The Canadian Colours Kingston Foundation hosted our second All Candidates Town Hall on May 18, 2022. Instead of a debate, this event invited the political candidates for the 2022 Provincial Election together to discuss how their respective platforms will support Black, Indigenous and Persons of Colour (BIPOC) as well as other underrepresented groups in Canada and our community.
Canadian Colours of Kingston Foundation was created to bring different cultures, mindsets and backgrounds together to foster understanding and communication and embrace change to create a diverse and inclusive community. We believe this responsibility also lies with educating and understanding not only our community members, but also our politicians about the issues being faced in our community. This event will provide an opportunity for candidates to discuss how their platforms will support the BIPOC and underrepresented communities over the next four years and get a chance to hear from some of the underrepresented groups in Kingston.
The Candidates and Their Platforms:
Ted Hsu – Liberal Party of Ontario
https://www.tedhsu.ca/
Gary Bennett – Conservative Party of Ontario
https://kati.ontariopc.ca/
Mary Rita Holland – New Democratic Party of Ontario
https://www.maryritaholland.com/
Zachary Typhair – Green Party of Ontario
https://gpo.ca/candidate/zachary-typhair/
Dr. Shalea Beckwith – The Ontario Party
https://shaleabeckwith.ca/
Steven Skyvington – New Blue Party of Ontario
https://www.newblueontario.com/kingston-and-the-islands
Shelley Galloway – Independent
Sebastian Vallencourt – The Communist Party of Ontario (Absent)
https://communistpartyontario.ca/candidates/kingston-and-the-islands-sebastian-vaillancourt/
View the full town hall discussion from YourTV Kingston below:
(Canadian Colours) What, if any, issues and policies at Queen’s Park would you consider your ‘top priority’ in terms of changes to be made, and in what ways would you ensure that these policy changes include equitable, diverse and inclusive perspectives?
(LGBTQ+ Community) According to The United Way’s most recent report on youth homelessness, youth from marginalized communities represent a disproportionate share of homeless in the region.
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- 30% self-identify as Indigenous
- 37% as LGBQ+
- 11% as transgender or gender non-conforming
For many, being homeless is the rejection by family members to accept their sexual orientation or gender identity. What solutions do you propose to help address these challenges and to find a way to help these youth at this vulnerable time in their lives?
(Jewish Council, Indigenous Community) The K-12 school curriculum in Ontario pays very little attention to the experiences of the Black, Indigenous, and new immigrant communities, and rarely conveys references to the struggles of religious and other ethnic groups in Canada’s history. What would your candidacy do to support the creation of a school curriculum that is more inclusive, informed by expert research and works to ‘decolonize’ and fight racism in schools?
(LGBTQ+ Community) Kingston is home to the greatest population of Canadians who self-identify as transgender or non-binary per capita in all of Ontario, and the 5th most gender diverse urban centre within Canada. Currently, healthcare and social services available do not reflect the needs of this growing population in Kingston, and Ontario, meaning that local residents find they need to seek help for professional services in Toronto or Ottawa, making access to health care expensive and hard to obtain. What will you do to improve the availability of health and social services to meet these needs?
(Muslim Community) What plans do you have to reduce acts of hate including Islamophobia in the province to become a leader amongst the provinces? How will you support the London family act?
(Canadian Colours) If elected, how will you ensure that the voices of your constituents is representative of the entire community, including underrepresented populations, rather than maintaining the status quo and listening to those speaking loudest?
