Release of “Racism in Québec: ZERO TOLERANCE: Report of the Groupe d’action contre le racism”. Initially announced in June 15, 2020 “The Groupe d’action contre le racism” was specifically asked to develop a series of effective actions to fight against racism by identifying which sectors have high-priority needs for measures in this area, particularly public security, justice, school systems, housing and employment. As part of its mandate, the “Groupe d’action contre le racism” was asked to contribute to the reflection on how to respond to the recommendations of the “Public Inquiry Commission on relations between Indigenous Peoples and certain public services in Québec”, chaired by the Honourable Jacques Viens.

Recommendations specific to Indigenous People

14 – Include in the national anti-racism awareness campaign a specific component on the realities of Indigenous peoples, to continually inform the public about the racism and discrimination experienced by First Nations and Inuit people.

15 – Make the professional orders aware of the importance of training their members on Indigenous realities.

16 – Make the history and current realities of Indigenous people in Québec a mandatory part of initial teacher training programs.

17 – Change the academic curriculum at the primary and secondary levels to update concepts related to the history, cultures, heritage and current realities of Indigenous peoples in Québec and Canada and their impact on society.

18 – Introduce continual, mandatory training on Indigenous realities for government employees.

19 – End the informal practice of prohibiting people from speaking Indigenous languages while receiving public services.

20 – Make the ban on random police stops mandatory.

21 – Add Indigenous social services workers to some police services to create mixed patrol teams.

22 – Increase the resources of Indigenous community organizations that promote access to justice for First Nations and Inuit people.

23 – Improve the capacity of the justice system to address the heritage and life trajectory of Indigenous offenders by granting more resources for the use of the Gladue principle specific to First Nations and Inuit people.

24 – Improve the quality and availability of interpretation services in Indigenous languages for better access to justice.

25 – Increase resources allocated to off-reserve housing.