Mr. Speaker, despite all the progress made in Canada, we still have a long way to go to fight racism in all of its forms. In addition to being cruel and unfair, racism has adverse social, psychological, physical, and economic effects.
Every day, racism creates divisions in society that affect individuals, communities, and the country as a whole. Racism creates barriers, limits participation, reduces productivity, and makes us all the poorer.
In Canada, systemic racism towards indigenous peoples is a sad part of our heritage that cannot be seen as anything other than shameful.
As we mark the 140th anniversary of the Indian Act, the current climate of optimism must be tempered with an equal dose of reality. Only a true nation-to-nation dialogue will be the foundation of any solutions that address historic wrongdoings.
In this House, we have a special role to play. As representatives of our communities and regions, we must always challenge ourselves to recognize discrimination and racism in its many forms, and do our utmost to combat it through our work, words, and actions.