Accountability is about building trust, not avoiding risk

Any board member, particularly of a public institution, must act in the best interests of the organization they represent and hold themselves accountable. The public expects board members to respect the community members whom they serve.

Despite this, it's clear that the words, actions, and sometimes inaction, of several Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) trustees have caused harm to students and deeply damaged the public's trust.

The record is extensive and clear on the subject. Students' public articulation and analyses of their experiences, a third-party investigation and the board's own recommendations all bear this out.

This clarity didn't arrive easily or without a struggle. Students were compelled to organize in order to be heard by the HWDSB. They formed Hamilton Students for Justice, called HS4J for short, an organization run by and for students that advocates against racism and oppression. These students, joined by parents, educators and members of the wider Hamilton community, have demanded that there be real consequences for the racist words and actions of school board trustees

But, so far, the only consequences these trustees have faced are a series of self-imposed sanctions that preserve the status quo. In a motion at the board meeting on March 4, they did little more than write themselves a note excusing their own toxic behaviour.

We don't think that these elected leaders are taking what happened seriously enough. In fact, they're following a long tradition in Hamilton's institutions of covering up misdeeds and leaning into policies that are overly focused on avoiding risk.

The motion they passed doesn't address the harm that has been caused to individuals, like former student trustee Ahona Mehdi, and it doesn't account for the care that is necessary in the aftermath, as community ally Dr. Ameil Joseph recently pointed out.

While some trustees and board staff are scrambling to cover for one another to avoid a lawsuit, students and families are suffering through trauma.

All of this raises important questions about the board's capacity to function with integrity. Trustees need to search their souls and ask themselves if they're serving public interests over their own desire to remain in power.

For some in positions of power in our political institutions, accountability is understood as a game of avoiding punishment, mitigating risk and surviving to rule another day.

We understand this to an extent and recognize that the HWDSB is a corporation. Corporations must adhere to certain principles and, by their nature, are set up to protect their interests, but it's simply no longer acceptable to hide behind staff and lawyers. Politics in the coming decade are going to require public accountability and a commitment to transparency, lest institutions continue to sow seeds of mistrust and continue to alienate the electorate.

As a community of concerned citizens and residents, we must demand better from our institutions. We deserve to live in a city where anti-racism is a core competency, not a tick box, a training session, or an area for growth.

If we cannot have faith in our institutions to protect the most at risk of harm, students in this case, then we need to institute sweeping change and reform during the next election.

If we don't, we risk further disengagement, lower voter turnouts, and a greater sense of apathy. If we want a more inclusive, loving, and accepting Hamilton, we're going to have to demand it or continue to be left behind, pointed out for our foibles rather than our successes.

From what we see, things are changing in our city. It's no longer politics as usual in Hamilton. A thriving civic discourse around equity, justice, and inclusion is being championed by communities and there's hope for change.

In the past, a story like this might have been swept under the rug, but Hamiltonians just aren't having it anymore. We're standing up to these injustices, calling out the racism, sexual assault, harassment and bullying we see in our institutions precisely because we see solidarity growing. We're sticking up for each other. To paraphrase HS4J member Gachi Issa's recent comments on Cable 14 - this fight belongs to every Hamiltonian.

C.A. Klassen and Cameron Kroetsch are both white, queer, formally educated, and care about the city they live in, especially their fellow community members. C.A., a parent to a human, and Cameron, to his fur family, live in downtown Hamilton, but not together.