Canadian Stage stands in solidarity with Black and Indigenous artists, staff members, and members of Black and Indigenous communities who are in pain. This pain is a direct result of persistent targeting, injustices, violence and systemic inequity. This pain extends into other communities of colour.
As a cultural institution, we recognize that Canadian Stage can play a role in either the perpetuation or the dismantling of systems of injustice and violence. We aspire to create spaces of safety, and we hold this responsibility deeply in this time. In order to be a part of dismantling the systems that we, as a Canadian cultural institution, benefit from, we have a lot of work to do.
We recognize that racism, in the words of author Scott Woods, is “a complex system of social and political levers and pulleys set up generations ago to continue working on the behalf of whites at other people’s expense, whether whites know/like it or not. Racism is an insidious cultural disease.” We affirm that the process of undoing this system requires intentional, explicit, and continuous actions from the leadership at Canadian Stage.
Over the coming weeks, we will engage the community to determine how Canadian Stage can best support Black and Indigenous creators in the immediate future. In addition, Canadian Stage will continue to examine and commit our longer-term strategy to address pervasive systemic inequities in the arts in Canada.
We acknowledge and commend the artistic contributions and activism by Black and Indigenous artists, and Black and Indigenous staff members at Canadian Stage, particularly at this difficult time. We are in awe of their strength and heartbroken for these losses.
We invite you to add your name to this petition asking for a thorough and transparent investigation into the death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet and donating to this fund or other funds and organizations that foster anti-racism in your community. Please call, email, or write letters to the political leaders in your jurisdictions demanding change. And, please join us as we continue to educate ourselves on anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism in Canada.
As a cultural institution, we recognize that Canadian Stage can play a role in either the perpetuation or the dismantling of systems of injustice and violence. We aspire to create spaces of safety, and we hold this responsibility deeply in this time. In order to be a part of dismantling the systems that we, as a Canadian cultural institution, benefit from, we have a lot of work to do.
We recognize that racism, in the words of author Scott Woods, is “a complex system of social and political levers and pulleys set up generations ago to continue working on the behalf of whites at other people’s expense, whether whites know/like it or not. Racism is an insidious cultural disease.” We affirm that the process of undoing this system requires intentional, explicit, and continuous actions from the leadership at Canadian Stage.
Over the coming weeks, we will engage the community to determine how Canadian Stage can best support Black and Indigenous creators in the immediate future. In addition, Canadian Stage will continue to examine and commit our longer-term strategy to address pervasive systemic inequities in the arts in Canada.
We acknowledge and commend the artistic contributions and activism by Black and Indigenous artists, and Black and Indigenous staff members at Canadian Stage, particularly at this difficult time. We are in awe of their strength and heartbroken for these losses.
We invite you to add your name to this petition asking for a thorough and transparent investigation into the death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet and donating to this fund or other funds and organizations that foster anti-racism in your community. Please call, email, or write letters to the political leaders in your jurisdictions demanding change. And, please join us as we continue to educate ourselves on anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism in Canada.
