UN to Canada: "Visible Minorities" term is racist

[building babel]

Re: UN to Canada: "Visible Minorities" term is rac

The OCA(D) community had to deal with that very contradiction in 1990, when the College introduced their "Equity 2000" hiring policy. But the fallout from the negative publicity they got has, I think, given other employers pause before introducing similar extreme hiring policies. In the OCA(D) case, it was Section 13 of the Ontario Human Rights Act.

 

[bizorky]

Re: UN to Canada: "Visible Minorities" term is rac

From the article:

To the committee, highlighting a certain group does not appear to be consistent with Article One of the Convention, which says racial discrimination occurs when equitable treatment is upset by "any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin."

Speaking at the grilling of Canada last month, committee member Patrick Thornberry went further.

"The use of the term seemed to somehow indicate that 'whiteness' was the standard, all others differing from that being visible," said the British international law professor, according to UN note takers.

Mr. Thornberry and other committee members refused to be interviewed yesterday, saying through a secretary that their report speaks for itself

On the basis of this committee's suggestions, I would assume that Canada could not be identified as a "multicultural" or "diverse" nation, as such terminology inevitable must be backed up with an explanation that makes reference to some aspect of individual or group membership.

Particularly stupid is the fact that the committee missed the general context: identifying a group, or groupings of people, as being "visible minorities" has allowed for their protection under the law as compared to what existed before, when group identification was used as a simple means of negative discrimination. Is this a perfect approach to protecting human rights? No. Has it worked perfectly? No. Is it better than what existed before? Yes. Why not at least properly acknowledge that fact?

Nice how they manage to slip out of the responsibility of coming up with the appropriate language to replace what they dislike. Bloody typical.