FCSS-FESC SUBMISSION RE:

RACIAL EQUITY IN THE EDUCATION

SYSTEM ACT, 2022
6 February 2023

Dear Members of Provincial Parliament:

Please see attached a policy brief regarding the Racial Equity in the Education System Act, 2022
(Bill 16). We hope you will take into consideration our comments and suggestions when Bill 16
comes forward for second reading.

Founded in 2012, the Federation of Canadian Secondary Students / Fédération des élèves du
secondaire au Canada (FCSS-FESC) is an entirely non-partisan youth-led charity that aims to
inform, educate, and ultimately empower high school students to foster social justice initiatives in
their schools and local communities. Over our 10+ year history, we have advocated for the
interests of Canadian secondary students, simultaneously developing programming enriching the
educational experience.

We would welcome the opportunity to answer questions, receive comments or meet to further
discuss our recommendations.

Sincerely,

Alexander Moghadam
Chief Communications Officer / Chef de la communication
alexander.moghadam@fcss-fesc.ca / +1 (289) 408-8600
Preface

Racial Equity in the Education System Act, 20221 (“the Bill”) was introduced as a Private
Members’ Bill and passed first reading in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario on August 30,
2022. The Bill makes amendments to the Education Act,2 Anti-Racism Act, 20173 and various
other acts relating to postsecondary education. FCSS-FESC advocates on behalf of Canadian
secondary students and the focus of this brief will be on amendments made to the Education Act
and Anti-Racism Act, 2017.

Background

Canada has a long history of racism, spanning from the days of colonization to our modern era
(e.g., the residential school system and discriminatory laws against Asian immigrants) that have
characterized the foundations of many Canadian institutions, including Ontario’s education
system. In 1850, the Common School Act, entrenched Black Ontarians in a segregated schooling
system and the last segregated Ontario school only closed in 19654.

Over 70% of hate crimes in Canada are related to race, ethnicity, or religion.5 From 2018 to 2021,
Ontario has seen the number of hate crimes increase by a staggering 25%.6 This reinforces the
importance of anti-racism education given that education plays an important role in shaping the
views of students from a young age. The issue of racism is particularly important today given that
one in four Ontarians are immigrants or refugees, hailing primarily from East Asia and the
Middle-East: groups who have been historically discriminated against in Ontario7.

Students enrolled in Ontario’s education system are often in the most vulnerable developmental
stages as young adolescents. Consequently, racial discrimination can pose a significant toll on
the academic performance and interactions of marginalized students8.

1
Bill 16, An Act to amend various Acts with respect to racial equity, 1st Sess, 43rd Leg, Ontario, 2022.
2
Education Act, RSO 1990, c E.2.
3
Anti-Racism Act, 2017, SO 2017, c 15.
4
Aladejebi, Funké, “Black History: How racism in Ontario schools today is connected to a history of segregation”, (8
February 2021), online: The Conversation
<http://theconversation.com/black-history-how-racism-in-ontario-schools-today-is-connected-to-a-history-of-segregatio
n-147633>.
5
“Police-reported hate crime, by type of motivation, Canada (selected police services)”, (2 August 2022), online:
Statistics Canada <https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=3510006601>.
6
Ibid.
7
“Immigrants make up the largest share of the population in over 150 years and continue to shape who we are as
Canadians”, (26 October 2022), online: <https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/221026/dq221026a-eng.htm>.
8
Walker, John & Daniyal Zuberi, “School-Aged Syrian Refugees Resettling in Canada: Mitigating the Effect of
Pre-migration Trauma and Post-migration Discrimination on Academic Achievement and Psychological Well-Being”
(2020) 21:2 Int Migration & Integration 397–411, online: <http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s12134-019-00665-0>.

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A qualitative study that interviewed student refugees determined that they suffered from
post-migration discrimination within classrooms and felt increasingly distressed with academic
failure, which pushed them to dislike school and not pursue post-secondary education.9
Furthermore, the study found that of polled Canadians, 47% of them did not see refugees who
came to Canada as “real” refugees, despite the fact that over 93% of these refugees lived in war
zones and refugee camps and nearly 75% were witness to violence.10 The post-traumatic stress
these refugees experience coupled with the racial discrimination found in Ontario’s educational
institutions is, in many cases, incredibly detrimental, which therefore highlights the importance of
anti-racism initiatives.
re: Amendments to the Education Act

Amendments to subsection 170(1) of the Act will require school boards to develop protocols to
address incidents of racism. While most school boards already have processes for dealing with
incidents of discrimination or racism, this legislative requirement will ensure that all school boards
have comprehensive protocols that encompass all stages of dealing with racism, from recognition
to response.

The addition of s 212(1.1) would impose a fine on anyone that disrupts school or class with racist
language or activities. Students have the right to learn in a safe environment, and penalizing
anyone that disrupts student learning is an important step in the right direction. We would further
stipulate that the amendment be amended to explicitly include online instruction, given the
proliferation of “Zoom bombing,”11 a phenomenon where uninvited users join teleconference
meetings and share inappropriate content or make lewd comments.

re: Amendments to the Anti-Racism Act, 2017

Amendments to the Anti-Racism Act, 2017 to include anti-Asian racism in the definition of
anti-racism is long overdue and represents a meaningful step forward in combating racism and
coupled with amendments to the Education Act, will ensure that school boards have a legal
obligation to take appropriate action to address anti-Asian racism.

9
Ibid.
10
Ibid.
11
Greenberg, Andy, “Why Insider ‘Zoom Bombs’ Are So Hard to Stop”, (3 February 2021), online: WIRED
<https://www.wired.com/story/zoombomb-inside-jobs/>.

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