Anti-Black Racism at Windsor Law: A Facilitated Discussion

Monday, January 18, 2021 - 12:00 to 13:30

In light of recent anti-Black racism incidents on local and national campuses, the Equity and Diversity Committee at Windsor Law is hosting a facilitated discussion to challenge the root cause and reactions to these events. This discussion aims to address the ongoing anti-Black racism at the law school, specifically regarding the prevalence of tone policing Black students and centring whiteness in conversations of anti-Black racism. This conversation will be facilitated by Pascale Diverlus and Chrys Saget-Richard.

About the Speakers:

Pascale Diverlus

Pascale Diverlus is born of a lineage of Haitian freedom fighters. She is an award-winning community organizer, storyteller, communications specialist, digital strategist, and social justice educator. As an educator, she supports organizations, agencies, and businesses to develop and adopt organizational transformation rooted in anti-oppressive frameworks. This includes unpacking and unearthing anti-Black racism, misogynoir, cissexism, and other systems of oppression within the workplace and society. She creates equity-based assessments, conducts internal reviews, and assists in the implementation of practices, policies and protocols centred on equity and human rights practices. 

For nearly a decade, Pascale has stood on the frontlines calling for justice; she is a co-founder and former lead organizer for Black Lives Matter -Toronto, the first international iteration of the Black Lives Matter movement. During her time, Pascale led the movement’s community engagement, curriculum development, public education, and direct action coordination. Previously, she was a student activist on multiple Toronto campuses calling for free education and robust sexual violence policies.

Chrys Saget-Richard

Chrys is a 3rd-year student at the McGill University Faculty of Law. Prior to their legal studies, they completed a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work at Ryerson University, while heavily involved in equity work, education work and activism around issues of anti-Black racism, decolonization and anti-colonialism, Queer and Trans liberation struggles, mental health, disability and education. 

Chrys sits comfortably within the margins of the margins which sometimes offers a perhaps difficult but honest perspective in working to center the voices of their communities. They believe that Community-based and lead movements can, and do, serve as a path toward transformative justice whether or not we give them a chance. Ultimately, their work committed to Black liberation is rooted in ensuring meaningful collective participation and a fundamental belief that revolution must be rooted in love.   

Location: Online (Blackboard Collaborate)

Register: attend.com/EDCEvent

Questions? Contact Winta T-Michael

Event Sponsors: the Office of Student Experience, OHREA, the Law Library, and Windsor Law.

(519)253-3000