Interfaith Community Unites Against Racial Discrimination

A local interfaith commemoration of the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (proclaimed in the 1960s after 69 people were killed in a demonstration against apartheid laws in Sharpeville, South Africa), was held at Edmonton City Hall on March 21.

Held in Treaty Six Territory, the noon-hour gathering featured an Indigenous welcome by Lewis Cardinal, a member of the Edmonton Interfaith Centre for Education & Action (EIC). “It’s important to recognise that by sitting together as relatives we can work against racism, discrimination and prejudice,” he said. Cardinal spoke about kihciy askiy-Sacred Land, a 4.5-hectare cultural space for Indigenous communities, which is the first designated urban Indigenous cultural and ceremonial grounds in Canada and a collective effort toward relationship building and the righting of relations.

Edmonton Mayor Amarjeet Sohi asked for a moment of silence for slain Edmonton Police Service officers Cst. Travis Jordan and Cst. Brett Ryan. He encouraged people to hug the police officers in attendance, sign the books of condolences for the officers’ families, and, if possible, pay respects to the officers on the day of the regimental funeral at Rogers Place.

“Racism is not something that only happens on foreign land. Unfortunately, it is prevalent in our city,” said Sohi noting that he, personally, has faced many forms of racial discrimination, including verbal abuse, physical attacks and institutional barriers. “Let’s work together to remove the institutional structures that exist in our society that do not give everyone equal opportunity to be successful. This work is generational.

“My call to you is whenever you see racism, please speak up,” said Mayor Sohi proclaiming March 21, 2023, as Elimination of Racial Discrimination Day in Edmonton. 

Emceed by the Rev. Audrey Brooks, the 30th prayer service featured music by Nigel Williams, prayers by EIC members, poetry by Naomi McIlwraith, and the “Celebrating Our Faiths” installation. 

Netta Phillet, Executive Director, Edmonton Interfaith Centre for Education & Action (EIC), said the EIC traces its origins to the first local commemoration of the day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination which was held in the 1990s. 

“Racism harms not just the lives of those who endure it, but also society as a whole,” said Bella Asiri Opiyo, a member of Good Shepherd Anglican Church. Asiri Opiyo and the Ven. Jordan Haynie Ware, rector of Good Shepherd and Archdeacon for Justice in the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton, were invited to speak about Faith Spaces | Safe Spaces, an urgent call to unite against racism in all its forms by the Anglican Diocese of Edmonton and Islamic Family and Social Services Association (IFSSA).

“The same week that George Floyd was killed, a member of Good Shepherd was assaulted due to their race,” said Haynie Ware. “They were called racial slurs and told to go back to Africa.” The predominantly white parish responded with support and care, but in its response learned “how little we knew how to help in such a situation, and how small we were in the face of the scope of the challenge,” she said. Later that year, there were many reports of Black women being assaulted for wearing their hijab in Edmonton. 

As Asiri Opiyo explained, the parish connected with a group of Black Muslim women through Ustadh Ibrahim Long, Muslim chaplain at the University of Alberta. Together Christians and Muslims organised the inaugural Faith Spaces | Safe Spaces, a virtual event held during Black History Month and World Interfaith Harmony Week in February 2022.

Faith Spaces | Safe Spaces recently received support through the City of Edmonton’s Community Safety and Wellbeing program to continue helping faith communities unite in solidarity against all forms of racism. “We exist to help faith communities move from talk to action, to make sure that they are ready to support Black, Indigenous, and all people of colour when they face racism.

“This year, our goal is to move beyond our bilateral Christian-Muslim origins to include all faith communities in Edmonton: Buddhists, Jews, Sikhs, Hindus, practitioners of traditional Indigenous spirituality, and all who want to walk in a good way, with Creator’s help, to work to end racism,” said Asiri Opiyo.

“We all lose in a society characterised by discrimination, division, distrust, intolerance, and hate. The fight against racism is everyone’s fight. We all have a part to play in building a world beyond racism,” she said. 

To learn more about Faith Spaces | Safe Spaces, email faithspaces22@gmail.com or visit https://edmonton.anglican.ca/