We all cherish the notion that Toronto is a diverse city, where the Indigenous and people from all parts of the world, races, ethnicities, and religions live and work. A central value in the U of T community is often expressed as equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). UTFA, representing faculty and librarians, both active and retired, must, in every negotiation, ask whether EDI is being honoured and advanced.
We must confront bigotry in its various forms, including but not limited to anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, and racism against Indigenous peoples. As a community, we must appreciate how different expressions of racism are often connected, but also strive to understand how each form of prejudice can have its own roots and motivations, and therefore might require specialized policy remedies.
In terms of its mandate to negotiate on behalf of members, how can UTFA take pragmatic steps to protect and enhance human rights, such as those based on gender, sexual preference, race, ethnicity, and religion, to name just a few? And how can human rights be reflected in labour gains? Here’s how I will if elected President:
I will continue to promote UTFA's long-term efforts to eliminate salary discrimination based upon gender for all faculty and librarians and will expand this work to include discrimination based upon race by working with the best specialists in discrimination in an array of disciplines from UofT and beyond.
Negotiations based on race, for example, cannot proceed without adequate data. I would work to ensure that the appropriate data are collected going forward and shared with faculty experts to analyze. I know that no claim or grievance can be won without good data and a solid analytical foundation to support the claim.
When members bring complaints and concerns about racism to UTFA, as several faculty members did in February 2022, I will ask Council to refer the matter to UTFA’s Equity Committee to explore remedies rather than just making platitudinous statements of support. UTFA can do more than just make demands of the administration.
UTFA's internal governance and procedures should reflect the values that it defends in the broader university. I will lead by example, respecting cultural differences that affect the way people from different cultures speak and interact with others. I will encourage UTFA Council to pass a policy of anti-harassment and non-discrimination to protect members and staff, and ensure that this policy cannot be used by the executives of UTFA to dismiss complaints without any attempts at mediation or investigation.