On March 21 – International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination – HEU stands with the global community in renewing our commitment to ending racism wherever, and however, it occurs.
Every person is entitled to live and work without discrimination. And every person has a role to play in standing up to racism, xenophobia, Islamophobia and bigotry.
That’s why HEU actively promotes inclusion, respect and fair treatment for all our members. We stand in solidarity against every form of discrimination experienced by workers here in Canada and across the globe.
As a social justice union, HEU actively works to identify and eliminate the many types of discrimination that prevent workers from participating fully in their union, at their workplace and in their communities.
Our union’s five equity standing committees raise awareness about the issues facing racialized and marginalized workers and how to combat intolerance wherever it arises.
HEU also strongly supports organizations working to expose and eliminate discrimination.
Our goal is to be full participants in the fight against racial injustice and to use our collective strength to break down barriers and stand up to bigotry.
On March 21 we remember the peaceful blackdemonstrators who, on that day in 1960,
were fired upon by white South African police. They were protesting discriminatory “pass laws” in the Sharpeville Township of South Africa. Sixty-nine people were killed and 180 wounded. Almost all were shot in the back.
Six years later, the United Nations declared March 21 as the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in response to global outrage over the massacre.