Edmonton Public Schools adopt policy on sexual orientation and gender identity

In 1948, in the wake of the greatest tragedy the world had seen, a diversity of leaders came together and formally acknowledged:

All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

As we prepare to celebrate the anniversary of this Universal Declaration of Human Rights on December 10^th, International Human Rights Day, the John Humphrey Centre commends the work of the Edmonton Public School Board in addressing a critical human rights concern in our community: safe, inclusive, equitable and welcoming environments for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.

On November 29^th, the Board of Trustees read and passed a new policy on sexual orientation and gender identity.  The policy document upholds the Board’s belief in their students’, staff’s and families’ dignity and right to equality and a safe school environment.  By engaging in a process of public consultation and committing to annual reviews of the progress made and to the development of partnerships with the Lesbian-Gay-Bisexual-Transgender-Transexual and Questioning (LGBTTQ) communities, EPSB has established their intention to be responsive, transparent and accountable in the implementation of this policy.

While the Supreme Court of Canada read in “sexual orientation” as a ground for discrimination prohibited by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (on par with race, colour, religion, sex, age or disability) in 1998, 2011 was still a year of an overwhelming number of teen suicides strongly linked to school yard bullying and discrimination based on a student’s sexual identity.

The Government of Alberta formalized the Supreme Court’s decision by amending our own Human Rights Act last year, but then took the unprecedented step of requiring teachers to notify parents before issues of religion, sexuality or sexual orientation were discussed in class, giving parents the opportunity to withdraw their children from the classroom.

Despite this important limit on educators’ ability to address the diversity of our communities and classrooms, the Edmonton Public School Board remains proactive and respectful of the rights, needs and identities of their students and families.  The John Humphrey Centre is encouraged by this, as we are by Premier Redford’s willingness to review this amendment to the Human Rights Act.

We applaud EPSB for drawing on the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Alberta Human Rights Act and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in developing a policy that recognizes the unique opportunity and responsibility schools have to provide these rights to the children and families of their communities.

The John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights strives to advance the principles and values as enshrined in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Centre’s mandate is to support educational programming, collaboration and relationship building.

As the Attawapiskat state of emergency is showing us, Canadians are at a critical juncture in the relationship between the First Nations, Inuit and Métis with the rest of Canada.

Canada committed to a renewed partnership and reconciliation with Aboriginal peoples at its 2009 Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations’ Human Rights Council.   At this review, Canada acknowledged the challenges faced by Aboriginal peoples and the need for improvement. They expressed a commitment to “reconcile the rights of Aboriginal peoples over traditional lands with the sovereignty of the Government, including the recognition of existing treaties, and the negotiation of new land and self-government agreements”.  Canada also stressed the desire to “balance the rights and interests of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Canadians in a manner consistent with the Constitution. Canada recognizes the collective nature of Aboriginal peoples’ interest in lands and resources and that the nature of this collective interest may vary.”

The framework provided in various international conventions and documents, including the United Nations’ Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and the Convention of the Rights of the Child, represents a strong framework in which to address the complex situation that we see in Attawapiskat today.  Now more than ever, Canada needs to identify the best ways to work with the Attawapiskat and other First Nations communities to ensure that the situations on reserves improve and so the Government can advance their efforts to reconcile rights of Aboriginal peoples.

In Canada, we as a nation have a long way to go to reconcile with the First Nations and other indigenous peoples.  We need to work together to address this crisis on a national level and within the community of Attawapiskat immediately. No one could argue that the conditions shown in recent media reports in Attawapiskat are acceptable. Various citizens, agencies, corporations and others have made this clear by voicing their concerns.

For our First Nations Peoples to live a life of dignity, basic rights need to be addressed. It is time for partnership and collaboration; one where the federal and provincial governments, private sector, affected communities and general public to work together to create plans for change that meet the critical needs of these communities. Without these needs being met, there is no end in sight to the challenges that the First Nations Peoples of Canada face.

Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services.

Article 25, United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights

The John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights strives to advance the principles and values as enshrined in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights as well as to recognize the collective and unique rights as outlined in the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and Convention of the Rights of the Child. The Centre’s mandate is to support educational programming, collaboration and relationship building.

Indigenous peoples have the right, without discrimination, to the improvement of their economic and social conditions, including, inter alia, in the areas of education, employment, vocational training and retraining, housing, sanitation, health and social security. States shall take effective measures and, where appropriate, special measures to ensure continuing improvement of their economic and social conditions.

Article 21, United Nations’ Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Mohamed Kamara, Sierra Leone

I am from Sierra Leone, a country that has been through a decade long war. That Sierra Leone has been ranked bottom a number of times on the United Nation’s Human Development Index is a clear manifestation that the country is poor. Reasons for this entrenched poverty stem from wide-spread corruption, unemployment, bad governance and a poor human resource base.

What Sierra Leone needs to get out of this vicious cycle of poverty is a healthy dose of developmental policies, projects and programs. The natural resources to kick out poverty are there, but the right attitudes, sound economic policies and the technical know-how are lacking.

Water was so plenty that we used to take it for granted in my country Sierra Leone. The ten year civil war that the country went through changed all that. After the war, the collapse of water infrastructure and the explosive population in the capital city brought water shortages. Most people had to meet their water needs by resorting to unsafe water sources like streams, wells, rivers, brooks and in some cases sewers.

One is not too sure when the water taps will open. Even when the taps do run, the water that flows is far from adequate for everybody.

A lot of drinking water companies have taken advantage of this water shortage by selling portable drinking water at exploitative prices.

As a concerned youth, I think the Global Youth Assembly will serve as a forum to make the world’s most universal solvent, that is water, more solvent. Water is life and we should not take it for granted.

The Alberta Hate Crime Committee (AHCC) has identified a lack of resources and tools available for community groups to prevent hate and bias incidents or help them react to these incidents after they occur.  Communities and individuals struggle on their own to develop or locate effective strategies or tools. By researching and developing effective responses, the AHCC will promote the safety of victims and facilitate their active involvement in the criminal justice process.

The AHCC is requesting submissions of proposals for the creation of a user-friendly, practical community resource with tools to support organizations, municipalities and other stakeholders to implement strategies to educate, identify and respond and mobilize resources to address hate crime.

The project will invite a variety of community partners to be involved in both the research and development of the tools, including Aboriginal, ethnocultural, antiracism service providers and CCMARD municipalities.   All community partners will be invited to an event at the end of the project, where the tools will be unveiled and they will have an opportunity to develop customized plans to address their unique circumstances under the mentorship of their peers.

Please review the attached RFP due August 5, 2011. Submissions or questions can be directed to:

Renee Vaugeois, Executive Director, John Humphrey Centre for Peace and Human Rights

Phone: 780.975.1116

Email: renee@jhcentre.org

Background

The AHCC is composed of key stakeholders from the community, government, non-profit, university, police, and justice sectors. Collectively, the AHCC works to bring comprehensive insight to the issue of hate/bias crimes and incidents and to provide broad representation for those impacted by hate crimes and incidents.

The vision of the Alberta Hate Crimes Committee (AHCC) is to foster an environment where Albertans are living in an inclusive, safe, caring and respectful hate-free community.  To help realize this vision the AHCC represents a collaborative and coordinated network of Albertans working in partnership with communities, government and law enforcement to develop and implement strategies towards an inclusive and hate-free Alberta.

So aside from Renee being excited about the men at the GYA this year, the program is looking to be dynamite!  An amazing line up of speakers, workshops and much more. Thanks to Global Edmonton for having us on the morning news this morning – watch us here! Then you’ll know why we are harassing Renee….

We understand that it can be difficult to find financial aid to attend post-secondary school, particularly for immigrant and refugee youth. Thanks to Mandy Siu for pulling together this great little resource to help students find their way!

Financial Aid for Students