CTV News shared the following charts to illustrate some of the ways Black Canadians experience systemic racism.
See full post HERE
‘This is about vulnerability’: Ingrid Waldron on the links between environmental racism and police brutality
Reposted with permission.
Q: When you turn on the TV right now or read the news, what stories are you seeing and what messages are you hearing?
A: I see the same narrative that I always see when this happens, which is an unwillingness by media and government to look at the underlying issues. They look at the rioting without understanding why people are angry.
Unlike a lot of people, I believe white people know exactly why we’re angry. I think people are pretending not to understand. They have done that for decades.
I’m cognizant that Black people are hated in this world. Our very existence is considered problematic. As a Black person I know what hate feels like.
Everybody seems convinced this is a turning point.
I remain skeptical. Protests are great. It doesn’t mean much unless it leads to systemic changes.
Q: Do you see a relationship between the mechanisms behind police violence and environmental racism?
A: Black and Indigenous people are not on the minds of white people. The harms that come to us are not on the minds of white people.
When [Nova Scotia Premier] Stephen McNeil announced the closure of Boat Harbour last year, I thought, wow, the Indigenous community has been calling on the government to close Boat Harbour since the ’80s. [The Northern Pulp mill in Pictou, Nova Scotia, discharged waste into Boat Harbour in the territory of the Pictou Landing First Nation for more than half a century until the plant closed in January 2020].
Why would it take so long after all the activism the communities have been engaged in for this decision to be made?
When it comes to addressing environmental racism, if it has a positive impact on the white community, you keep it going. Closing the mill and addressing environmental racism is often a risk for white people in power who are profiting from these industries. It’s great that the mill was closed at the end of the year, but for the past several decades there was enough evidence to indicate this was harmful to the Mi’kmaq community and it continued anyways.
With police violence, it’s similar. It’s different, but it’s similar in that the physical and emotional impacts on Black bodies are not the kinds of things white people care about.
When I look at George Floyd, I see a white policeman trying to terrorize the Black onlookers. That kind of terror is about the policeman saying, ‘This is what can happen to you. I can put my knee on his neck. This is what I want you to see.’
He was not just harming George Floyd, he was harming those who were watching.
The way he positioned his body — positioned directly in front of the people screaming at him to stop — there’s an arrogance there. He had a knee on the neck and a hand in his pocket. It was a performance.
Read the full interview HERE
That discomfort you’re feeling is grief
With the Harvard Business Review, author David Kessler shared his thoughts on why it’s important to acknowledge the grief you may be feeling, how to manage it, and how he believes we will find meaning in it.
Perhaps you haven’t named what you’re feeling as grief, and more than one kind of grief, but give this a read and see what you think.
The loss of normalcy; the fear of economic toll; the loss of connection. This is hitting us and we’re grieving. Collectively.
We’re also feeling anticipatory grief. Anticipatory grief is that feeling we get about what the future holds when we’re uncertain. There is a storm coming. There’s something bad out there. With a virus, this kind of grief is so confusing for people. Our primitive mind knows something bad is happening, but you can’t see it. This breaks our sense of safety. I don’t think we’ve collectively lost our sense of general safety like this. Individually or as smaller groups, people have felt this. We are grieving on a micro and a macro level.
Read the full post HERE
Notes from HBR podcast – “We’re Beyond Stretched”
Podcast – We’re Beyond Stretched, Harvard Business Review
https://hbr.org/podcast/2020/04/were-beyond-stretched
- Feel like I can’t complain when others have it so much worse, so I swallow my pain
- Have to be there to support others
- Things like food prep for family and household tasks taken for granted or go wrong so end up doing it oneself
- The idea of boundaries is just that, an idea, not the reality
- Gender roles kick in, intensified, no escape
- Women’s work in the home is undervalued, remains out of whack
- Roles are often adopted early in the relationship and don’t seem to be renegotiated
- My work comes last, what about my career, my professional self?
- Expected to deliver at work, prove yourself over again
- Work was or can be the only place you feel competent, in control, making accomplishments
- Committed to a high standard, to the point of exhaustion
- Losing sleep, mental health impacted, self-care dropped, optimism lagging, feel the need to limit my feelings
- “Emotional labour” – uncertainty, pressure, all things to all people, patience is “whisper thin,” feel guilt for not showing up 100%, shame, overwhelmed, scattered, lack of focus, added burden of keeping track of others, inside and outside the home, literally hiding from children
- The days aren’t punctuated as they once were – commute, work, leisure, etc. – begin to blur together
Advice for individuals:
- Accept help when it is offered, avoid “superwoman” trap
- Focus on what you managed to get done, not what you didn’t get to
- Tell yourself “you are enough” – getting through the day, remembering to eat, managing to shower (Baking bread and making crafts is for the people that can manage it
- Challenge the status quo. Find ways to re-contract. This is all new, clean the slate and rebuild it
Advice for managers:
- Flexibility in hours of work and deadlines
- Don’t presume what others need or what they can do – ask the question
- Give permission to say no or not now – and ensure it’s real and won’t bite them later
- Make allowances for children and pets, don’t judge
- We are playing the long game; sustainability, employee engagement and loyalty are most important
Trauma Support following mass shootings in NS
As many Nova Scotians cope in the aftermath of this weekend’s tragic shootings, please know that your Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP) is here to support us with resources. They can help try to understand the impact of the situation and process this event.
A crisis or traumatic event can trigger overwhelming emotional responses. Remember that the immediate and confidential EFAP services are accessible 24/7/365 by calling 1.800.387.4765 or visiting workhealthlife.com. The website features additional information and tips on coping with trauma.
Crisis Support Line now open
While the Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP) help line is open for eligible employees, Morneau Shepell has also opened up a Crisis Support Line for anyone in the community in need of emotional support in relation to these events. The Crisis Support Line is open 24/7 and can be reached at 1-844-751-2133. By calling, individuals will receive professional emotional support and/or referral to community resources. This resource is available to anyone and everyone. Please share the number with friends, family and neighbours.
A Trauma Support Group meeting has been scheduled as follows. Please register to receive the link to the meeting, as there is a limit to the number of participants.
Thursday, April 23, 2020
3:30 – 4:30 p.m.
https://events-tm.dal.ca/workshop.php?id=3308
Additional support group meetings can be scheduled as needed. Contact healthy@dal.ca.
Here are additional resource pages on MyDal that you may find helpful:
How a trauma event may affect you
Taking care after a traumatic event
Tips for helping your children through a traumatic event
Inquiries: healthy@dal.ca