Black Lives Matter: SFU CCMS Initiatives

Since the murder of George Floyd and ensuing protests to end Police violence against citizens and against Black communities in particular, whether in the USA, Canada or across the world, CCMS has been considering the different ways to engage and respond. We are careful at CCMS not to take initiatives without first corresponding and consulting with the impacted communities, even if this means delaying our response.

Given our mandate, our primary concern is with the Black Muslim community in the Lower Mainland. An urgent, yet often overlooked need for the community at a time like this, is mental health. Support for the mental health of Black Muslims is being coordinated through the Instagram account @blackandmuslim604. We look forward to supporting this initiative and any others that would be of service to the Black Muslim community at this time.

We recognize the need to address anti-Blackness in the broader Muslim community too. While we have been working to address anti-Blackness through events during Black History Month over the last 3 years, we know that more needs to be done. We are currently working with community partners at SFU and in Surrey to organize events for non-Black Muslims to learn about the anti-Black racism within Muslim communities and look forward to sharing those details with you soon.

Further, we are compiling a list of resources for Black Muslims to receive support and for non-Black Muslims to confront their anti-Blackness. Feel free to share any relevant resources with us via social media or email as we continue compiling that list.

We know that CCMS itself is not immune from shortcomings when it comes to prioritizing programming for the Black community. We are committed to broadening Black Muslim representation in our programming. And we hope other SFU units will do the same.