Trustees for the Toronto Catholic District School Board voted at its meeting last week to disband its 40-year old Race Relations Committee.

The Committee was formed to address the needs of racialized bodies (students, parents, educators and stakeholders) who felt that the Board did not address issues of racism in education.

Kirk Mark, retired Senior Coordinator of the Community Relations Department of the Toronto Catholic School Board, told The Caribbean Camera that he was ” shocked, disappointed and embarrassed ” by the decision of the trustees to disband the Committee.

He said that the decision is an affront to many who worked throughout the years “to ensure that equity in education prevails.”

Mark recalled that both community advocate Kenneth Jeffers and himself had provided information to the trustees in 2020 ” to ensure that the committee continues to address the needs of the racialized communities.”

“It appears that ‘selected amnesia’ had entered the picture as new trustees came into the fold,” he said.

“The decision to disband the committee is not a positive demonstration of Catholic gospel values and the action by the trustees are incongruent and shameful,” he added.

Nancy Crawford, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, could not be reached for comment.