Media releases

• New research examines experience of racialized communities during COVID-19

  Thursday, May 13, 2021 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 13 May 2021 – R0059

  The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on all Canadians, but new research shows how racialized and marginalized communities have been disproportionally affected.

  The groundbreaking research project was led by co-investigators Gervan Fearon, President of Brock University, and Walid Hejazi, Associate Professor of Economic Analysis and Policy at the University of Toronto, in partnership with the Canadian Arab Institute (CAI).

  Published on Thursday, May 13, “A Year in Review: Experiences of Racialized communities during the COVID-19 Pandemic” identifies the challenges faced by marginalized groups and makes recommendations to inform government policy, program development and civil society interventions.

  To capture the pandemic experiences of these communities, five lead researchers worked with 25 research assistants representing a wide range of racialized and marginalized communities across Canada.

  Over the course of four months from September to December 2020, more than 200 participants were interviewed and surveyed to better understand their lived experience of the pandemic up to that point.

  “We knew COVID-19 has affected racialized communities way more than non-racialized communities, and we were really looking to conduct race-based data collection to better understand those experiences,” said Shireen Salti, CAI Executive Director. “There is strength and power in community members coming together to learn experiences of one another and we really wanted to make sure we could document those experiences and shape the policy priorities of the community moving forward.”

  Fearon said Brock wanted to be involved because of the role universities and colleges play in advancing Canada’s goal of being an inclusive society and fostering understanding across communities.

  “Canada is known for its major efforts in being an inclusive society. We can see it in government policy and legislation and the broad thematic of multi-culturalism,” Fearon said. “That means all of our institutions across Canada have to be a resource and an asset for addressing important questions that affect different communities within the Canadian mosaic.”

  Hejazi said his time researching policy development at all levels of government in Canada and around the world has taught him the importance of solid evidence in decision-making.

  “In order to develop effective policy and implement that policy, there’s an absolute essential need for evidence,” he said.

  In analyzing the data that resulted from the research, Hejazi said it was clear the impact of COVID-19 differed across various racialized communities, but also within sub-groups of those communities.

  However, there were four general themes that emerged which showed:

  • A significant lack of access to medical and mental health services for these communities.
  • A preponderance of high-risk employment often requiring work outside of the home within these communities.
  • A lack of access to information and trusted supports.
  • Although governments have made many supports available to all Canadians, there exists a disproportionate understanding of how to access these supports within these communities.

  “The pandemic has created challenges for all Canadians, but these have been particularly acute across racialized and marginalized communities,” said Hejazi.

  Within the report, the researchers made three key recommendations to the Canadian government as they plan and implement COVID-19 recovery initiatives:

  • Build trust between government and racialized communities — Engage communities by working with trusted community members to create safe, trusted access points for credible information. Trusted community agencies and networks can facilitate collective action, decision-making and greater factual information sharing within communities. Building trust between government and communities through ongoing engagement is essential for establishing the  foundation needed to effectively address health and emergency challenges.
  • Enhance communication through existing and new channels — Frequently engage with the community to ensure consistent and appropriate communication. Communities can ensure factual information is shared amongst trusted networks and draw on their awareness of cultural nuances to develop multiple modes of communication and access points.
  • Increase overall well-being of racialized Canadian communities — Ensure access and knowledge of financial, physical and emotional well-being resources. Develop an ongoing engagement strategy with racialized communities to connect them with resources such as vaccination clinics, food banks, community health centres and childcare, and addressing underlying social and economic inequities.

  “As our governments continue to work toward a safe and equitable recovery plan, the CAI strongly believes the recommendations can be used to build back better and support racialized communities across the country,” said Salti. “To be able to collaborate and partner with other racialized communities for a common goal to amplify their voices and document their experiences was crucial for the future of this country in terms of the policy recommendations that will be put in place to better ensure their well-being socially, economically and politically.”

  Fearon said an added benefit of the research project was how it helped build a more diverse research community.

  “The project was able to collect important information and allowed us as post-secondary institutions to support the development of that next generation of researchers who will not only give voice to important issues affecting their community, but also be part of the important dialogue and action we need as Canadians regarding how we build an inclusive society that benefits us all,” he said. “COVID-19 has shown us that our well-being and prosperity are interrelated, which make inclusive society likely more able to respond to challenges and to act on opportunities.”

  The full report, “A Year in Review: Experiences of Racialized communities during the COVID-19 Pandemic,” is available on the CAI website here.

  The researchers behind the project are available for media interviews.

  *NOTE – A video about the research project can be found on the Brock University YouTube channel here. Non-branded video for use by media is available upon request.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University [email protected] or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases

• Niagara needs to support the arts during and after the pandemic, says new NCO research

  Tuesday, May 11, 2021 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 11 May 2021 – R0058

  The COVID-19 pandemic has hit Niagara’s vibrant arts community particularly hard, with impacts radiating out all across the region, says a new research brief from Brock University’s Niagara Community Observatory.

  Live performances, gallery showings, workshops, educational arts training and many other activities associated with the arts community have stopped or been greatly reduced, yet the implications for Niagara aren’t clearly understood, says the brief’s author, Associate Professor of Educational Studies Kari-Lynn Winters.

  “The arts need to be continually supported,” says Winters. “The arts do more than what we think they’re doing: they bolster self-confidence and mental wellness, they leverage community building and reconciliation, and bring about self-actualization, inclusion and embracing diversities.”

  In the NCO brief, “What’s Art Got to Do With It? The role of arts and culture in a community’s survival during a global pandemic,” Winters presents three vignettes to illustrate how the arts have made a huge difference in people’s lives.

  One story outlines the situation of a homeless middle-aged woman associated with Start Me Up Niagara. After enrolling in an arts program, she was able to express herself confidently, raising awareness in the community about poverty and homelessness.

  The second vignette describes a play that Brock scholars and graduate students created to help audiences better understand critical issues of forced migration, marginalization, truth and reconciliation, and co-existence.

  The third story is about a drama workshop for Niagara students in Grades 4 to 8. After watching a play about body image, students were asked to role-play as experienced designers tasked with constructing the perfect mannequin.

  The exercise enabled a 10-year-old boy with autism to stand up to the scenario’s hypothetical boss and explain why he designed his mannequin the way he did.

  The NCO brief says the vignettes support research findings that a “central element of any community’s resilience is the critical mass of cultural activities — making up its life, outlook, creativity and ethos.”

  “The arts really make us human because they enable us to empathize with different perspectives and positions; it’s a great way to re-frame thinking,” says Winters, who is also an artist, art educator and the 2020 recipient of the St. Catharines Arts Award for Arts in Education.

  It is important for the broader Niagara community to support the arts and help the arts community recover from the devastations of COVID-19, says Winters.

  The NCO brief makes three recommendations that would support the arts in Niagara:

  • Set up artful spaces in public places: outdoor galleries and street theatre in various locations across the region “to broaden audiences, expand knowledge and offer spaces for critical and creative thinking.”
  • Create educational programs that build relationships between mentor artists and community members.
  • Establish grants for businesses to hire local artists, which makes the Niagara region more aesthetic and has the potential to bring beauty and joy to community members while appealing to people’s sense that Niagara is a quality place to live.”

  The brief also notes ways the “resilient and creative” arts community has bounced back, including Carousel Players creating Zoom plays, musicians playing music behind thick plastic in Niagara Falls hotels or on outdoor patios at Niagara wineries, and musicians performing on St. Paul St. in downtown St. Catharines.

  There are about 1,200 creative and performing artists in the region, with performing arts companies supporting more than 750 jobs not including promoters, agents and managers, as well as independent artists, writers and performers, says the brief.

  “We need to appreciate the economic vitality of Niagara’s arts community,” says NCO Director Charles Conteh. “We’re talking about a sector not only with an economic value of more than $2 billion in direct and associated spending, but also with an incalculable value in the overall quality of life, advancing social awareness, promoting inclusivity and providing portraits of our shared stories.”

  He says there are high hopes the sector will revive as vaccines become more accessible, but it still needs financial and other supports so as to contribute to Niagara’s economic, social and cultural vitality.

  Brock University Associate Professor of Educational Studies Kari-Lynn Winters is available for media interviews about the NCO brief.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

   * Dan Dakin, Manager Communications and Media Relations, Brock University [email protected] or 905-347-1970

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  Categories: Media releases