Dear Community Partner,
We are pleased to inform you that an update on the work of the Anti-Racism Secretariat (ARS) will be presented to the Finance and Economic Development Committee on Tuesday June 1st.
The purpose of this report is to highlight the activities, progress achieved and proposed process for the development of the City’s First Anti-Racism Strategy.
In July 2020, the Anti-Racism Specialist was recruited, and Council approved the nomination of Councillor Rawlson King as the Council Liaison for Anti-Racism and Ethnocultural Relations Initiatives to support the initiatives of the Anti-racism Secretariat.
The ARS, led by the Anti-Racism Specialist, targets systemic racism by applying an anti-racist approach to the way the City develops policies, makes decisions, evaluates programs, and measures outcomes. The strategy will be informed by a broad and comprehensive multi-phase engagement plan. To date, over 500 Ottawa residents have participated in Phase I of the engagement plan, which addresses six key priority areas previously identified by the community— employment equity, housing, governance, economic development, health outcomes, and youth development.
The ARS will launch a second round of community engagement sessions later this spring to engage groups with intersectional identities, community partners and stakeholders who did not engage as actively during the first phase.
Later this fall, an Anti-Racism Secretariat Advisory Table will inform the planning processes and deliverables for the Anti-Racism Strategy. This advisory table will be comprised of anti-racism leaders from racialized communities who will provide subject matter expertise on strategic actions, key performance indicators and expected outcomes of the strategy.
We hope to keep you informed on the development of the Anti-Racism Strategy as the work progresses.
In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact us at [email protected] with any questions you may have.
Best regards,
Suzanne
Suzanne Obiorah (she/ her/ elle) Director, Gender and Race Equity, Inclusion, Indigenous Relations and Social Development Directrice, de l’équité des genres et des races, de l’inclusion, des relations avec les Autochtones et du développement social Community and Social Services | Services sociaux et communautaires City of Ottawa | Ville d’Ottawa
I acknowledge that I live and work on unceded Algonquin territory; I am committed to reconciliation efforts. Je reconnais que je travaille et je vis sur un territoire non cédé de la nation algonquine Anishinabe. Je m’engage à participer aux efforts de réconciliation