by Rosemary Brown
To mark Black History Month, Settlers Book Club read and discussed Kai Thomas’s In the Upper Country. Kai Thomas describes himself as a carpenter, land steward, and writer. He is Afro-Canadian with antecedents in Trinidad and the British Isles.
Thomas’ novel is unique in that it explores Indigenous and Black relationships in the 19th century. The novel is set in a fictional town in Ontario, a few years before the beginning of the US Civil War. The town was settled by escaped slaves and serves as a temporary stop on the Underground Railroad.
The novel begins when a bounty hunter is shot and killed by Cash, an old woman fleeing slavery. It then centres upon an exchange of stories between Cash and Lucinda Marten, a local journalist who writes for the Coloured Canadian newspaper.
The stories are complex and sometimes involve the reading of texts left by former slaves. They traverse time and geographical locations. Each story is intriguing in its own right and together they reveal shared legacies of Black and Indigenous ancestors and other relatives.
Sometimes the switches between stories can seem confusing but if one takes the time, they are well worth reading. And in the end, Thomas very cleverly leaves the reader wanting to hear more.
In contrast, Chapters and Chat discussed a contemporary document: “Anti-Black Racism, Sexism and Systemic Discrimination in the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC)”
The Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights decided to do its own research after CBC News reported that the Treasury Branch had found that the CHRC had violated the anti-discrimination clauses in the contracts of three federal unions. The committee interviewed witnesses and read numerous briefs and other documents. The Senate Report was released in December 2023.
The Report notes that “no institution is free of systemic discrimination”. The research revealed definite patterns of overlooking qualified Black and other racialized staff when it came to training and advancement. There were also patterns of exclusion from formal and informal networks, and upper management was almost all white. The report notes the negative impact that this toxic work environment had on the physical and mental health of Black and racialized workers.
Of equal importance is that complaints of racial discrimination brought before the CHRC were often “prejudged” and dismissed by all-white teams assessing the complaints. Only 6% went forward.
This short report is well worth reading as an example of how systemic racism operates within an institution. It’s important to note that the Senate Report stated that systemic racism exists across the Federal system. Here is a link to the report if you wish to learn more: https://sencanada.ca/en/info-page/parl-44-1/ridr-anti-black-racism/.
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