Opening doors, shouldering burdens: Black and Indigenous civil servants on climbing the bureaucratic ladder
Less than 10 per cent of Canada’s highest-ranking bureaucrats come from diverse backgrounds
"The government of Canada is regularly guilty of systemic discrimination."
Those were the blunt words shared by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last week, along with an acknowledgement: "This is a moment where Canadians are recognizing that there is unfairness built into our system."
When it comes to the federal public service, what steps are being taken to fix that system? Five years after the Trudeau government promised to promote diversity and equity, and "build a government that looks like Canada," how are they doing?
Senior reporter Salimah Shivji spoke with Caroline Xavier — the only Black person serving as an associate deputy minister in the federal government — and brought The House this special report about who is getting hired and promoted within Canada's public service:
The lack of diversity within Canada's public service is precisely why a group called Operation Black Vote Canada launched a program earlier this year to help prepare young Black Canadians for working within government.
The 1834 Fellowship is named for the year slavery was abolished in this country. One of this year's 21 fellows is Adam Lake, who is completing his master's degree at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy at the University of Toronto.
Lake spoke to The House just before he was named winner of the 2020 Harry Jerome Award for Community Service. The awards are presented annually by the Black Business and Professional Association to recognize outstanding achievement in the Black community:
While Adam Lake's career is just taking off, Gina Wilson has spent years working her way up the ranks of the federal public service.
Wilson is now the senior associate deputy minister for diversity, inclusion and youth. She is the highest-ranking Indigenous public servant in Canada, having previously held executive positions with the Correctional Service of Canada, Indigenous and Northern Affairs, Employment and Social Development — and was deputy minister for Public Safety.
Wilson is also the recipient of the 2020 Indspire Award for Public Service in recognition of her life-long commitment to Indigenous issues. She spoke with The House about the urgent need for better representation and diversity in Canada's bureaucracy:
