-year international student. “Sure, the signing of that sheet holds them to a plan of action, but if they really mean to champion a movement of equity, diversity and inclusion by 2030, they would already be doing what the charter wants them to. The fact that they didn’t participate in the signing of the charter doesn’t just mean that they don’t plan to make steps towards Black inclusion - it means that they might not be doing a lot of other things that we haven’t heard about.”

In the wake of a continuing civil rights movement, little actions like these have a big impact. As a university, where so many students come looking for a home, for a place where they feel seen, heard and cared for, any action (or inaction) that looks to perpetuate the status quo will make a large portion of the student body lose that sense of belonging. There comes a point where one’s actions must be driven not by money or convenience, but by the people around them. CapU has the power to, with a few words, do great good or great harm to its 12,000+ students, and it’s time they accepted that fact.

The ball is in their court, and currently, they’re sprinting it towards their own goal.