Let’s TH!NK About Racism: Adora Nwofor and Kathy Le
As much as we would like to believe that racism and racist beliefs are a thing of the past, the
truth is that discriminatory acts, policies, and discussions surrounding race are still very
prevalent today. At SPARQ, we want to combat these discussions with nuanced ideas about how
to actively combat and fight against racism, and that is exactly what Adora Nwofor and Kathy Le
are all about.
A few weeks ago, we had the honor of having Adora Nwofor speak to us about the impact of
racism, and how creative expression can help combat discriminatory views. Her main message
was that representation matters, and how any form of creative expression can send a message
about fighting oppression. She talks to us about the importance of actively using your voice to
send a message about what is right. Not only does she promote not being racist, Nwofor
promotes being actively anti-racist. Anti-racism is the process of actively identifying instances
of racism in our daily lives and opposing these acts. The goal of anti-racism is to challenge the
policies, behaviours, and systems that perpetuate racist ideologies. By being actively anti-racist,
you are working to understand the flaws in our system and determining how to address and
change these flaws for a more inclusive world.
You can check out Adora’s speech here:
We also had the pleasure of hosting Kathy Le on our platform, where she spent time educating
us on anti-Asian racism. As a result of the pandemic, anti-Asian hate has reached an all-time
high because of the pandemic’s origins in China. Kathy discusses how Asians around the world
have been physically attacked and discriminated against due to the belief that they are to blame
for COVID-19. She reminds us that discrimination against Asians in Canada is not new, and it
has deep roots in our history. Kathy asks that we work together to be allies to the Asian
community and fight against racism.
Check out her video here:
If you want to learn more about how to fight unconscious bias and become an ally and
anti-racist, check out these resources:
How To Be An Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi
Black Lives Matter Canada
Calgary Anti-Racism Education (CARED)
The Indigenous Ally Toolkit (Calgary Foundation)
White Fragility by Robin Diangelo
Thank you to Adora and Kathy for taking the time to educate us.
By: SIMI KASHYAP
