Calgary's commitment to anti-racism

Calgary's Commitment to Anti-Racism

The City of Calgary is committed to actively dismantling systemic racism, the root causes of racial inequities and injustices in municipal programs and services. 

Calgarians, including City employees, have told us that systemic racism across various institutions such as public safety and policing, development planning and transportation impacts them. The City of Calgary is committed to listening to these lived and living experiences and has established an Anti-Racism Program in response to the concerns.

What we have heard

In 2020, a three-day hearing was held with City Council where people from across Calgary shared their stories of racism and racial discrimination. From 2021 to 2022, over 2,700 people took part in community engagement, where they indicated that racism and discrimination are widespread and perpetuated through various systems and policies. 

  • In the City’s 2021 Street Harassment Survey of 500 people, 64 percent of Racialized Peoples indicated that they have experienced unwanted comments about their ethnicity or race.

  • In a 2021 Cultural Assessment Survey of 3000 City employees, 54 percent of diverse Racialized employees indicated that have experienced or witnessed racism in the workplace.

The City of Calgary Anti-Racism Strategic Plan

Dismantling Systemic Racism, Transforming Lives: The City of Calgary Anti-Racism Strategic Plan 2023-2027 outlines focus areas and strategic actions for addressing systemic racism.

The City of Calgary Anti-Racism Strategic Framework 2023–2027 is available in the following languages:

Arabic | Blackfoot | Chinese-Simplified | Chinese-Traditional | Cree | Farsi | French-Ca | Oromo | Pashto | Punjabi |
Tigrinya | Vietnamese

Learn more

SYSTEMIC RACISM structurally equips a racial group with the power to dominate others in social, political, and economic areas over time and generations. This is often reflected in policies, programs and practices that favour one racial group over others. Due to colonization, systemic racism is deeply rooted in the fabric of our society, thereby creating barriers that negatively impact the lives of Indigenous, Black and diverse Racialized Peoples.

ANTI-RACISM is recognizing the existence of racism and taking active steps to name, challenge and eliminate it at all levels (individual and structural) and spheres of life.

2024 Racial Justice Conference

In March 2024, the City of Calgary hosted its inaugural Racial Justice Conference. This two-day conference brought together over 1,000 people and provided an opportunity for participants to engage in critical conversations and deepen the understanding of systemic racism and its impact on Indigenous, Black and diverse Racialized Peoples. With over 90 diverse speakers and 32 breakout sessions, the conference provided the attendees with the knowledge and skills to go beyond dialogue but towards actionable anti-racist actions that centers the lived and living experiences of Indigenous, Black, and diverse Racialized Peoples.

Watch conference videos

Anti-Racism Action Committee

The Anti-Racism Action Committee is responsible for the development and implementation of a community-based anti-racism strategy that achieves the goals outlined in the Notice of Motion.

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Council updates

On June 15, 2020, a Notice of Motion was passed titled Calgary’s commitment to anti-racism directing work to begin in a number of areas.

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Anti-racism resources

The City of Calgary Anti-Racism team encourages mutual understanding and respect through learning from one another. We’re often reminded of why this work is important and how we need to think about how we can do better.

In the spirit of continuous learning and shared understanding, here are some resources we recommend.

Learn more

Documents for download

  • The City of Calgary Anti-Racism Strategic Plan 2023–2027

    Download

  • Community Anti-Racism Action Strategy

    Download

  • The City of Calgary Organizational Anti-Racism Action Strategy

    Download
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