• Introduction
• WICC’s policy for racial justice
• CEARN Racial Justice Resource
• CEARN Theological Starting Points

• Related Resources

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Racial Justice

Community groups, unions and the women’s movement have been struggling with issues of voice, identity, naming, racial stereotyping, power-sharing and exclusion for at least a decade. Canadian churches and church organizations have come to the discussion of racism much more recently. The Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada has named diversity and inclusion as priorities, and the council has been learning about racism as a barrier to achieving diversity and inclusion.

As Canadian women of faith, we must educate ourselves and identify ways to eliminate racism and white privilege wherever they exist in our churches and our communities. We live in a country where Aboriginal rights are central to the public debate about equality and justice, where immigrants from around the world come to live and work, where incidents of racism and discrimination here are generated more and more by crises and conflict in other parts of the world. Yet most of us know little about the history or present-day reality of racism in Canada.

Racism is an institutionalized system of power. It encompasses a web of economic, political, social, and cultural structures, actions and beliefs that systemize and ensure an unequal distribution of privilege, resources and power in favour of the dominant racial group and at the expense of all other racial groups. A system of subordination is created and perpetuated in society. While racial discrimination is against the law in Canada, racism is still deeply imbedded in our institutions, including the church. Even though we don’t intend to practise racism, the fruits of racism – prejudice, bigotry and dehumanization – are evident in our society. For more in-depth discussion, Bible studies and workshops to help us learn about racism and white privilege, see our double issue of Making Waves, “Naming Racism: Speaking Truth to Power”.

The global roots of racism are being addressed by the global church. In 1999, women from around the world gathered at a World Council of Churches event in Bangalore, India, to name how racism is manifested in specific contexts (for example, Dalit women in India) and how it permeates issues such as migration, sex touring, trafficking, economic injustice and militarism. The vision articulated by these women includes “a world where anti-racist work becomes a priority and is built on a model of shared leadership; a world where all gifts, talents and skills are utilized; and power is derived from cooperation with one another, modeling power with and not power over”. They challenged their own organizations and their churches to work to overcome racism. Making Waves 1:2

The UN World Conference Against Racism in Durban in 2001 became a catalyst for more intensive work on racism in the churches. In an ecumenical statement, church delegates at WCAR declared racism to be a sin and “contrary to God’s will for love, peace, equality, justice and compassion for all. It is an affront to human dignity and a gross violation of human rights”. In Canada, the Canadian Ecumenical Anti-Racism Network (CEARN) formed following the UN Conference in order to organize for long-term change in Canadian church organizations and to support those working to bring about racial justice in the churches. WICC is one of the founding groups of this network.

WICC is engaged in social justice for women, and works to educate and encourage churches to adopt appropriate actions in response to crucial issues affecting women. Issues of gender discrimination - such as poverty and violence - intersect with those of racial discrimination to further marginalize women and make them more vulnerable. WICC’s policy for racial justice is one way that WICC is making intentional its commitment and being faithful to God’s call to walk humbly and seek justice along the way.

The Canadian Ecumenical Anti-Racism Network declared a Week for Racial Justice in 2006 and prepared an educational resource for Canadian churches. This year CEARN has prepared a resource for use throughout the year, From Chains to Freedom: Journeying towards Reconciliation. This resource contains background articles, worship materials, book reviews and a workshop for children, and is designed to help churches learn about the transatlantic slave trade. March 25 marks the 200th anniversary of the ending of the slave trade in the British Empire.

Some documents linked from this page are presented in PDF, which can be read using the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.