Dear editor,

As with a host of other people, I was distressed to hear of the assault in Courtenay by three white men on a lone black man.

I have recently returned to Canada from Australia where there have been similar racist incidents. In fact, about two years ago in Sydney, New South Wales, a black father of three young children was beaten to death by some white men who accosted and insulted him on the street before they attacked and killed him.

Many social service agencies in Australia are working to find ways to combat such blatant racism and to harmonize relations between ethnic groups. While teaching at the University of South Australia, I had the privilege of initiating an outreach program with my university students that was designed to help make new immigrants feel welcome and part of their new community.

The youth and adults that we dealt with most were refugees from war-torn Sudan.

Our program was founded on a simple acronym that we developed called LIFE, that is, Laughter, Inclusion, Friendship and Equality. We worked primarily with children and youth through the medium of play, games, dance and music.

Our program was a success by every measure. A primary benefit of our work were the positive changes in attitude, values and relationships on the part of our white student leaders.

Quite simply, over the course of our time working with black children and their families, our university-age students came to respect and appreciate their new neighbours for the fine people they are.

What we experienced through this project was far more than the tolerance advocated by some; what came about was a true appreciation of the character of our new friends and the complexity they face in attempting to establish their lives in their adopted country.

And, it should be noted that this transformation in values came about in a country that was known as “White Australia” for many years.

I believe that if we are to have a truly inclusive culture in Canada, we must find ways to embrace people of all ethnic backgrounds. Schools can do only so much in this regard, as can other social service agencies. I believe that a big part of the antidote to racism is to initiate non-bureaucratic, community-based programs similar to that which we developed Down Under.

Quite simply, if we can create ways to have people of different colour and varying cultural backgrounds interact together in friendly ways on a frequent basis, it will do much to overcome the fears and ignorance that spawn racist attitudes and behaviours.

I invite community leaders and the university sector to investigate this option as one piece of the anti-racism puzzle.

Garfield Pennington, EdD,

Associate Professor Emeritus,

University of B.C.,

Roberts Creek