Wellness & Equity Education
Emergency Contacts
Regional Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence Treatment Program
Staffed 24/7, St. Joseph’s Hospital, London (directions)
519 646-6100 ext 64224
Western Special Constable Services
Lawson Hall, Rm. 1257 (24/7)
From a campus phone: call 911 or x83300 (non-emergency line)
From a cell phone: call 519-661-3300
*For reports of gender-based violence, WSCS will connect you with the local police service.
Important Contacts
Gender-Based Violence & Survivor Support Case Manager
519 661-3568
support@uwo.ca
Anova (formerly Sexual Assault Centre of London)
24 hour crisis & support line:
519 642-3000
CMHA Crisis Centre & Reach Out
24/7 Crisis and Support Services
In person: 648 Huron St, London (directions)
Phone: 519 433-2023
Webchat
Human Rights Office
519 661-3334 (non-emergencies only)
Residence Counselling
Ontario Hall, Room 3C10
needtotalk@uwo.ca
Independent Legal Advice for Sexual Assault Survivors
Survivors of sexual assault may be eligible for up to four hours of free, confidential legal advice.
Indigenous Wellness Counsellor
Zhwwanong 24 Hr Emergency Women's Shelter for First Nations women and their children
256 Hill St, London, Ontario
Phone: 1-800-605-7477
Trans Lifeline:
877-330-6366
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Western is committed to fostering Equity, Diversity and Inclusion within the campus community.
Key Concepts
Hierarchy of Justice
- Justice: fixing the system to offer equal access to both tools and opportunities
- Equity: custom tools that identify and address inequality
- Equality: evenly distribute tools and assistance
- Inequality: unequal access to opportunities
Dimensions of Racism
Institutional: policies and practices that reinforce racist standards within a workplace or organization
Structural: multiple institutions collectively upholding racist policies and practices (ex. Society)
Interpersonal: racist acts and micro-aggressions carried out from one person to another
Internalized: the subtle and overt messages that reinforce negative beliefs and self-hatred in individuals
Racism VS. Prejudice VS. Discrimination VS. Oppression
Racism: the belief that your race is superior to others (must have power and influence to believe so)
Prejudice: a preconceived opinion or belief that is not based on reason or experience (disregard for, or lack of, factual reason)
Discrimination: acting on one's prejudice
- This can be denying someone their rights or access to spaces because of their gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sex, etc.
Oppression: a prolonged cruel and unjust treatment of a group by harnessing prejudice and discrimination within the legal, social, economic, and cultural parts of society
- This is rooted in historical, institutional, ideological, and structural forms of power
What is Intersectionality?
Intersectionality is the interconnected nature or social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.
Examples:
- I am a gay, White male
- I am a Black woman
- I am an upper-class Asian female
- I am a Black man with a disability
The goal of intersectionality is to acknowledge and show how multiple overlapping identity markers interconnect.
Anti-Racism
What does it mean to be anti-racist?
- Take the time to better understand the Canadian context of #BlackLivesMatter.
- Become aware of the importance of demanding justice.
- Tap into existing resources for self-education.
- Unlearn learned behaviour.
- Support the Black Community by shifting the responsibility of education on to yourself.
What is Anti-Asian Xenophobia?
What Can You Do As An Ally to Help Stop The Stigma?
- Continue to educate yourself and others from reputable resources such as public health officials.
- Share accurate information about the pandemic.
- Speak up if you witness xenophobia or racism through the spread of misinformation
- If you experience anti-Asian racism, you can virtually submit a complaint to the student code of conduct through this link.
Resources
PROTECH - aims to reduce the negative psychosocial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Chinese Canadians and other affected groups while promoting community resilience.Addressing Anti-Asian Racism: A Resource for Educators - A TDSB resource to empower educators to take action against anti-Asian racism.
How can I learn more?
Microagressions
Types of racial microagressions and their effects
Microinvalidations: subtly or obviously denying or attacking the experiences, feelings, and thoughts that people of colour have
- Ex. "I don't see colour, we are all human beings, all lives matter," and grouping different experiences a of racial/ethnic group
- What it does: can make people of colour feel invisible and frustrated
Microinsults: verbal and nonverbal insults that demean or discredit people of colour
- Ex. "you speak so well/articulate, he's so angry/she's spicy, I can't believe you wrote that," judging appearances
- What it does: can affect the self-esteem of people of colour
Micro-assaults: very explicit verbal or nonverbal attacks against people of colour
- Ex. Using racial slurs, avoiding eye contact, saying things like "Black men scare me/FEM (female to male transgender individuals) are not real men."
- Ex. Guilty before innocent for Black youth
Allyship and Calls to Action
Where to Start
- Donate to a legal defence fund locally in Canada or internationally in the US.
- Buy from Black-owned businesses as much as possible.
- Justice for George Floyd Petition
- Colors of Change Petition
- Justice for Breonna Taylor Petition
- Justice for Ahmaud Arbery Petition
Ways to Practice Allyship
1. Listen intently. Listen to those impacted by racism to learn and listen to those who are inflicting the cyclical pain of racism to call them in and educate them.
2. Self-evaluate your own practices and implicit biases. For example, are you sub-consciously choosing to only have friends from the same socio-economic or racial backgrounds as yourself?
3. Stand up and speak up in the race of racism, discrimination and oppression in person and digitally.
4. Speak WITH not FOR marginalized communities by uplifting the voices you are trying to support.
5. Transfer the benefits of your privileges to others.
6. Learn to receive and accept criticism on your practices with grace. Learning to practice allyship is a journey. You are going to make mistakes and people will correct you. Don’t take it personally. Learn to accept the feedback gracefully and learn from the mistake.
Racial Trauma and Support
What is racial trauma?
What are some ways to cope with racial trauma?
How can I support someone experiencing racial trauma?
Here are some ways that you can support someone in need:
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- Send a message to your friends who are impacted by this the most. Recognize that you may not receive a response, and that is fine as that is part of the grieving process.
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- If possible, drop off contact-less care packages to your friends who are impacted by this the most. Be sure to take the opportunity to include items and resources that you know they could really use right now.
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- Donate in your friends’ names to Black-owned non-profit organizations that are offering resources to the Black community.
- Offer your friend the space to call/facetime and freely talk without feeling the need to offer solutions or “fix” the problem. The problem is systemic. You can do your part to change the system in your everyday practices. But when giving your friend the space to grieve, it is okay to not have to “fix the problem”.
Where can I go for support?
For those who would like to submit a report, you can access the online incident reporting tool through the Human Rights Office. The Western Human Rights Office (HRO) is here to help; they can provide advice and support to all members of Western's campus community: students, staff, faculty, and leaders.