Dreams Delayed: Addressing Systemic Anti-Black Racism and Discrimination in Ontario’s Public Education System is an Action Plan outlining the Ontario Human Rights Commission’s strategy to address systemic anti-Black racism and discrimination in Ontario’s publicly funded education system.

Developed through extensive consultation with communities, Black students, and people in the education system, the Action Plan identifies 29 calls to action, with targeted timelines for implementation by duty-holders, including the Ministry of Education, school boards, trustees, unions, and all education professionals. To meet their legal obligations under the Ontario Human Rights Code (Code), education duty-holders must work to improve outcomes for Black students and Black educators so that they can learn and teach in school environments free from discrimination and harassment.

The key themes of the Action Plan are accountability, transparency, students’ well-being, and monitoring and evaluation.

The release of this Action Plan is an important milestone in the OHRC’s commitment to hold all duty-holders accountable for their legal obligations under the Code. The OHRC will continue to work with all parties to improve opportunities and outcomes for Black students disproportionately affected by discrimination in Ontario.

The complete report can be read on the OHRC’s website.