Black Canadians Welcome Budget Allocation Recognizing Challenges

By Neil Armstrong

Dr. Christopher Morgan, founder and board member of the Black Health Alliance. Photo contributed

Kwesi Johnson, a community engagement strategist. Photo contributed

Black Canadians are pleased with the allocation in the recently announced 2018 federal budget recognizing the challenges faced by them.

On February 27, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced funding to strengthen multiculturalism and address the challenges faced by Black Canadians.

“As a first step toward recognizing the significant and unique challenges faced by Black Canadians, the government also proposes to provide $19 million over five years that will be targeted to enhance local community supports for youth at risk and to develop research in support of more culturally focused mental health programs in the Black Canadian community,” notes the budget.

It further notes that: “In addition, with the creation of the new Centre for Gender, Diversity and Inclusion Statistics, the government is committed to increase the disaggregation of various data sets by race. This will help governments and service providers better understand the intersectional dimensions of major issues, with a particular focus on the experience of Black Canadians.”

Dr. Christopher Morgan, founder and board member of the Black Health Alliance (BHA) says it welcomes this first step investment in the critical areas of mental health research and programming for Black youth. 

“Clearly more investments and initiatives will have to be made to address the broad social determinants of health (income, education, housing, violence, etc.), but this is a step forward which has the potential to bolster and compliment provincial and municipal initiatives where they exist and stimulate initiatives where they do not yet exist.”

Dr. Morgan says the BHA remains committed to working with community stakeholders and all levels of government “to bring about the transformational cultural and systemic changes needed to improve the health and well being of Black Canadians and our diverse communities throughout Canada.”

He says the country is in an era of reconciliation in which Canadians and all levels of government must work towards a level of atonement for the historical and ongoing mistreatment and oppression of racialized populations. 

The BHA founder noted that the recent federal budget announcement is a direct result of effective organizing and advocacy efforts on the part of organizations and leadership in the Black community.

These not only increased the level of awareness and understanding of the challenges being faced by Black Canadians but also put forth solutions. 

He says this announcement represents putting into action the Prime Minister’s recent recognition and Canada’s commitment to the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent and his public admission of the existence and impact of anti-black racism.

Meanwhile, Kwesi Johnson, a community engagement strategist, feels the budget allocation is a step in the right direction.

“When I read that the PM shared some remarks about anti-black racism I thought to myself, well that's nice but I would have liked it more if they come with some funding to address it. Then, I saw the funds and there was the reaction, well, they can always do better, in terms of the amount but this is a start.”

Johnson says he would like to know more about the metrics around what success looks like.

“What supports are going to be put in place to help community activists, animators and activators who have locally developed solutions, but may lack the capacity to build in evaluation or sustainability components that can allow their solutions to evolve rather than capitulate after funding runs out?”

He is not sure if anything has been suggested in term of archiving the projects but says it could be beneficial if part of the evaluating metrics.

He thinks funding should be attached to “a very purposeful and intentional and culturally tailored outcome, research and archiving metrics.” 

The budget notes that diversity is Canada’s strength and a cornerstone of Canadian identity.
“Recent domestic and international events, like the rise of ultranationalist movements, and protests against immigration, visible minorities and religious minorities, remind us that standing up for diversity and building communities where everyone feels included are as important today as they ever were.”

The government proposes to provide $23 million over two years, starting in 2018–19, to increase funding for the Multiculturalism Program administered by Canadian Heritage. 

This funding would support cross-country consultations on a new national anti-racism approach, would bring together experts, community organizations, citizens and interfaith leaders to find new ways to collaborate and combat discrimination, and would dedicate increased funds to address racism and discrimination targeted against Indigenous Peoples and women and girls, the budget notes.

On January 30, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that the Government of Canada would officially recognize the International Decade for People of African Descent.

“The Government of Canada has heard from concerned citizens and organizations from across Canada, including the Federation of Black Canadians, that we need to do more to work with and support Canadians of African descent,” he said.

“In recognizing the International Decade, the Government of Canada commits to a better future for Black Canadians. This means learning more about the issues that affect Black Canadians, including improving research and data collection, so we can better understand the particular challenges they face. Mental health challenges and overrepresentation in the corrections system have been raised in particular by community leaders as barriers to Black Canadians experiencing full and equal participation across society,” Trudeau said.

[This story has been published in the North American Weekly Gleaner, April 5, 2018.]