The BC Demographic Survey will help the provincial government identify areas of society where people are encountering barriers due to systemic racism.
B.C. Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives Mable Elmore was in Prince George on Friday to encourage residents to take part in the online survey, which runs until September. The survey takes about 15 minutes to complete, and is available in English, French, Arabic, Hindi, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Punjabi, Spanish, Tagalog, Traditional Chinese, Urdu and Vietnamese.
“The provincial government knows that too many people are left out and left behind because services aren’t designed for them,” Elmore said. “We need to know where are the gaps? What are the issues?”
The need for the survey was flagged during consultation for the Anti-Racism Data Act.
The more data collected during the survey, the better the information will be to identify and address situations where people are not getting equal access to services due to system racism, she said.
“It’s a tough issue, and it’s difficult to hear stories of people who have faced systemic racism. It takes courage to share these stories,” Elmore said. “(But) we have to more forward together.”
To encourage people to participate in the survey, the government is offering grants of up to $2,500 to community groups to encourage and support them to participate, she added.
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