UPDATE: The Ontario Federation of Labour welcomes news of the resignation of former York Region District School Board Trustee Nancy Elgie
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Feb. 18, 2017) - The Ontario Federation of Labour welcomes news of the resignation of former school board trustee Nancy Elgie, following her use of a racial slur in reference to a Black parent after a public meeting in November of 2016. The OFL encourages the YRDSB to continue to work toward eliminating anti-Black racism and Islamophobia within the school system.
In October, the OFL signed on to an open letter to Minister of Education Mitzie Hunter calling on the school board to address issues of racism and Islamophobia, after allegations of Islamophobic posts by a school principal within the YRDSB.
"I am very pleased to hear that Nancy Elgie has stepped down," said OFL Executive Vice-President Ahmad Gaied. "I hope that this will be a step to resolving the systemic issues of anti-Black racism, racism and Islamophobia within the YRDSB."
The OFL advocated strongly for the creation of Ontario's Anti-Racism Directorate, and continues to call for the Directorate to receive a level of funding matching that of other government directorates, in order to stop racism in all parts of Ontario.
"The language used by Nancy Elgie, combined with the anti-Muslim demonstration at a downtown Toronto Mosque today shows that Ontario has a long way to go to achieve inclusivity and equality," said Secretary-Treasurer Patty Coates.
"The labour movement stands against racism and discrimination in all its forms," said OFL President Chris Buckley. "The advocacy of parents, community and allies has sent the message loud and clear: anti-Black racism, racism and Islamophobia cannot be tolerated in our schools"
The OFL represents 54 unions and one million workers in Ontario. For information, visit www.OFL.ca and follow @OFLabour on Facebook and Twitter.
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