I'm Saleh Waziruddin, chair of St. Catharines Anti-Racism Advisory Committee.
I want to begin by acknowledging the land on which we gather is the traditional territory of the Anishinabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples and is protected by the Dish With One Spoon Wampum agreement.
Harriet Tubman was an inspiring woman to many because she took action for equality without being bound by convention or being discouraged by the obstacles. She knew slavery and racism were wrong and that was enough reason to do whatever was needed to save peoples lives and correct the injustice.
While we in St Catharines are proud to be associated with her and her community we should not forget that even here Harriet Tubman and her people experienced racism and took action against it.
Our living connection with Harriet Tubman is a reminder to us that we have the opportunity to be a leading community against racism, we in St. Catharines are not too small or too far removed to show the way forward as pioneers for racial justice and equality.
