UN council to discuss report calling on Canada to address anti-black racism

NEW YORK, United Nations – The UN Human Rights Council is set to discuss a report on issues affecting African-Canadians that makes recommendations to the federal government, including that it apologize for slavery and consider providing reparations for historical injustices.

A UN working group will submit its final report on the human rights situation of people of African descent in Canada to the council Monday based on its consultations with government officials and interest groups during an October 2016 mission to Ottawa, Toronto, Halifax and Montreal.

The report says anti-black racism "lies at the core" of many Canadian institutions, contributing to inequities in health, housing, education and employment as well as the overrepresentation of African-Canadians in the criminal justice system.

The UN group says socioeconomic conditions in Nova Scotia's black communities remain "deplorable" and the provincial government is falling short in its efforts to establish land titles for the descendants of the black loyalists.

The report encourages Ottawa to adopt special measures for black Canadians to redress these disparities, similar to those that have been implemented for Indigenous Peoples.

It recommends that Canada create a federal department of African-Canadian affairs and develop a strategy to address anti-black racism in the criminal justice system.