The City of Burnaby will be working to better understand the experience of the African diaspora in the city and seeking ways to improve the livelihoods in that community.
The move is part of Burnaby’s response to the United Nations’ declaration of the International Decade for People of African Descent from 2015 to 2024. In its declaration, the international body noted the need for greater regional, national and international cooperation to strengthen the diaspora’s economic, social, cultural, civic and political rights throughout the world.
In a motion pushed by committee member Élie Lubendo, the social planning committee sought a process for the city to proclaim and implement the International Decade for People of African Descent. City staff returned to the committee – and subsequently city council – to suggest the work be incorporated into existing work.’
Staff offered five main points where the city can work toward its goal, including seeking to better understand the experience of Black community members in collaboration with community partners. Staff also suggested the city identify areas where improvement is needed for the local African diaspora, as well as roles the city, non-profits, community associations and others can each play in addressing those issues.
Finally, staff will seek to define areas where the city will need to advocate to higher levels of government. In a report from the planning and building department, staff also noted the city will need to develop a process to address the issues at hand, which will be defined in a later report to the committee and council.
While the report, which was recently passed by council, addressed developing that process in more broad terms, staff noted the follow-up report will be more specific about what the city will do to achieve its goals.
Burnaby is one of a handful of cities in Canada in which there is no ethnic or cultural majority and has one of the largest Black communities in Metro Vancouver. Mayor Mike Hurley said that diversity “is a source of tremendous pride for all of us.”
“We’re also committed to being an inclusive, welcoming and connected community, and that means recognizing and honouring experiences of residents of all cultures and backgrounds,” Hurley said. “This report highlights the need to develop actions to fight against all forms of racism and intolerance.”
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