Thank you.
Good evening, Mr. Chair, and thank you to the committee for having me. The CTF/FCE has spoken at committee a number of times in recent years. We always appreciate the opportunity to bring our perspective on issues that impact children, students, educators and their families.
My name is Cassandra Hallett. I am the executive director of the Canadian Teachers' Federation. Our organization represents over 370,000 education workers and their families, with members in every province and territory in Canada.
While we represent teachers and educators from coast to coast to coast, I want to begin with the vision of the Canadian Teachers' Federation—a Canada where every child has equitable access to quality public education. For us it means, among other things, that every child gets to attend school without fear of intimidation, harassment or hatred.
Unfortunately, the CTF/FCE and our member organizations in every province and territory have observed a rise in the level of what we feel is hate-fuelled language and protest in Canada. This language has manifested itself into a climate where students and school staff no longer feel completely safe. Educators and teachers have been targets of public pressure to stop teaching topics in provincially or territorially mandated curricula, such as climate change, the importance of racial or gender inclusion, or the value of gender equity.
There has been an eruption of distrust in educators, with the public questioning whether the protection and well-being of students is a priority. This lack of trust is shocking, not only when you consider the fact that the overwhelming majority of educators enter the profession because of their passion for teaching and educating, but also because most education workers are more likely than workers in any other industry to have children of their own. The new-found skepticism that education staff and students feel leaves education staff and students feeling like school is no longer the safe and protected space that many people previously believed was the norm.
The issue concerned CTF/FCE members across the country so much that a resolution was passed at our general meeting in 2023 calling for governments across the country to create “safe zones” around schools that made it an offence to hold protests that target or intimidate students and/or staff on the basis of their gender identity, sexuality, race, religion or other protected category. Children, educators and their families deserve to go to their places of learning and their places of work with the knowledge that intimidation and hatred will not be tolerated.
Bill C-9 is seeking to address intimidation felt by those attending an educational institution. The legislation even specifies day care centres. We commend this aspect of the legislation. Children and families deserve access to education without the prospect of feeling unwelcome because they identify with the groups mentioned. This sense or state of safety is something that we unfortunately have taken for granted in Canada. It is saddening to note that protecting schools from discrimination needs to be explicitly outlined in legislation, but this is the moment we find ourselves in.
The CTF/FCE does support the intent of this part of the legislation. The issue of combatting hate is very important for us and for teachers across the country. We recently worked with the Canadian Anti-Hate Network and shared some of their resources amongst our members because of the alarming rise in discrimination, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia and gender identity-based hate all across the country.
The global political climate has ushered in a new era of divisiveness and animosity. Whatever the reason for this swell in division, children should never be on the receiving end of aggressive shows of disagreement. A school needs to be a sanctuary. Many people understand that schools should be a special place that's outside of the acceptable places to air your grievances or concerns.
As a federal organization representative of educators, we will be the first to say that we stand in line with any legislative change that makes schools or classrooms safer places to learn, play and work; however—