Don't Be Afraid of a Conversation About Race, Op-ed

NOTE: The following is an op-ed piece from Tracey Williams, director and CEO of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission.

Saturday, March 21, is the United Nation's International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. It prompts conversations on a subject that badly needs attention, a conversation about our history, the present and our future.

Recent incidents highlight a systemic problem in how racial discrimination issues are handled. There has been ongoing media coverage of these issues and the large, public conversation illustrates how divisive the subject of race and racism can be.

In our daily lives we each have opportunities to influence conversations about race. How we appear in our communities -- at work, at home, and elsewhere -- has the power to educate, inform or deepen every conversation we participate in.

Race and racism are not topics many feel comfortable discussing. People will say they don't notice the colour of someone's skin when what they may mean is I'm not racist. Discussions of race spark fear in people who lack close relationships with a diverse community.

People who have friends or family who are aboriginal, black or African Nova Scotian, Middle Eastern or otherwise racially visible, are often comfortable asking questions about culture, tradition or community. They know their curiosity won't offend or bring accusations of ignorance or offensiveness. Their relationships foster an understanding of people in their lives that trump stereotypes.

These relationships foster trust, which brings with it understanding. This knowledge and these people inform a community of judgment that each of us possess, to some extent.

Jennifer Llewellyn, a Schulich School of Law professor, researcher and scholar of restorative approaches, describes a community of judgment as those influencers whose values influence others actions and opinions. Likening it to a child on a playground, Ms. Llewellyn equates this to a voice in a child's head as they decide whether to take a dangerous leap off the unsafe perch. As a parent, she hopes her voice is one of reason that the child considers alongside those of their peers -- the comic superhero or daredevil classmates.

People with racially diverse families and/or circles of friends benefit from having this diversity in their community of judgment. These friends and family members are important to them and influence their opinions and actions. But not everyone has such diversity in their lives. Many do, though, have friends and family that speak up in the presence of racial insensitivity. You may be one of those people yourself.

Whether it's your race or your belief that racism is unacceptable, you're likely a member of someone's community of judgment. The way you present yourself, your values and actions have earned you respect from those around you. You have influence. We all do. It is up to us to use that influence within the communities of judgment to which we belong.

By speaking up and seeking opportunities to influence conversations about race, we can help foster a more inclusive society.