“Are You Calling Me a Racist?”: Removing Public Service Barriers to Racial Equity (INC-022)

Overview

Delivery method

Virtual classroom

Duration

2 hours

Audience

Employees

Description

Sarita Srivastava’s award-winning book, “Are You Calling Me a Racist?,” reveals why conventional anti-racism workshops and diversity policies have failed to effectively challenge racism, and instead offers a new way forward. Drawing from her experience as an educator and activist, as well as extensive interviews and analyses of contemporary events, Srivastava illuminates how diversity workshops devote energy and resources to exercises that yield limited results. This approach, Srivastava explains, keeps our focus on the therapeutic and educational, rather than on concrete practices that could move us towards true racial equity. This insightful work offers a much-needed challenge to the status quo of diversity training, and will serve as a valuable resource for everyone dedicated to dismantling racism.

Instructor Biography:

Dr. Srivastava is Professor of Sociology and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science at OCAD University in Toronto. Her research includes social movements, race, and emotion. Prior to joining OCAD, she researched and taught on race, gender and nation in Queen’s University’s Departments of Sociology, Gender Studies, and Cultural Studies. Srivastava is a Founding Director of the Global Centre for Climate Action. She has also previously worked as an activist, supporting Indigenous, labour and feminist social movements and working in community radio and environmental education. Srivastava’s book, “Are You Calling Me a Racist?,” received the 2025 Canadian Sociology Book Award. Her book reveals why conventional diversity policies and anti-racism workshops have failed to effectively dismantle racism, offers a needed challenge, and provides concrete alternatives.

Learning Objectives/ Topics Covered:

• Will be able to identify the limitations of conventional anti-racism workshops
• Will understand the challenges and barrier facing the effective application of diversity policies and the failures of these policies
• Will equip participants to think crictcally about diversity training and consider alternative paths forward towards concrete antiracist practice

NOTE: This course is bilingual, with simultaneous interpretation available in both official languages.

Client: Anti-Racism and Anti-Discrimination Secretariat (ARADS) in collaboration with the Centre of Expertise for Learning and Professional Development (CoELPD).

Registration deadline: 5 working days prior to the course date.

Participants are responsible for adding their training activities to their Outlook calendars.

Cancelling your registration: Simply log into your JUScampus account and select "Unregister" from this event page.

Accommodation Measures: The Department of Justice is committed to an inclusive, barrier-free learning environment. If you need workplace accommodations to fully participate in this training, contact your manager or the Centre for Workplace Access-Ability, Health and Wellness (CWAHW). Please note, the CWAHW requires at least 72 hours to respond.

Please contact the Centre of Expertise for Learning and Professional Development (CoELPD):

• To flag any requests or accommodations needs, at least 10 business days before the training session.
• For more information or if you have any issues with this course.

This activity has not been assessed for CPD eligibility. The link to the accreditation summary will be provided here, once available.