There are many examples within Canadian society that suggest that racism is still a problem to this day. The example of racism that is likely the freshest in everyone’s mind is police brutality towards mainly the Black community. This horrific problem had the spotlight shined on it back in 2020 while the Black Lives Matter protests were going on in mainly the United States but also here in Canada as well. As the silence was broken, the injustices of the police system were exposed making it truly clear to the world the depressing, harsh truth. The topic brought up through the protests is what is referred to as ‘systematic racism,’ which means that the very systems we have in place to keep us all safe are failing and instead causing racial inequalities. The next example of racism in Canada, which has been towards a different group, is the hate crimes committed against those of an Asian background. With the spread of the covid-19 pandemic over recent years we have seen an influx in hate crimes towards Asian-Canadians. These attacks are brazened unwarranted assaults of people just going about their own business. These gross attacks are how racist people are taking their frustrations out about the pandemic even though these victims have no connection to the birth of the virus. Lastly, the case of racism that has been present in Canada for centuries is the treatment of Indigenous people in Canada. Not only was there racism and mistreatment of Indigenous peoples during and prior to the time period To Kill a Mockingbird took place but these same issues can be seen today just in a less severe manner. In Canada’s history one of the most horrific topics is none other than residential schools and the attempted assimilation of Indigenous children into western civilization. Although residential schools are the most traumatic event, there have been multiple legislations passed years ago, such as the “Indian Act” which have been put in place to oppress the Indigenous community. To summarize, racism is very much present in Canadian society today, as a result of it being ingrained in generations of youth, as seen in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird.’ Racism undoubtably remains an issue to this day, although less severe than decades ago in contrast to the racism detailed in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird. With all of this in mind, there is still hope that one day the concept of racism will be abolished as a result of the knowledge we pass on to future generations.
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