Happening This October 2017
We wish to acknowledge this land on which the University of Toronto operates. For thousands of years it has been the traditional land of the Huron-Wendat, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. Today, this meeting place is still the home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work on this land.
The Anti-Racism and Cultural Diversity Office International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (IDERD) Recognition Award –
Nominations Now Open!
The IDERD Recognition Award and the joint IDERD Conference are a tri-campus campaign which recognizes the continued contribution of U of T students, staff and faculty in the fight against racism on campus and in their communities. The events are a central part of the University’s annual IDERD campaign.
Please download and submit nomination forms.
St George Campus:
NEW COLLEGE ALUMNI SPEAKER SERIES
Social Justice (for Jeantel, Trayvon et al.): Fighting Dialect Prejudice in Courtrooms and Beyond
Thursday, October 12th , 2017
6:00 – 8:00 pm
William Do Auditorium (45 Wilcocks Street)
Guest Speaker: Dr. John R. Rickford
The lecture flows directly from Dr. Rickford’s long-standing focus on sociolinguistics, especially his exploration of the relation between language, ethnicity, class and social structure. Demonstrating how language is inextricably woven into all domains of social life, including structures of justice and policing, he makes clear that we ignore the critical role of language in the everyday at our own peril. He has taken a strong professional interest in the 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman (which sparked the Black Lives Matter movement), and the treatment of Rachel Jeantel who was on the phone with Martin until moments before he died. Her African American Vernacular English during the shooter’s trial was pilloried on social and news media and, given dialect prejudice, contributed to the jury’s disregard of her testimony.
MINDING OUR MINDS ANNUAL CONFERENCE
The Victoria University Office of the Dean of Students will be hosting their annual conference on Mental Health.
Thursday, October 26th, 2017
8:30 am – 3:30 pm
The conference will bring together students, staff, faculty and special guests to discuss current issues surrounding mental health and wellness on campus. Should you have any questions please contact the Office of the Dean of Students: 416-585-4528, or vic.ideas@utoronto.ca. Event Registration and Conference Schedule COMING SOON!
BLACK STUDENTS ASSOCIATION
GET OUT!
A movie screening
Clear your schedules for Friday October the 13th! We will be holding a movie screening for “Get Out”, a Jordan Peele film. For those who don’t know the film is about a young black male named Chris, who goes to meet his white girlfriend, Rose’s family for a weekend away in their remote estate in the woods. But things take a chilling turn when he starts to uncover that this family is not what it seems. With many symbolic nods to slavery, colonialism, and race relations, “Get Out” eloquently crafts an entertaining, thought provoking piece. The location and date of the event is to be announced soon!
MULTI FAITH CENTRE BROWN GIRLS YOGA
2017-2018 Every Thursdays
5:10 pm – 6:00 pm
Multi-Faith Centre (569 Spadina Avenue)
For Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour, who currently or formerly identify as woman/girl
Queer-and trans-positive space.
All bodies, and sizes and levels welcome
Bring your own yoga mats. (Some yoga mats available on site.)
WORKING FOR CHANGE: EXPLORING MEANINGFUL OPPORTUNITIES IN THE SOCIAL JUSTICE FIELD
Friday, October 27th 2017
1:00 pm – 6:00 pm
William Doo Auditorium, New College, 45 Wilcocks Street
Join us for an afternoon of networking, learning and dialogue in sessions on what it takes to work for social justice in the non-profit sector.
Registration and event info: https://cln.utoronto.ca/home.htm
Connections and Conversations

Connections and Conversations is an affinity group for racialized staff at the University of Toronto and their supporters. The staff-driven initiative offers discussions and a support network for racialized staff to flourish at U of T. The focus is to create an open and empowering environment for racialized staff to celebrate their accomplishments and contribute their unique ideas and talents to the University through networking, mentoring and other activities. Local chapters were created on all three campuses – earlier this year.
Connections and Conversations is an affinity group for racialized staff at the University of Toronto and their supporters. The staff-driven initiative offers discussions and a support network for racialized staff to flourish at U of T. The focus is to create an open and empowering environment for racialized staff to celebrate their accomplishments and contribute their unique ideas and talents to the University through networking, mentoring and other activities. Local chapters were created on all three campuses – earlier this year.
The Connections and Conversations group welcomes ALL faculty & staff at UofT, regardless of whether or not you have attended previous meetings. Please join us!
UPCOMING MEETING(S):
Scarborough Campus:
University of Toronto Scarborough – After Summer Social
Thursday, October 12th
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Ralph Campbell Lounge
Miassissauga Campus
University of Toronto Mississauga- Lunch Time Meeting
Thursday, October 26th
12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Deerfield Hall DH 3050
External Community Events
(If you wish to request that your event be included in our monthly newsletter, please submit requests to antiracism@utoronto.ca at least one week prior to the beginning of the new month.)
SIXTIES SCOOP COMPENSATION HEARING
On October 11, 12, and 13th 2017 at Osgoode Hall Courthouse in Toronto, The Honourable Justice E. Belobaba will hear the case of financial compensation owing to the 16,000 survivors of Ontario’s Sixties Scoop
October 11th, 12th, and 13th
8:00 am – 4:00 pm
130 Queen Street West, Osgoode Hall
ANDREA RITCHIE BOOK LAUNCH: INVISIBLE NO MORE
Thursday, October 26th
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
William Doo Auditorium, New College, 45 Wilcocks Street
Invisible No More is a timely examination of how Black women, Indigenous women, and women of color, LGBTQ and con-gender conforming folks of colour experience racial profiling, police brutality, and immigration enforcement. Placing stories of individual women—such as Sandra Bland, Rekia Boyd, Dajerria Becton, Monica Jones, and Mya Hall—in the broader context of the twin epidemics of police violence and mass incarceration, it documents the evolution of movements centering women’s experiences of policing and demands a radical rethinking of our visions of safety—and the means we devote to achieving it.
Disclaimer: This newsletter may contain links to non-Anti-Racism & Cultural Diversity Office (ARCDO) websites. These links are provided solely as convenience to you. The ARCDO is not responsible for the content of any non-ARCDO websites and does not endorse the information contained therein.