Against a backdrop of calls for racial justice and the discovery of unmarked graves at residential schools, anti-racism, inclusion and Indigenous reconciliation are expected to be key areas of focus during this federal election campaign. And while justice issues don’t often get much attention in a campaign, any party seriously committed to tackling systemic racism will need to take on justice reform, said Jonathan Rudin, program director at Aboriginal Legal Services. “A systemic racism discussion absolutely has to include justice reform, and framing it that way allows for a discussion of justice reform that would not normally happen in an election campaign,” Rudin said. “Racial justice in Canada will never be achieved without drastic criminal justice reform,” said University of Toronto criminologist Akwasi Owusu-Bempah. The Liberals blamed Conservatives for delays in getting the bill through the House, where half of the Conservative caucus voted against it.

Source: thestar August 18, 2021 09:00 UTC