Scarborough Charter faces headwinds

In 2020, the public outcry over the police brutality that killed George Floyd in the U.S., and the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet, who fell out of a window while police were responding to an altercation in a Toronto apartment, prompted a number of Canadian universities to hire staff dedicated to anti-racism efforts. 

It was against this sombre backdrop that the Scarborough Charter was introduced in 2021. Developed by a team of academics, it commits signatory institutions to identifying the injustices and barriers faced by Black students, faculty and staff, and to taking sustained action to address them. 

Five years on, the charter’s overall results are mixed. The anti-racism coalition started out with 40 member institutions and has continued to grow across Canada. Its 63rd and most recent member is Université de l’Ontario français, the only francophone signatory, whose participation could encourage French-language institutions in Quebec to follow suit.

Meanwhile, the collective commitment to combatting anti-Black racism, though ongoing, has quietly waned, and many of the anti-racism positions created in the wake of the events of 2020 have vanished. 

“I know already that many of those anti-racism advisors are no longer in those roles. It’s a cautionary note about whether we are walking the talk. They’re just indispensable one moment, and disposable another,” said Malinda Smith, associate vice president research (equity, diversity and inclusion) at the University of Calgary and vice-chair of the Scarborough Charter’s board of directors. 

“Many universities have never had Black senior leaders. This is 2026. You see that students experience microaggressions in the classroom. We’re saying enough is enough. We in universities are going to come together for our mutual interests and try to tackle this problem,” Dr. Smith said. 

Hands-on oversight 

Aware that reshaping an inclusive university environment is a demanding, long-term undertaking, the charter’s administration has gone on the offensive with the establishment of a secretariat. For the last two years, a three-person team led by John Ariyo has overseen the implementation of the charter’s overarching principles. The secretariat serves as a catalyst, providing support to the universities and facilitating regular virtual meetings with their counterparts in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI). 

The satellite community spawned by these meetings has come together to confront various political and economic issues. In addition to overall budgetary constraints on higher education, the re-election of American President Donald Trump has encouraged an anti-EDI backlash whose influence extends to Canadian universities, and which is amplified by the politics of Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party.  

Mr. Ariyo said that in this unpredictable climate, the secretariat stands as a vital pillar, helping to galvanize each institution’s commitment to anti-racism, especially when staff reorganizations compromise the resources dedicated to EDI. 

Comparing apples to apples 

The determination to turn commitments into measurable results raises another question, however: “When institutions claim that their efforts are paying off, how do they actually measure that success, and compared to what?” said Dr. Smith. 

Until recently, universities self-reported their progress in terms of human resources, inclusive programs, and fostering the talent of Black students and staff. The charter’s first progress report, which covers 2023-24,compiles this information. But the data is fragmented, making it difficult to evaluate, said Dr. Smith. To address this, the secretariat will launch portal by year-end that compiles standardized data on Black populations within the university sector. Mr. Ariyo called this new tool a “compass” that will make it possible to “compare apples to apples” and identify structural progress more clearly. Dr. Smith believes the data will also refute skeptics’ claims that academic inclusion hinders success, when, “in fact, diversity fuels excellence,” she said. 

Data from Statistics Canada indicates that despite their academic credentials, and irrespective of their backgrounds, Black people’s skills continue to be undervalued. In 2025 the agency reported that a substantial number (27.5%) of African-born Black immigrants are overqualified for the jobs they perform, with almost half (46.1%) of them holding a bachelor’s degree or higher. It also noted that Caribbean-born Black immigrants had a higher employment rate (77.6%) than Black Canadians whose roots in the country stretch back three generations or more (64.8%). 

Long-term vision 

Committed to sustaining its long-term mission, the Scarborough Charter has begun the incorporation process to obtain charitable status, which would allow it to broaden its funding sources. In March, the secretariat relocated to Carleton University in Ottawa, placing it in strategic proximity to federal decision makers. For Pauline Rankin, Carleton’s provost and vice-president (academic), welcoming the secretariat strengthens “our long-standing commitment to . . . equity and social justice”. She hopes that the secretariat’s presence will encourage more Black students to opt for Carleton, and give further impetus to the initiatives led by, for, and with Black communities on campus. 

The charter’s administration shares this goal and plans to continue expanding its group of signatories.