A large group of activists and individuals is urging the city of Montreal to begin public consultations on racism and discrimination.
They launched a petition in February on Nelson Mandela day, and nearly two months later, on the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., they are calling for the city to take the next step.
The mayor could use discretionary powers to launch consultations, but if Valerie Plante is not willing to do so, they say they will do what they can to force the issue.
Representatives of Montreal's Chinese, Black, Islamic, Anglophone and Francophone communities met Wednesday to say they are seeking 15,000 signatures on a petition to force the city of Montreal to hold hearings on discrimination, racism, and diversity.
Balarama Holness, a candidate who ran in the municipal election, said the differences in what is available in Montreal according to borough are obvious.
"Why is it that boroughs that have a large concentration of minorities have a lack of access to recreational [or] health services? Why access to justice continues to be an issue at the municipal level? Why racial profiling continues to be an issue? Why contractual compliance, when the city gives a contract out for infrastructure, why aren't these companies reflective of the diversity of Montreal?" said Holness.
"These are a lot of questions that aren't only going to be answered by the people on these panel, they're going to be answered by all Montrealers."
He wants a legal system to be implemented so that the cultural diversity of Montreal would be reflected in the people who work for the city, instead of being overwhelmingly white and Francophone.
