ANTIGONISH – In response to what they say is an increase in racist behaviour directed at neighbours from diverse cultural groups – who now call this community home – a group of residents gathered at The People’s Place Library on June 15 to discuss the goal of “building a safe, secure community for all.”
“They are becoming increasingly bold,” Olga Gladkikh – one of the organizers of the gathering – told The Journal of those harassing, intimidating, verbally abusing and discriminating against others; experiences she noted that Black and Indigenous residents have been dealing with for years.
She added that the people who are being targeted are beginning to be made to feel that “they don’t belong in our community.”
“Our new residents are feeling anxious, hesitant and unsupported about speaking up,” Gladkikh offered.
She noted that the June 15 meeting was the second one on the issue, coming after a more informal gathering of a “small group of friends” to discuss a recent incident involving a friend and colleague who works at Coady Institute. During her usual morning walk to work on the StFX campus, as she passed the RCMP detachment, she was the target of verbal abuse from a passing vehicle, Gladkikh explained. The driver and passengers hurled obscenities and slurs towards her, while telling her to ‘go home.’ The woman who was abused has lived in Antigonish for almost a decade.
“It is not an isolated incident,” Gladkikh said, noting they are being reported increasingly, especially anecdotally. It also doesn’t included those who may be being targeted, but are fearful to come forward.
The 19 attendees at The People’s Place brainstormed and created a list of nine “action suggestions” aimed at achieving the goal of “creating a safe, secure community for all,” including developing a community statement, establishing an ongoing community network, delivering bystander intervention training, increasing public visibility of inclusion, launching community awareness campaigns, engaging the wider community through events, strengthening partnerships and advisory structures, promoting inclusive language and storytelling, and addressing “root causes of hate.”
Gladkikh said one person at the meeting indicated that when it comes to taking action as a bystander, “people don’t know how to respond.”
Participants also heard from Kate MacInnis of the Town of Antigonish and Tammy Feltmate of the Municipality of the County of Antigonish, who provided an overview of the creation, implementation and status of the municipalities’ respective Equity, Anti-Hate and Anti-Racism plans. As part of the Dismantling Racism and Hate Act adopted by the province in 2022, all municipalities in Nova Scotia were mandated to have such plans.
Gladkikh noted that participants in the June 15 gathering indicated “they felt grateful, thankful, hopeful, encouraged, optimistic, empowered by the group, looking forward, solidarity, and peaceful about what they saw and heard.”
The next meeting, which is also open to everyone, is scheduled for Thursday, July 2, from 3:15-4:45 p.m., at The People’s Place Library.
“It is going to take some building of momentum,” Gladkikh said of bringing about change, in noting the importance of having ongoing gatherings and discussions, and having more people becoming involved.
She concluded, “Racist behaviour must stop for Antigonish town and county to truly become a safe, secure place for everyone to live – no matter where you are from.”
