Inclusivity
Making inclusivity work in Burlington – it’s not a simple black and white issue
‘We are of course a nation of differences. Those differences
don’t make us weak. They’re the source of our strength.’
- Jimmy Carter
Peggy Chapman
The Bay Observer
As Burlington expands as a city,
it is feeling its share or growing
pains. Recently John Tory
was in town to participate in a
Burlington Civic Engagement
Forum hosted by the Burlington
Inclusivity Advisory Committee
(BIAC).The former provincial PC
leader and presently chair of the
Toronto City Summit Alliance
praised Burlington for being proactive
in its role to become more
inclusive and understanding of
the changing cultural map of the
city and he also warned that there
will be blips and misunderstandings
along the road to embracing
diversity.
Tory was correct. BIAC presented
findings that arose out of
the forum attended by Tory, to
council. BIAC member Ancilla
Ho-Young startled some with the
statement, “Burlington is a white
community. Very white. Snow
white.”
Her remarks caused quite a stir
within the community and made
good fodder for talk shows and
letters to the editor. The reaction
was so strong that some are
calling for her to resign from the
committee.
But fellow board member
Brian Heagle stands by his comember.
“She was not speaking
as an individual in this case, she
was bringing forward results from
the forum.”
The goal of the forum was
to engage residents and ask for
input on volunteerism; local
governance and ways to enhance
community problem solving in
Burlington.
The BIAC was formed in May
2008 and they have been working
on understanding the state of inclusivity
in Burlington, how other
communities handle these issues
and how to proceed with creating
a framework for the corporation
to measure its inclusivity. According
to the group, the facts speak
for themselves.
Stats Can most recent numbers
show there were more than 5
million individuals who belonged
to a visible minority group in
Canada, they accounted for 16%
of the total population. Over half
(54%) of all visible minority population
live in Ontario and they
represent 23% of the provincial
population.
Not all visible minority population
are immigrants. Many are
non-immigrants who are Canadian
citizens by birth. In Burlington,
one in 10 residents belongs
to visible minority groups. Between
1996 and 2006, the visible
minority population had more
than doubled (120%). Over onethird
(38%) of them are Canadian
citizens by birth.
The South Asian is the largest
group representing over 30% of
the visible minority population.
Latin American is the fastest
growing group with a growth rate
of over 300%.
It is BIAC’s opinion that minorities
and women are nor adequately
represented at Burlington
City Hall. “Let’s forget about
race for a minute and just focus
on gender,” said Heagle. “One
in eight councillors are women.
We need to know what are the
real barriers stopping them from
participating in these political
and community roles? In gathering
this information, there might
be some misunderstandings and
unintended political correctness
but it will be worth the effort in
the end to ensure a more welcoming
city.”
The report shows the top
three visible minority groups in
Burlington are, South Asian, Black
and Chinese. The South Asians
which represent about one-third
of the visible minority population
tend to live within Millcroft/
Orchard area. The area around
King Road and Plains Road has
a higher representsation of the
black population as compared to
other areas within the city. Most
of the Chinese are located north
of the QEW.
Burlington’s recent immigrants
are younger than the median
community ager. Nearly half
(47%) are between 25 and 44
years of age and only about 3%
of recent immigrants are seniors
as compared to 15% of the total
population.
BIAC’s results state: “diversity
also brings opportunities. Citizens
with diverse backgrounds,
experiences and perspectives can
provide alternative approaches
and solutions to many of our
challenges (e.g. environmental,
health, education and training).
Mechanisms should be put in
place to harness their contributions.
Government should set
examples in building inclusivity
and encourage the private sector
to follow. Diversity makes good
business sense.”
So, were Ms. Ho-Young’s comments
that Burlington is “too
white” offensive? Brian Heagle
defends her, “The comments have
been misleading but it brought
attention to the issue of inclusivity,
and that’s a good thing. She’s
the messenger as the chair. I hope
residents don’t just read the headlines
but try to truly understand
the issues.”
peggy@bayobserver.ca
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