10 Instances of Racism in the Community

Students of colour experience discrimination and racism within and outside of the classroom. Regardless of context and situation, these experiences have cyclical and adverse effects.

As mentioned previously, students of colour experience discrimination and racism within and outside of the classroom.

Regardless of context and situation, experiences of discrimination and racism have cyclical and significant effects on the lives of students of colour, meaning that instances of racism in the classroom can affect day-to-day life outside of campus and vice versa. As mentioned in earlier sections, racism can happen acutely or chronically and has subjective and unique effects on racialized persons. This section is to arm you with some tips for addressing and navigating discrimination and racism in the broader Hamilton community.

How to Address It

If it is not safe to collect this type of information, disengage and, when in a safer space, attempt to recollect and document the date, time of occurrence, location, experience, language used, violence experienced, descriptions of perpetrators, etc. This can assist with case building. However, the unfortunate reality for a lot of folks is that, without “concrete evidence,” the police and the law often cannot intervene. Conversely, you may not want to pursue legal action or police involvement, which is an absolutely normal response. In these cases, finding a therapeutic service or support group to unpack what has happened should be a primary goal.

Addressing encounters of racism and discrimination can be scary, especially when you are alone without witnesses or supports. A key suggestion is to disengage from the perpetrator. Often, those who inflict racial violence progressively become escalated, defamatory, labile, and, at times, violent. Quickly and safely removing yourself from the situation should be held paramount at all times, especially if you are alone.

If you have witnesses nearby or you are with a friend: before disengaging and if wanting to pursue things legally, attempt to non-invasively obtain identifying information (i.e. the perpetrator’s name, evidence of their face, or license plates, record witness statements, or video record). This can assist in navigating police involvement as the criminal system of reporting hate crimes often goes sour or is dismissed without “concrete evidence.”

An additional safeguard is consulting legal aid; a free over-the-phone “pro bono” service that can consult with you about what happened and arm you with advice, strategies, terminology, and, if deemed necessary, legal representation to handle the hate crime you may be reporting. A link to legal aid can be found here.

Navigating Police Involvement

Navigating police involvement can be uncomfortable as police have often been a fixture of discrimination, racism, violence, and profiling in communities of colour. However, if armed with concrete evidence, clear timelines, legal advice, and the capacity to work with police, the likelihood of hate crime reporting being successfully resolved can increase.

HCCI’s Hate Crime Reporting System

The Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion has been an instrumental resource for people of colour in Hamilton. HCCI has an independent, user-friendly, community-based online hate reporting platform that is geared toward tackling hate on an individual and societal level through research-based initiatives. While they are not able to directly make legal reports on your behalf, they do provide a reporting platform that allows the Hamilton community to give an informed and enhanced picture of the climate of hate in Hamilton. Check it out at this link.HCCI is also a great tool and resource for Black Youth Mentorship, equity, diversity, and inclusion training, political education, and a site for strategizing, mobilizing, and addressing hate crimes and racism at the community level. We encourage you to explore their website.

Resources for Counselling/Support