Key takeaways:
- The suggestion comes following racism during hockey matches.
- ‘This is not the first organization to have problems like this. But, if you don’t already have an anti-racist policy in place, this is your wake-up call,’ states Manju Varma, New Brunswick’s commissioner on systemic racism.
Manju Varma thinks PEI should make a similar role:
New Brunswick’s commissioner on systemic racism feels P.E.I. should assume a similar role following recent reports of on-ice racism during Island hockey matches.
Manju Varma was assigned to her role in September.
She is glancing at systemic racism in New Brunswick and collecting a report to offer advice to the government on how to disassemble it. But she also listens about the happenings of racism in other Atlantic regions.
At least one Island MLA has been requesting for a racism commissioner on P.E.I.
Also read: Feds create a new committee to tackle the P.E.I. potato export situation
“If I was the government of P.E.I., I would reach out first to New Brunswick,” Varma stated. “I would reach out to the experts that are in the region, your multicultural groups, your academics that work in this place, individuals who work in immigration, and build from the ground up.” Source – cbc.ca
Varma has listened to a few high-profile happenings of racism involving Island hockey players. She stated a role equal to her position could aid probe these happenings.
“A commissioner in a region could have distinct roles. For example, for me, I’m right now gathering information that is my role.” Source – cbc.ca
“If we think about the roles of other commissioners … they take complaints and then they study those complaints. So a commissioner on systemic racism could sort of do the role that I’m doing, or they could do a role where they are sort of the clearinghouse or the go-to for complaints. And then they study.” Source – cbc.ca
