A Women’s Interfaith Educators Response to World Events

For Sikh Heritage Month, SAFAR: The Sikh Feminist Research Institute held a workshop at the Peel Art Gallery Museum and Archives in Brampton, Ontario where women from various faith backgrounds came together to have a discussion about the threats to religious accommodations of our students, especially our Muslim students. For example, in March, 2017 there was a backlash against Muslim students doing Friday prayers in public schools in Ontario, Canada, specifically in the Peel District School Board in the Greater Toronto Area. While religious rights are undeniably accommodated under the Ontario Human Rights Code the past month was a wakeup call for educators that racism exists in our own backyard. Listen to a recording of this important conversation as different women share what their faith means to them, what teaching tools have worked for them, and how they care for themselves as educators. Many of these points and ideas are directly applicable to any of us who work with young people.