The University of Manitoba isn’t doing enough to combat racism against Indigenous students on campus, says the university’s president.
David Barnard said he met with a group of Indigenous students and community members twice recently, once over the holiday break and again last week.
“Much of what we heard was deeply moving – and too much of it was very disturbing,” Barnard said in a statement posted on the university website.
“It is clear that Indigenous students face racism here at the University of Manitoba.”
The racism faced included overt to systemic racism, said Bernard, despite several initiatives implemented over the past several years to provide space for Indigenous students and conversation.
“The meetings … served as a stark reminder that initiatives like what I have described are not enough – will never be enough – if we do not address the racism that clearly persists to this day.”
Bernard called on the university staff and community members to “think creatively about what we can do to move forward together, to create a campus community that is safe and welcoming for all of its members.”
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