Canadian Museum for Human Rights has released the interim report of the independent third-party review into allegations of systemic racism and other forms of oppression within the Museum. Harris’ report identifies systemic racism within the Museum which has had a negative physical, emotional and financial impact on employees who are Black, Indigenous or People of Colour. It also identifies instances of sexism, heterosexism and homophobia within the organization.https://humanrights.ca/sites/prod/files/2020-08/A-FullReport_EN.pdf

The Board of Trustees recently formed a Diversity and Inclusion Committee led by Trustee Julie Jai. The Board will also be reviewing the Museum’s five-year strategic plan to prioritize diversity and inclusion goals and developing metrics to measure progress. “We will create and implement policies and procedures that cover all aspects of the Museum’s work,” added Julie Jai. “We have an opportunity to transform the Museum into a workplace that practices anti-racism and rejects all forms of oppression, including sexism, heterosexism, homophobia and transphobia. With sustained effort, the Museum will emerge much stronger for it.”

The Board welcomes the findings and is taking immediate action to implement the five recommendations pertaining to the Board. (Prior to receiving the report, the Board of Trustees created a new Diversity and Inclusion Committee).

The five recommendations to be implemented immediately are:

• Diversity and Inclusion Committee to require not fewer than one Black person, one Indigenous person and one person who identifies as LGTBQ2+ at all times, in addition to members of additional equity groups;
• All board policies approved to date and future board policies will undergo a thorough analysis to screen for bias, and to ensure that board policies promote, and support equity;
• All members of the Board of Trustees engage in ongoing anti-racist and anti-oppression education, both by way of self-learning and through scheduled training sessions;
• The Board of Trustees set goals for the Chief Executive Officer to promote a culture of equity, inclusion and accountability within the Museum; and
• The Board of Trustees require the Chief Executive Officer to engage in meaningful community relations with Black, Indigenous and LGBTQ+ communities, and to ensure meaningful community relations with transgender/gender diverse and Two-Spirit communities in particular.

https://nationtalk.ca/story/cmhr-releases-independent-report