By Dr. Arig al Shaibah, Associate Vice-President Equity & Inclusion and Honorary Associate Professor Educational Studies
As part of my welcoming remarks at a recent new employee orientation session, I mentioned the Equity & Inclusion Office’s (EIO) efforts to foster a culture of inclusion and belonging through the recognition of particular days of significance. This is just one of many ways that UBC can convey respect for and raise awareness about major religious and cultural observances as well as local and international commemorative events that are resonant and relevant to our diverse global community of students, faculty and staff.
An awareness of these days of significance enables people managers, supervisors, instructors, coaches and others in decision-making positions to proactively consider when consequential professional and academic events are scheduled or to prepare for the provision of concessions or accommodations so that students, faculty and staff are able to participate in observances or events that are often integral to their emotional, spiritual and social well-being.
Religious accommodations are important given UBC’s obligations to ensure that learning and working environments do not discriminate on the basis of religion, in accordance with UBC’s Discrimination Policy (SC7).
In addition to communicating days of significance, the EIO subscribes to and has made available as a community resource a comprehensive calendar that includes a broad array of important religious and cultural days and commemorative events.
Days of significance for Jewish and Muslim people are converging in a particularly poignant way this October. As we continue to hold space for grief, we also wish to make space for Jewish and Muslim community members who wish to recognize the following important religious and commemorative events:
- Two High Holy Days of Judaism take place in October: Rosh Hashanah, which begins at sundown on October 2and ends after nightfall on October 4, and Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year in Judaism, which is observed from minutes before sunset on October 11 to after nightfall on October 12.
- October is also Canada’s Islamic History Month. Proclaimed by Parliament in 2007, the month invites recognition of, and dialogue and education related to, the cultural heritage and contributions of Muslim people to world history and knowledge.
During this time, it is important that Jewish students, faculty and staff feel safe and supported to observe their high holy days, and that Muslim students, faculty and staff feel safe and supported to recognize their cultural heritage and their historical and intellectual contributions.
Support resources available to students, faculty and staff:
- Information on other observances and religious accommodations and human rights advising
- Supports for students at UBC Vancouver
- Supports for students at UBC Okanagan
Building campus capacity
In addition to raising awareness of days of significance, the EIO is also developing an online educational series to further build UBC community members’ capacity to cultivate learning and working environments that respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of all UBC students, faculty and staff.
Within the educational series are introductory modules about antisemitism/anti-Jewish discrimination, anti-Arab discrimination, and Islamophobia/anti-Muslim discrimination. Over the last year, it has been a privilege to engage and consult with Jewish, Arab and Muslim faculty on the development of these forthcoming introductory modules. I want to thank these faculty members for the tremendous emotional and intellectual labour they contributed to this work. The process was complex but rewarding in the creation of space for diverse faculty perspectives to be heard and in the discovery of shared understandings despite outstanding divergences in viewpoints and experiences.
The resource, which will be released in the coming weeks, intends to build UBC community capacity to cultivate learning and working environments that respect the fundamental rights and freedoms of all Jewish, Arab and Muslim students, faculty and staff and that promote their sense of inclusion, belonging and safety.
The resource reinforces that while academic debate and critical dialogue are foundational to academic freedom and the mission of the university, discriminatory and hate speech targeting Jewish, Arab and Muslim peoples as members of an identifiable group (based on ancestry, colour, place of origin, political belief, race, or religion, for example) are unacceptable violations of UBC’s policies and laws in Canada. This is not to say that impassioned expressions equate to disrespect or discrimination according to UBC’s Respectful Environment Statement (RES) or Discrimination Policy (SC7) – they may simply be expressions of strong disagreement. And, this is also not to say that expressions that do not violate UBC’s RES and SC7 cannot be experienced as invalidations of or insults to one’s identity and personhood – intentional or not.
The EIO plans to build on this resource and the process. We will continue to work in consultation with our communities in supporting a learning and working environment that fosters a culture of inclusion and belonging in these particularly polarized times.
Access our guide to navigating human rights and expression rights with an ethic of care.