FHSS’ Charter EDID – CPSA EDID Committee

Aug 25, 2021 | CPSA Highlights, CPSA News

On July 26, 2021, the CPSA Board of Directors voted unanimously to sign the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences’ Charter on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Decolonization in the Social Sciences and Humanities. The FHSS’ EDID Charter was created by the FHSS Advisory Committee on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Decolonization as part of their Final Report and Recommendations to the FHSS released in April 2021. The Advisory Committee was chaired by political scientist and Vice-Provost, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Dr. Malinda Smith (Calgary). The full report can be found here and the Charter here. Individuals and organizations are invited to also sign the FHSS’ EDID Charter and to commit to its calls to action on equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization in our profession and beyond.

The CPSA’s decision to sign the FHSS’ EDID Charter follows unanimous support to endorse the Charter at a special session held at the CPSA Annual Meeting in June 2021 as well as the earlier creation of the CPSA Reconciliation Committee in 2016. Our signature on the EDID Charter is consistent with the important works, events, and activities developed by the Reconciliation Committee over the last five years. It also is in line with a number of initiatives recently taken by the CPSA Board including:

  • the motions approved by the CPSA AGM (anti-black racism) and by the Board (anti-racism) in June 2019,
  • the statements issued by the Board in June 2019 (CPSA Statement in Support of the Black Canadian Studies Association (BCSA)), and July 2020 (Anti-racism Statement),
  • the subjects addressed at the events organized by the Association (CPSA 2021-Diversity and the Discipline of Political Science-; Chairs of Departments of Political Science meetings),
  • the clauses included in the Association’s policies oriented to further develop a diverse and inclusive representation of the Canadian political science community.

 

The CPSA Board of Directors has also voted to establish the CPSA Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Decolonization Committee – Processes/Policies Review (CPSA EDID Committee) for 2021. This Committee will be mandated to review the existing policies and processes of the Association to identify gaps or improvements that should be considered in light of our commitments to EDID under the Charter. The CPSA EDID Committee will report to the Board at its meetings in December 2021 and June 2022.

Additionally, the CPSA Board has committed to working with the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences to strengthen and implement its own EDID commitments and goals stated in the Charter on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Decolonization in the Social Sciences and Humanities. We aim to encourage it, and all of us, to adhere to the Advisory Committee’s clear directive to “move away from the injurious performativity of conventional EDI committees and technocratic checklists that result in superficial change” (Igniting Change, p. 12).

We recognize that there is much work to be done in this regard and our commitment as an association is intentionally made to signal our active willingness to move forward in the journey towards true equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization. The “metaphor of ‘journey’ more aptly captures the necessary and ongoing conscientization about oppression and its multiple sources, and the labour to eliminate injustice and oppression arising from racism, colonialism, and structural and systemic inequities” (Igniting Change, p. 27). We look forward to the work ahead.

CPSA Board of Directors