UIPAC Calls for Action on Anti-Racism and Reconciliation from Mayor, Council, and Civic Departments – The Runner
Members say Vancouver has failed to adequately consult with the Urban Indigenous Peoples’ Advisory Committee
The Urban Indigenous Peoples’ Advisory Committee sent an open letter listing calls for meaningful action on anti-racism and reconciliation by Vancouver’s Mayor and Council, municipal government, police department, school board, and park board on July 7.
UIPAC committee member Michelle Cyca says the calls for action were created out of frustration with the City of Vancouver due to “immediate concerns about rising racism and systemic racism in the city” going unresolved and ineffective consultation between the two parties. She is Cree from the Muskeg Lake First Nation on Treaty 6 Territory.
“Our role is supposed to be about having meaningful consultation with the city, being able to represent the views of urban Indigenous people, and our experience as a committee has felt like we’re sort of being tokenized by this process,” she says.
Committee members feel that they aren’t given sufficient time to review initiatives that have an impact on Indigenous people, nor are they shown proof of how their input has been incorporated.
