This is Your New Normal

Racism

• BC Hate Crimes website: https://hatecrimebc.ca/contact/ • Are you experiencing racism in the workplace? Available on the

BCTF Antiracism Poster Resources web page • Racism and COVID-19.

Available on TeachBC • Racism and COVID-19:

Supporting IBPOC teachers. Available on

TeachBC • Racism in Canada Timeline and video. Available on the BCTF Antiracism Poster

Resources web page • Show Racism the Red Card teaching resource. Available on the BCTF Antiracism Lesson Plans web page • For additional antiracism resources and lessons for students at all grade levels, consult the BCTF

Antiracism web pages under Social Justice on the

BCTF website.

Racism and COVID-19

As the outbreak of COVID-19 has increased people’s fear and anxiety, so too has it magnified the historic legacy and present reality of racism in society. The relationship of trust and support that teachers have developed with their students may lead students or their family members to feel safe enough to disclose an incident of racism. This short document provides teachers with information about resources and services to support people experiencing racism, as well as resources for teachers and students to build the necessary skills to advocate for those impacted by racism.

Racism and COVID-19: Supporting IBPOC teacher s

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a significant increase in the incidence of racism. As teachers who identify as IBPOC, you may bear burdens that make you particularly vulnerable at this time. This short document provides IBPOC teachers who are experiencing the impacts of racism with information about resources and support services. By Maryam Adrangi, Burnaby teacher

Iget suspicious every time I hear this phrase because “normal” can mean so many different things. For some people, the new normal means lineups at the grocery store, working full time while taking care of a toddler, or teaching from a laptop. For others, the new normal means that every time they leave the house, they are facing an unprecedented amount of fear of discrimination. For some, the new normal is a little more nefarious.

For People of Colour during the pandemic, the new normal means increasing acts of racism and further entrenching the ways in which we experience structural racism. Asian and Indigenous people are reporting an increased number of hate crimes and are being told, “Go back to where you came from.” Many low-income earners and People of Colour are deemed essential workers but remain undervalued and left begging for proper safety measures or personal protective equipment. Black people highlight that wearing a mask puts them at an increased risk of being criminalized. It is People of Colour from many racialized backgrounds who are being shamed for not following social distancing protocols, when having the ability to follow these guidelines is actually a privilege. These manifestations of racism are on the rise as a result of the pandemic. Unless we act, this is our new normal.

When the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic back in March, I anticipated the swath of anti-Asian sentiment that was to come. The WHO’s announcement was accompanied by President Trump declaring COVID-19 a “Chinese virus,” finger-pointing China for mismanaging the outbreak, and pronouncing that anyone travelling from China should quarantine for 14 days. With all this piled on top of the antiAsian sentiment that is already prevalent in BC, it is no surprise that there has been a record increase in anti-Asian vandalism and graffiti, as well as physical violence and harassment. It was only a matter of time before other racialized communities came forward to talk about how they were also disproportionately experiencing the social and economic implications of this virus.

The list of stories is endless. There are many news articles about the incidents of Asian, Indigenous, Black, and Brown people being shamed, yelled at, or attacked in the streets for not wearing masks or being accused of looking threatening because they are wearing masks. Neighbourhoods made up of predominantly People of Colour are being monitored more closely by police to ensure that they are abiding by social distancing protocols. Meanwhile, city parks and beaches are packed full of White families and friends enjoying sunsets and fresh air—within six feet of each other.

These examples don’t even begin to address how the downturn in the economy has taken an even larger toll on People of Colour. Many newcomers, immigrants, and refugees find themselves in

undervalued and underpaid jobs that have all of a sudden been deemed “essential.” This means that they need to make the difficult choice between risking their lives by going to work or staying home and potentially losing their jobs. Prime Minister Trudeau’s plans and economic stimulus packages don’t always address the precarious situations these families and workers face.

We are beginning to see who is socially protected and untouchable, and unlike what we have heard in Trudeau’s speeches, it isn’t “all Canadians.”

This is a difficult time for everyone. We are all adapting to the instability around us, and we have lost control of many aspects of our lives. This makes people anxious and scared, leading people to sometimes act irrationally—or at least, that is how the mainstream media justifies it. One CBC article, “‘Nothing spreads like fear’: COVID-19 and the dangers of emotional contagion,” even called this behaviour “panicked bullying.” This term suggests that people’s racist bullying is simply rooted in a state of panic because clearly only White people are allowed to panic. Panic and fear are valid emotions during this time of uncertainty, but racist manifestations of these emotions are inexcusable.

Suggesting that this racism is a result of panic, fear, and anxiety brought on by the pandemic suggests that these hate crimes are brand-new phenomena that have never existed previously. This erases the years of colonization and racist policies that have set the stage for racism to be considered a logical and permissible manifestation of anxiety. It also sends a clear message: only White people in Canada can live in fear of threats to their health and economic situation during this pandemic. This contradicts what we would expect, given that People of Colour tend to be more at risk of economic hardships and health issues resulting from this virus.

As the situation changes daily, it is heartbreaking to think that this means conditions will only get worse for People of Colour in our communities. We are told that the virus does not see race, yet race has played and continues to play a huge role in how families are surviving during the pandemic. How did this happen? Or, a more hopeful question to teachers could be: How can we change it?

The way in which racism is impacting our communities is evolving, and we are seeing that life under quarantine and the coronavirus is testing our ability to support each other. If fear and anxiety are causing acts of hate and racism, we need to be talking to our students and colleagues about where those fears and anxieties come from. We need to check if our own reactions—to students, to their stories, to their situations—are perpetuating this racism. Are we failing to see our students’ full experience as one that is shaped by racism, both individual and structural? Or could we even be hiding the fact that individual and structural racism affects us and our loved ones? This is a perspective that students rarely hear.

We do not know what life will be like on the other side of this pandemic. We do, however, know we have a role in figuring out what it looks like. We have seen businesses and governments react in a way we were told was never possible. We are seeing social welfare programs change and adapt. Why can we not see our social relations change as well? Moving towards a world that is more equitable should not simply be a matter of the dollars and cents in people’s bank accounts; it should also be a matter of people’s dignity.

This is where teachers come in. We need to ensure that our interactions with both individual students and with entire classes can include all students and their experiences. We can go beyond our classrooms and organize spaces that celebrate instead of erase the diversity within our schools, locals, and unions. Without these spaces, we fail to see the unique ways in which we are all impacted, as well as the unique ways in which we are trying to find solutions.

Can we abolish all anti-Asian sentiment in BC? Can we break down all the systems that equate disposable workers with racialized workers? Can we ensure that the structures in our world are made anticolonial and anti-oppressive? Can we make space for all our students and coworkers to live with access to services? Maybe we cannot achieve this all right away, but if we don’t try, then we never will. While we may not come out of this pandemic in a post-racial utopia, we can still make efforts to make a more equitable version of our new normal.