Remarks by Dr. Grace-Camille Munroe at the March 27, 2025 news conference on the launch of Dreams Delayed: Addressing Systemic Anti-Black Racism in Ontario’s Education System.
To Chief Commissioner Patricia DeGuire and the team here at the Ontario Human Rights Commission, to all gathered both in person and online, I greet you in solidarity, peace, and love.
It is an honor to stand before you at this very pivotal moment of the launch Dreams Delayed: Addressing systemic anti-Black Racism and Discrimination in Ontario’s public education system.
A dear friend of mine, who is here, Karen Murray, once shared that in the Masai tradition of our ancestors from home, when one warrior greets another, they do not ask, “How are you?” Instead, they ask, “Kasserian Ingera?” “And how are the children?”
It is a profound question, for it reflects the true measure of a society - not by its wealth or by its power, but by the condition of its children.
If the answer is, “The children are well,” it means the community is thriving. But if the children are not well, then the warriors, the Elders, the entire society must act because a society that does not protect, nurture, and uplift its children is a society that is in crisis.
So today, we ask: How are the children? With a heavy heart:
The children are not well.
We are often told that education is the great equalizer. Yet for many Black students, education has become a site of exclusion rather than empowerment - of racial harm rather than radical possibility.
The legacy of anti-Black racism in education runs deep in our system - from the segregation of Black children in Ontario's early schools to today's realities of disproportionate discipline, streaming, racial harassment, and curriculum erasure.
And so, we must ask ourselves:
What becomes possible when education in Ontario is reimagined as a space of affirmation, empowerment, and liberation?
This Action Plan is about reclaiming that possibility. It is a call to action - one that insists Black students must be fully seen, must be fully supported, and must be fully empowered to not just thrive but also to flourish.
This work is built on the vision and activism of parents who have fought to protect their children, of students who have spoken truth to power, of educators who've risked their careers to demand equity, and of scholars whose research leaves no room for denial.
We stand on the shoulders of giants like Dr. Carl James, Karen Murray and Tana Turner and many others. But we also honour the grassroots activists, those named and are unnamed who have worked tireless to bring us to this moment
Now it is time for the duty-bearers and the system leaders to not only to listen, but now to act as their stewardship demands.
Despite countless report studies and recommendations, systemic anti-Black racism persists not because of a lack of knowledge, but I believe because of a lack of will. The Action Plan is a blueprint, it demands mandatory anti-racism policies, transparent accountability, and a curriculum that centers the Black flourishing of our students and the hiring and retention of Black Educators so that students can see themselves reflected and respected.
Inaction is not neutral. It causes harm. It drives Black students and Educators out of the system and know this, it robs our communities, and this province of Black brilliance, Black leadership, and Black potential. We must now, therefore, act with urgency and a courage that is grounded and rooted in our shared commitment to justice.
I began with a question: How are our children? Today, we sit in this painful truth that our children are not well. But this moment also signals a refusal to accept that reality as final. Dreams Delayed–this Action Plan—is more than a policy document, it is a call to action to transform pain into purpose and systemic neglect into lasting change. By committing to this plan, we are firm that the dreams and brilliance of our Black students can no longer wait.
A just education system is not a dream deferred; it is a birth right, and a must, and one that must be realized. In the words of our student who said it best, “I dream of using what I learned here to change the system that has tried to erase me. I want to be a part of making things better not just for myself, but for everyone who comes after me.”
Let us honor this vision and act so that when we ask how our children are our answer will without a doubt be: The children are well.
Let that be our legacy. The work begins now. I end in peace and love.