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HB NEWS NOT ENOUGH ACCOUNTABILITY WITH RACISM: STUDENTS Continued from page 1 volved, their words and ex- periences spoke volumes. 10 dozen may not appear as a large number of students relative to the en- tire HDSB student popula- tion, a few voices usually re- present the sentiment of many with. respect ‘to experi- ences of racism, discrimina- tion and hate, said Rossana Bisceglia, the board's man- ager of research and countability, in a public vir- gation toprovide safe and in: ive environments, Director of Education Ours looking at issues discrimina- mWhen of racism, hate, tion, oppression of any kind, a small cohort is impactful. One student, one voice is im- pactful, so we don't have to to wait ‘for a substantive "There's a sense of not taking these little things se- riously; a concern that they HDSB photo Halton District School Board actsin order for any concern or at- tention to be paid,” said Jew- el board's hu- man rights and equity advi- Because not all acts of racism and discrimination are blatant and its the sue acts of raci: nation that a1 are of concern, and they equally undermine the student sense of belong- Racism is not held to the same standard of account- ability as other forms of stu- dent misconduct, and a lack Ennis says even one report of student racism warrants action. of an effective response to racism means _ students themselves bear the burden of response on their own be- half, were two more student observations. Students indi- cate that when specific top- ics around race, racism social justice are introduced in class, this is sometimes done in a way that produces harm and exacer- bates stereotypes and preju- dices; it highlights trauma for Black students dedicated & a porting “Students need to know that when they bring their voices forward that we believe them, that we hear them and that we're going to take action.” ~ Curtis Ennis, HDSB Director of Education rather than represents ra- ‘A Grade 10 student com- mented that they had yet to be taught by someone of col- our and “not even only for me to look up to a teacher that I could fully connect and relate to, the learning environment, but rather that these pro- cesses were not fully imple- mented, sal Amoah. ng the board's new commitments in its fight the establishment of a sys- tem racism response team. That team would oversee the ac- other students see that it's normal to see people of col- our in charge of them." Student concerns were not so much that there were no policies or processes to address discrimination in countability of actons and monitor and respond to re- ports of racism and discrim- ination, said Rob Eatough, ment of a graduation coach munity engagement. = said the board had § heard "loud and clear" from § the students that there are noacts of racism that are too = small that cause harm. 3 Oftentimes it's not the in- 8 tent, it's the impact, said En- ms rstudents need to know that when they bring their voices forward that we be- lieve them, that take action," said Ennis. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: With virtual con- versations with students regarding racism recently held by the Halton District School Board, we explore the findings of those talks and share officials’ response to them. COMMUNITY CULTURE DAYS EVENTS EARN NATIONAL RECOGNITION MELANIE HENNESSEY mhennessey@ metroland.com Halton Hills’ diverse slate of Culture Days activ- ities have been named among the best in the coun- The municipality's annu- al festival climbed the rank- ings for a third consecutive year to earn a top three fin- ish amid all mid-size cities in I Halton Hills also landed a spot on the overall ral top 10 list, placing sixth ng all participating towne an and. cit- jes across the country in ferms of the number of Cul- ture Days activities present- ed locally. "Our artists and cultural groups have shown incredi- ble resilience during the pandemic," said Mayor Rick Bonnette. "Culture Days is an excellent example of how arts and culture contribute to the healthy and sustain- able development of the of Halton Hills as a DOWNTOWN GEORG! 83 Mill St | 905 873 1867 METRO PLAZA 371 Mountainview Rd S | 905 873 1861 Please phor # hole, and the importance of continued support to the creati economic growth of this sector." Two Halton Hills activities re- Culture Days Spotight Awards pro- artist Pauline Gladstone earned top honours (best in-person activity) for her community art project ‘On the Table.’ The unde gave resi- dents a chance to contribute their personal positive pan- demic stories by drawing di- rectly on Gladstone's canvas — an eight-foot picnic table with dozens of story spots to fill. The table is being donat- ed to Halton Women's Place for their February fundrais- ing ai Meditat instructor Chantal Garneau, who was also a funding recipient of the Town's Artist Next Door guided meditations in three Ss. For further details on the public, visit halton- hills.ca/culturedays.