Ending systemic racism isn't just about institutional reform — it starts with us

This column is an opinion by Jenene Wooldridge, a Mi'kmaw author and executive director of L'nuey, based in Epekwitk (P.E.I.). For more information about CBC's Opinion section, please see the FAQ.

One of the most welcome questions I get from people who want to achieve reconciliation is this: How should we all work to end systemic racism?

It's a welcome question — because, to my mind, the concern reveals true sincerity. The question also reveals a desire to accelerate the work to achieve reconciliation between Indigenous peoples and a colonist society.

However — the backdrop to the question often blurs the answer.

Systemic racism, by its very nature, is all-pervasive. The journey toward ending systemic racism will be a huge and complex task that requires diligence, sensitivity and honest institutional reform.

So, while the question may emerge from a genuine spirit of sincerity, I worry the sentiment may somehow replace the need for hard work. In effect, merely recognizing a problem cannot be a substitute for the sweat and effort that is so clearly required. It's easy to point a finger, it's harder to recognize and change our own behaviours.

I wish it were that simple

As a person who is often marginalized by society, you get used to living in a world that is threatening and, for the most part, unsupportive. Sadly, this applies to virtually every institution, system and workplace.

Systemic racism is found in every part of society — and even in helping professions such as education, justice and health care. BIPOC people don't necessarily have to go through an extremely traumatic event, because our entire lives are spent navigating systemic oppression and discrimination.

Breaking down the walls of systemic racism embedded in these institutions will need reform. And those reforms will have to include policy, legislation, procedure — and most especially, collective and individual attitudes.— Jenene Wooldridge

When you are treated in a way that constantly makes you feel unworthy, it takes extra consistent effort and energy just to live. 

Sometimes, people will point to a single institution and use that as a vehicle to focus their worry and concern.

I wish it were that simple.

These institutions developed in tandem with a whole series of prejudiced social evolutions that reinforced one another — and thus, became systemic.

A history of malice and harm

As an Indigenous person, I have grown up with constant reminders of a horrifying history. Residential schools. The denial of basic human rights. Long-standing efforts to eliminate my language, history, culture and traditions.

In effect, there was a centuries-long effort to erase the reality — and the very memory — of Indigenous people from Canada.

That's a system. That's a history of malice and harm. And that reality didn't just creep into every element of colonial society. It was built right into the system, consciously and systematically. Those practices were deliberate and thought out.

As I both experienced and studied these matters over the years, I learned that the true foundation of this dreadful history was built on the desire among the colonists to dominate and impose.

And when you look at an overarching motive like domination, it becomes easier to see how the horrors of racism can seep into every aspect of society.

But please keep in mind that it's not that the institutions somehow forced the domination motive on top of society.

Rather, it was the impulse to dominate that guided the evolution of nearly every expression of collective action — which means government, churches, the media and the law. And that impulse came from the vast population of individuals who endorsed those behaviours through countless elections, discussions, apathy and malice. 

Breaking down the walls of systemic racism embedded in these institutions will need reform. And those reforms will have to include policy, legislation, procedure — and most especially, collective and individual attitudes. Actions matter. 

The responsibility within each of us

Mercifully, I believe we are now at a turning point.

I believe in the sincerity of my fellow citizens. For the most part, I have faith that most people want to replace these ancient and awful attitudes with an attitude of reconciliation. I believe there is a day coming when the contributions of Canada's Indigenous peoples to both history and the present will be truly celebrated and valued.

But, it is very important to remember that the ancestors of systemic racism are individuals. Every time a well-meaning person turns away from obvious acts of racism — for reasons of distaste or discomfort — the system gets stronger.

So the big answer to systemic racism does not reside just in institutional reforms (although, believe me, there is a lot of work that needs to be done there).

The real answer lies in our individual expectations of what is right and what is wrong. If each and every one of us can learn to demand better of ourselves, the system will inevitably follow. Our demands and expectations drive the system. And higher expectations of ourselves is a responsibility that lies within every last one of us. 

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