Harriet Tubman is not the kind of resident that we can just be proud to have in our history here in St. Catharines, but instead she is someone whose living legacy we have to live up to, we have big shoes to fill.
Harriet Tubman was a black woman who did not stay within the restrictions the society and politics of the time limited her to, she did whatever it took to get justice for her people. We in St. Catharines can't limit ourselves to thinking that as a lower-tier municipality we have to wait for the other levels of government to catch up to do right by Harriet Tubman's community which is still part of St. Catharines, and the BIPOC and other equity seeking communities that are part of our city.
If the federal, provincial, or regional governments are behind on what they should be doing, the City government still has a role to do whatever can and needs to be done to bring what needs to happen closer.
Just to give you two examples that have come up recently, the anti-racism advisory committee has been looking at what the city can do about hate speech and hate signs if hate crimes are not being fully prosecuted by the Crown. Also, groups have been asking the province to test landlords for housing discrimination and take them to the human rights tribunals. If the province won't do the testing then let's find a way for the City to fill in the gaps.
Harriet Tubman's legacy is not just a history but is also our accountability. Thank you all for attending this event in her memory today and let's make it part of getting more involved in eliminating racism with Harriet Tubman as someone to live up to.
