Hello there,

Thank you for joining our January Communities Ending Poverty Anti-Racism call, where members engaged in a coffee-style chat about anti-racist work and explored questions and challenges. 
 
The group decided to forgo recording the session and detailed follow-up notes due to the topic's sensitive nature. We wish to make these Communities of Practice a safe space for open dialogue.  

Discussion Highlights

• The group discussed tokenism and how it manifests in different collaboratives or organizations.
• We explored different avenues where people are trying to change power dynamics.
• Each person shared the different reasons why they came to the CoP.
• We reiterated the importance of building relationships and timing of the upcoming February 1 webinar, Understanding the Impact of Building Relationships.
• How do we distinguish if an initiative is tokenistic or anti-racist? We need a robust analysis of the power dynamic by asking:
  • Who does the initiative give power to?
  • Who is being most impacted by the initiative or decisions?

Resources

• Article | Avoiding Racal Equity Detours | Students experiencing racism can’t 
  wait for schools to move at their own pace and comfort level.

Upcoming Opportunities

• WEBINAR | Understanding the Impact of Building Relationships | February 1 | 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. ET | Without investment in relationships the movements we need to fight for racial equity, climate resilience and economic justice are doomed to fail. When we invest in relationship’s communities become resilient and our movements five us cause for hope.
• WEBINAR | When Children Succeed: A Collective Impact Success Story | February 28 | 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. ET | The project increased Grade 3 literacy rates of students in low-income schools to match the provincial district average by reducing the student-to-teacher ratio in classrooms Kindergarten – Grade 2
• EVENT | CEP 2023 National Gathering: Summit for Strength | April 25 - 27th | Learners across Canada will convene to co-create a plan for resiliency that moves beyond ending poverty and toward economic mobility in ways that honour people, partnerships, and the planet. 
  
  

Sincerely,

Maureen Owens (she/her) 

Learning Lead – Communities Ending Poverty

Vibrant Communities, Tamarack Institute

maureen@tamarackcommunity.ca