Western University’s Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion is forcing its staff, faculty and students to complete a mandatory “anti-racism” learning module before November 24th.
The London, Ont. university sent an email to its staff and students Oct. 3, warning them that the “Building Inclusivity through Anti-Racism” online module is “required training,” with a passing grade of 80%.
“To make this [inclusivity] possible, it is critical that we participate in the process of learning and unlearning to dismantle the systemic barriers embedded in our societal and institutional culture,” reads the email.
Western students and staff have until Nov. 24 to complete the 45-minute program.
While Western University is mandating that all staff and students complete the module before the November deadline, the university has not made clear what the repercussions for failing to complete it are.
Western did not respond to a request for comment from True North.
The mandatory learning module was launched in response to the “President’s Anti-Racism Working Group Final Report,” published on May 18, 2020, which calls on the university to institute “cultural sensitivity/anti-oppression/EDI training for students, TAs, staff, and faculty; mandatory and consistent EDI training for everyone in the campus community.”
Anti-racism is the idea that white people had constructed systemic barriers to success for Canadians of colour, and that white people must take an active role in acknowledging their inherent privilege while working to dismantle “systemic racism.”
Students have raised concerns about the forced teaching of a controversial social theory that one student described divisive.
“This push towards racial division and segregation which I see as anathema to something I stand for is something I am deeply concerned for and I think it’s fracturing society,” said one student, who asked to remain anonymous.
The student told True North that his “stomach dropped,” and was upset after receiving the email from Western, though he wasn’t surprised by it.
