Wayne Gates (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Devon St. Denis-Richard (NOTA)

Grade/comment

Yes. Our province has among the highest rates of reported hate crimes fuelled by Islamophobia, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, anti-Indigenous racism and antisemitism. For many Black, Indigenous and racialized people across Niagara, fear of being targeted is a constant reality. Moreover, anti-Black and anti-Indigenous systemic racism has led to inequities in health care, education, and policing, and housing for generations.

A

People experience barriers that can be difficult to overcome.  I do believe that there are bad actors out there as well.  These are some of the major issues that people face.  If/when people encounter these barriers, if elected, I would try to work with them to remove these.

C

Does not specifically answer about systemic barriers or systemic issues, separate from “bad actors.” Systemic racism is not a question of “if/when.”

Wayne Gates (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Devon St. Denis-Richard (NOTA)

Grade/comment

The Ontario NDP is proposing a comprehensive Anti-Racism strategy for the province, informed by race-based data collection across all ministries. The strategy includes the following components:

• Designating a Minister responsible for Anti-Racism and properly funding and expanding the Anti-Racism Directorate (ARD) into a fully functioning government Secretariat.

• Introducing mandatory anti-oppression and anti-bias training that addresses anti-Indigenous racism, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, and white supremacy, and includes Indigenous education training for all public servants, including legislators.

• Adequately funding community organizations that are already doing anti-racism work.

• Reinstituting the ARD’s working groups on anti-Black racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, and anti-Indigenous racism.

• Addressing the rising tide of anti-Asian racism through dedicated funding and education programs.

• Passing into law the Ontario NDP’s bill to make May 10 an annual provincial Day of Action on Anti-Asian Racism.

• Taking on white supremacist and extremist alt-right groups within the provincial strategy to address racism, diminishing their abilities to operate in the province such as prohibiting them from registering as non-profits in Ontario.

• Proclaiming Jan 29 of each year a provincial Day of Remembrance and Action on Islamophobia.

• Erecting a Holocaust memorial on the grounds of Queen’s Park.

• Addressing Islamophobia and Antisemitism in schools, to ensure that all children feel and are welcome and safe.

• Providing funding to assist religious centres and places of worship with security costs including cameras and the hiring of security guards.

• Creating a COVID-19 equity plan that ensures the hardest hit communities–including Asian communities, elders, women, small businesses, and essential workers – get the respect and direct financial support they deserve to recover from the pandemic.

• Passing the Our London Family Act to combat dangerous Islamophobia and white supremacy.

A

As a potential MPP, I support enforcing the existing laws; broken window theory.  While this may seem like a canned answer, you have to take in the fact that there are a lot of small laws that are never exercised (e.g. specific questions in a job interview, someone calling to rent an apartment and being hung up on when they hear their accent, etc.).  For this, we can look towards implementing random audits on business.

C

The source of racism is not the lack of enforcement of laws (which is what the “broken window” theory suggests), although laws can be a tool in the fight against racism and white supremacy.

Wayne Gates (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Devon St. Denis-Richard (NOTA)

Grade/comment

The Ontario NDP constituency staff is unionized, racially diverse, and our collective agreement has strong and legally-enforceable anti-discrimination and employment equity provisions.

I am committed to the employment equity provisions as dictated by the collective agreement between the Ontario NDP and its constituency office staff. I am further committed to making overt efforts to ensure that future positions are advertised in venues that ensure diverse communities will learn about the postings and be provided with ample opportunity to apply.

B+

Says Ontario NDP constituency staff are racially diverse but does not answer about his particular constituency staff.

Does recognize examples of steps needed to increase the diversity of applicants.

More steps are needed to ensure equity in the hiring process, even if it goes beyond the union contract.

If elected, I would likely only have an EA.  Everyone applying for the job would be given an equal opportunity.

B

It is not enough to give an equal opportunity, there must be active recruitment to ensure a diverse applicant pool and specific steps must be taken to ensure equity in the hiring process.

Wayne Gates (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Devon St. Denis-Richard (NOTA)

Grade/comment

The Ontario NDP is committed to properly funding and expanding the Anti-Racism Directorate into a fully functioning government Secretariat.

A

I would focus on child poverty (feeding and clothing), which disproportionately affects some communities, preferring to directly address issues of inequality.  Being a direct democracy advocate, I work on direct action with communities.

F

The answer suggests the funding would not be restored. While ending child poverty can help reduce inequality it is not an answer for an Anti-Racism Directorate.

Wayne Gates (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Devon St. Denis-Richard (NOTA)

Grade/comment

The Ontario NDP is committed to establishing a true government-to-government relationship with Ontario’s First Nations. That means honouring the inherent rights, treaties, and ways of life on Indigenous peoples. You can read more about our approach to Indigenous relations here: https://www.ontariondp.ca/platform/indigenous

A

Note this does not address the actual situation at Land Back Lane which is exactly a treaty issue but one of negotiations, although that would be included in government-to-government relationships.

This issue has been going on so long, that I think the only equitable resolution is binding arbitration.

C

While the answer is not advocating force directly, binding arbitration could lead to the use of force, and it is different from a negotiation and not clear what principles will be used for the arbitration.

Dave Augustyn (NDP)

Grade/comment

Yes. Our province has among the highest rates of reported hate crimes fuelled by Islamophobia, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, anti-Indigenous racism and antisemitism. For many Black, Indigenous and racialized people across Niagara, fear of being targeted is a constant reality. Moreover, anti-Black and anti-Indigenous systemic racism has led to inequities in health care, education, and policing, and housing for generations.

(Word-for-word the same answer as Wayne Gates, NDP, who returned the completed survey first).

A

Dave Augustyn (NDP)

Grade/comment

The Ontario is proposing a comprehensive Anti-Racism strategy for the province, informed by race-based data collection across all ministries. The strategy includes the following components:

• Designating a Minister responsible for Anti-Racism and properly funding and expanding the Anti-Racism Directorate (ARD) into a fully functioning government Secretariat.

• Introducing mandatory anti-oppression and anti-bias training that addresses anti-Indigenous racism, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism, and white supremacy, and includes Indigenous education training for all public servants, including legislators.

• Adequately funding community organizations that are already doing anti-racism work.

• Reinstituting the ARD’s working groups on anti-Black racism, Islamophobia, antisemitism, and anti-Indigenous racism.

• Addressing the rising tide of anti-Asian racism through dedicated funding and education programs.

• Passing into law the Ontario NDP’s bill to make May 10 an annual provincial Day of Action on Anti-Asian Racism.

• Taking on white supremacist and extremist alt-right groups within the provincial strategy to address racism, diminishing their abilities to operate in the province such as prohibiting them from registering as non-profits in Ontario.

• Proclaiming Jan 29 of each year a provincial Day of Remembrance and Action on Islamophobia.

• Erecting a Holocaust memorial on the grounds of Queen’s Park.

• Addressing Islamophobia and Antisemitism in schools, to ensure that all children feel and are welcome and safe.

• Providing funding to assist religious centres and places of worship with security costs including cameras and the hiring of security guards.

• Creating a COVID-19 equity plan that ensures the hardest hit communities–including Asian communities, elders, women, small businesses, and essential workers – get the respect and direct financial support they deserve to recover from the pandemic.

• Passing the Our London Family Act to combat dangerous Islamophobia and white supremacy.

(Once again word-for-word the exact same answer as that submitted earlier by Wayne Gates, NDP)

A

Dave Augustyn (NDP)

Grade/comment

I am committed to the employment equity provisions between the Ontario NDP and its constituency office staff. I am further committed to making overt efforts to ensure that future positions are advertised in venues that ensure diverse communities will learn about the postings and be provided with ample opportunity to apply.

(Word-for-word the same as the last paragraph of the answer submitted earlier by Wayne Gates, NDP).

A

Does recognize examples of steps needed to increase the diversity of applicants.

More steps are needed to ensure equity in the hiring process, even if it goes beyond the union contract.

Dave Augustyn (NDP)

Grade/comment

The Ontario NDP is committed to properly funding and expanding the Anti-Racism Directorate into a fully functioning government Secretariat.

(Once again word-for-word the same answer as submitted by Wayne Gates, NDP)

A

Dave Augustyn (NDP)

Grade/comment

The Ontario NDP is committed to establishing a true government-to-government relationship with Ontario’s First Nations. That means honouring the inherent rights, treaties, and ways of life on Indigenous peoples. You can read more about our approach to Indigenous relations here: https://www.ontariondp.ca/platform/indigenous

(Once again word-for-word the same answer as submitted earlier by Wayne Gates, NDP)

A

Note this does not address the actual situation at Land Back Lane which is exactly a treaty issue but one of negotiations, although that would be included in government-to-government relationships.

Jennie Stevens (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Rin Simon (Communist)

Grade/comment

Yes, there is systemic racism in Niagara. Systemic racism is particularly evident in our schools and in our healthcare across the Province. Too often, we see racialized and Indigenous people experiencing disproportionate impacts. The quality of healthcare delivered to racialized Ontarians is significantly impacted by racism. A recent example was the death of Heather Winterstein. Heather’s death shed light on the fact that Indigenous people, and Indigenous women in particular, often have their health concerns and issues dismissed by medical

professionals. Her death is part of an alarming trend we have seen across Canada.

An Ontario NDP government will work to ensure health equity. We will treat racism as a public health crisis, and establish a systematic review of the health care system. We will also expand Indigenous health, by working with Indigenous primary health care organizations. We will ensure health care delivery is culturally sensitive, and that Indigenous health care

professionals are recruited and properly compensated.

A

Gave a local example.

Absolutely. The Niagara region is but one region of the larger Settler society known as Canada and is guilty of the same forms of systemic racism that perpetuates the settler-colonial State. Racism can be observed in the ways in which racialized and Indigenous peoples are treated by government, police, housing and healthcare institutions across Canada and in Niagara. Many of the municipalities across Niagara are situated on stolen Indigenous lands which is a racist system of colonial dispossession that facilitates the capitalist accumulation of “natural resources” on stolen land. The Canadian State and the Niagara region are symptoms of these two processes and perpetuate racism to replicate and reproduce settler-colonial relationships between peoples and lands. Racism is alive and well in the Niagara Region.

A

Jennie Stevens (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Rin Simon (Communist)

Grade/comment

As an MPP, I was an advocate for and supporter of my colleague Laura Mae Lindo’s Bill 67: Racial Equity in the Education System Act. This act would provide supports for students who experience racism in schools, train educators on how to effectively implement anti-racist

policies, and more. I also fully supported my colleagues Faisal Hassan, Teresa J Armstrong, Terence Kernaghan, and Peggy Sattler on Bill 86: The Our London Family Act. This Bill would amend existing anti-racism legislation to specifically help address Islamophobia. I will continue to advocate for and support these pieces of legislation, and all of the other anti-racist policies championed by the Ontario NDP.

Locally, I was a proud supporter of the renaming of Richard Pierpoint Park, which is the first public park in St. Catharines to bear the name of a Black Canadian. Representation matters, and so the renaming of the park is important for residents of St. Catharines as it

acknowledges and celebrates the existence and strength of the Black community here in the city.

A

If elected as MPP for St.Catharines, I will fight for a sharp reduction in police funding and the demilitarization of the police. I will also fight to end police surveillance and harassment of Inidgneous (sic) activists fighting for just land claims. The banning of hate groups and
strengthening enforcement and penalties for hate crimes is necessary considering the rise of hate crimes across Niagara. I believe these are some of but a few ways in which we can take on racism in the Niagara region and across Canada.

A

Jennie Stevens (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Rin Simon (Communist)

Grade/comment

As of May 2022, all four St. Catharines constituency staff identify as White, with 50% identifying as male and 50% identifying as female. One of our constituency staff is a part of the 2SLGBTQI+ community.

The Ontario NDP is an equal opportunity employer. The Party actively promotes

employment equity. Women, Black, Indigenous, and racialized persons, persons with disabilities, 2SLGBTQI+, and anyone from equity seeking groups are strongly encouraged to apply for constituency positions.

A

The only incumbent to give an honest and straightforward answer that all staff are white.

More specific plans could be developed on how to attract a more diverse applicant pool and how to ensure equity in the hiring process.

The first step I would take would be to prioritize marginalized, racialized and Indigenous peoples when considering my constituency staff. I believe that it is important that I do not perpetuate settler-colonial relations when considering staff and give equitable opportunities to constituents while keeping in mind their intersectional identities and prioritizing those that have historically been excluded from the Settler political system.

A

Jennie Stevens (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Rin Simon (Communist)

Grade/comment

We will restore the Anti-Racism Directorate (ARD) and fully fund the ARD into a full

secretariat. We will also appoint a Minister to be responsible for anti-racism. Additionally, we will implement a Provincial anti-racism strategy, to be informed by race-based data collection across all provincial ministries. We will fund community organizations that are already doing anti-racism work, and we will establish an Ontario Anti-Racism Advisory Council. The Ford government cuts to Ontario’s Anti-Racism Directorate are telling. They also dismantled many of its working groups. They have actively avoided tackling organized hate and allowed dangerous rhetoric to circulate and implicity condoned racist behaviors from their former Ministers.

A

Shows a detailed understanding of this issue.

Absolutely. I believe the current government is severely lacking an anti-racist analysis and the funding cut to the Anti-Racism Directorate is a clear indicator. If we are to have a government that is anti-racist than we need to restore funding to the Anti-Racism Directorate
(factoring in inflation) and possibly fund it more than it had been previously funded.

A

Jennie Stevens (NDP, incumbent)

Grade/comment

Rin Simon (Communist)

Grade/comment

Violence against Indigenous Land Defenders must stop. We cannot resolve land claims

through the use of state violence or policing. Unfortunately, what we saw happen at 1492 Land Back Lane was the removal of land defenders by police. Forcible removement of Indigenous

peoples from their lands or territories is directly contrary to Article 10 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

The land in question is within the Haldimand Tract. This is an area that has been a source of dispute since as far back as the 1700s, and like all land disputes it should be settled in a nation-to-nation dialogue between the Crown and Six Nations. As a Province, we should not be utilizing the police to solve an issue that should be resolved through dialogue.

When elected as government on June 2nd, we will establish the Treaty Commission of Ontario. This commission will be given a clear mandate to independently and impartially help settle land claims and assist negotiations between the governments of Ontario, Canada, and First Nations. We will also implement UNDRIP, and ensure Indigenous Peoples in Ontario are treated equitably under the law.

A

She knew better than us to use the correct term “Land Defenders” and is in favor of negotiations rather than force.

a) use Ontario Provincial Police or another force to remove protesters

Absolutely not. The Indigenous Land Defenders at Land Back Lane 1492 are within their rights to defend their lands from colonial dispossession and further colonial encroachment on their territories. If anything the OPP should be helping to facilitate the Land Back movement by removing the illegal developments on Indigenous lands. If there is no free, prior
and informed consent then any development is in violation of the UNDRIP and is illegal and a human rights violation.

b) negotiate with Indigenous protesters

Indigenous land defenders should not be painted as “protestors.” (sic) The Land Defenders at Land Back Lane 1492 are a part of a movement of warriors fighting for our Mother the Earth. These Land Defenders are members of a sovereign nation under occupation by a settler-colonial State that is literally trying to kill the planet that we all rely on for life. There is a need for just land negotiations while keeping in mind that the Six Nations reservation is but a miniscule portion of the Haldimand tract that was purchased by the Crown for the community in 1784. Due to colonial legislation, such as the BNA and the Indian Act,
their territory has been reduced to what it is today so that Settler development could go underway while depriving the Indigenous community
members of their ways of life. Land must be returned and there must be the establishment of a Nation-to-Nation relationship while negotiating.

A

We acknowledge the mistake in using the term “protesters” and apologize for it.