Council affirmed support against systemic racism by recognizing that the phenomenon exists and that the town will continue looking at all its policies moving forward through the lens of inclusivity.
The motion was brought forward by Coun. Bill Gordon, who said he made a commitment to do so when he attended the recent Black Lives Matter gathering at Little Lake Park.
"I know systemic racism exists," he said. "I worked in an environment that had systemic racism. It's not necessarily overt.
"I'm not suggesting Midland's policies are inherently racists," added Gordon. "I'm not suggesting any of you are (racists), or that by supporting this motion we're saying we have this nasty racist redneck community."
Instead, he said, it's merely a recognition that the problem exists and that the town will work to ensure it doesn't creep into municipal policies and bylaws.
"I see this as a symbolic affirmation, much like reaffirming your wedding vows," said Gordon. "This is a stance. As much as we need land acknowledgements because we have a duty to, we also have a duty to accept that systemic racism exists. There's potential that it may exist within our own administration. It could be a lack of policy or implementation of policy. People are asking governments to own it. The first step is to own it."
Laura Yourkin, director of human resources/health and safety, assured council members that the town has already been working towards inclusive policies for some time now.
"The town of Midland, since 2004, has included that information in its hiring policy," she said. "We refer to it as inclusivity. It's truly about making Midland an inclusive and collaborative work place open to all cultures. It can be seen on our town website with reference to our employment opportunities."
As such, Yourkin said the town's policies are periodically reviewed and kept current and up-to-date.
"You as council have also approved a recent policy, which was the Respectful Workplace Policy, in 2018," she said. "It brought to light information how to address certain issues, which complemented our bylaw of 1998 about workplace harassament, which is often where you will see racism come to light as a complaint from an employee or applicant."
Yourkin added that no incidents of racial discrimination have been reported in the last five years.
"We take this type of professionalism very seriously and it's an open and transparent process regardless of any of the grounds of discrimination, including accessibility," she said.
That seemed to satisfy Gordon.
"It's not meant to be a heavy-lifting exercise," he said. "It's meant to be a periodic review. It's nice to have it formalized. Much like we fly the flag for Pride and other organizations, it's a symbolic affirmation that we believe these things are the right things to do."
All council members expressed their support for the move.
"There's nothing in this statement that we can't wonderfully support," said Coun. Cher Cunningham.
Coun. Jon Main said it's difficult as a municipal government to have these discussions with its residents, but moves such as this can help proceed in that direction.
"I think the community is looking to governments for action on this item," he said.
Coun. Carole McGinn said she would be happy to share any related resources she may come across.
"Doing this as a Midland council is going to help with a lot of committees we have that are regional," she said. "I believe we can be at the forefront and we're making a good stance and good view. It's more about the mindset and less about a documentational review so we're changing the way we think and making a stance that we're going to be advocates for a change of thinking."
