Thank you very much for inviting me to address the committee today. I'd like to speak to you about the work the department is undertaking related to racism and religious discrimination.

Evidence is clear that racism and discrimination continue to exist in Canada. Addressing them is part of the federal government's responsibility to sustain a society that values all its members and treats them with dignity and respect.

One way that is achieved is through Canada's multiculturalism policy, which was designed to create a climate in which the multicultural heritage of each of us is valued and to contribute to building a society where all can participate in the economic, social, cultural and political life of Canada.

The multiculturalism program works toward these objectives by focusing its efforts on building an integrated and socially cohesive society; improving the responsiveness of federal institutions to the needs of a diverse population; and engaging in discussions on multiculturalism, inclusion and diversity at the domestic and international levels.

There are four key activities that the multicultural program undertakes. First is grants and contributions via the community support, multiculturalism and anti-racism initiatives program. Second is public outreach and promotion through public events and key outreach initiatives such as Asian Heritage Month and Black History Month. Third is support of federal and public institutions to help them meet their obligations under the Canadian Multiculturalism Act. Fourth is international engagement through providing support for Canada's membership in the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance and ensuring Canada meets its obligations as a signatory to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.

In budget 2018, new funding in the amount of $23 million over two years was allocated to the program: $21 million to support events and projects that target racism and discrimination with a particular focus on indigenous peoples and racialized women and girls, and $2 million to support cross-country consultations on a new national anti-racism and anti-discrimination approach.

Budget 2018 also provided $9 million over three years to the Department of Canadian Heritage and $10 million over five years to the Public Health Agency of Canada to address the challenges faced by Black Canadians.

In 2018, the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism was asked by the Prime Minister to develop a new federal anti-racism approach to combat racism and discrimination. In support of this mandate, we carried out engagement sessions from October 2018 to March 2019 to gather input from Canadians, including experts, faith and community leaders, and those with lived experiences of racism and discrimination.

In total, 22 in-person sessions were held, involving over 600 participants from some 443 organizations. Over 1,000 online submissions were received.

A further $45 million over three years was allocated in budget 2019 for the multiculturalism program to develop and implement a federal anti-racism strategy. In the budget announcement, the strategy was described as finding ways to counter racism in its various forms, with a strong focus on community-based projects. The announcement also highlighted an anti-racism secretariat that would work across government to identify opportunities, coordinate activities and engage with Canada's diverse communities.

Increasingly intolerant and racist language—hate speech—is available online. It isn't just flourishing in private conversations on social media platforms such as Facebook or Instagram. It's also on the rise on more public sites such as YouTube, and in comments sections, web forums and blogs.

Participants in our engagement sessions told us that online hate is an underlying factor that contributes to or causes racism. It is a serious phenomenon that exists in many forms and significantly impacts young people. People told us that social media can play a significant role both in spreading hate and also in combatting it.

Canadian Heritage plays a vital role in the cultural, civic and economic life of all Canadians. We'll continue to use the levers available to us to work towards addressing hate online, together with our federal partners and with communities.

Thank you.

Transcript

Discussions (0)