Camp Fircom Anti-Racism Position Statement
The Camp Fircom Society acknowledges it resides and benefits from the land of the Skwxwú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish), xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), and səl̓ílwətaʔɬ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples.
Dear Valued Community,
No doubt you have been made aware of the past months’ local and global reports of violence against Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour. Within Vancouver alone, targeted racism against Asians has risen by 600% since this time last year, likely due to the prevailing mentality of COVID-19 association. In light of this social climate, we at Camp Fircom are increasingly awakening to the importance of recognizing and taking action against racism within our systems and institutions, and within ourselves. This call to action comes after centuries of unrecognized action from Black and Indigenous communities that we are only now in the midst of acknowledging.
As we embark on our own personal learnings, we know we need to take a hard look at Camp Fircom and the Camp Fircom Society. Camp Fircom exists as a product of a white supremacist culture, which has perpetuated systemic racism, violence, and oppression. As a summer camp based in the United Church of Canada, we recognize the history of colonization that has shaped our camp, and that we continue to operate within today.
At Camp Fircom, we express a commitment to the values of Belonging and Learning. These values speak of safety, acceptance, inclusivity, and learning of life skills. We reflect on these values now more than ever. We acknowledge that we have not always upheld these values. In recognizing our lack of diversity in our board, staff, and programming, we are aware of unconscious biases that have affected and continue to affect our work. We also know we need to take our action further: to be actively anti-racist in our thoughts, our words, and our actions. We must do better to live up to our values and ensure that Black, Indigenous and racialized campers and staff are leaders in the camp culture we create, and are truly welcome and heard.
We are committed to doing the work: to listen and learn personally and together, to explore our unconscious biases, and to take meaningful action that comes from our process of listening and learning. This will be at times uncomfortable and we will stumble; however, we believe this is necessary in being anti-racist. We will question what practices we are currently engaging in at Camp Fircom that are institutionally racist. While this may be hard to hear, we will listen deeply and remain open to learning. This will be life-long work, and we acknowledge that rushing through this work is a great disservice to the children, families, and community of Camp Fircom. We commit to make this critical work a priority and give it the time and attention required. We hope that you, our community, will be a part of, and help hold us accountable to, this work. We will find ways to share what this work looks like in the coming months.
A better kind of world is our responsibility to pass on to future generations.
In Solidarity,
The Camp Fircom Society Board of Directors and Leadership Team
“Children believe our actions more than our words; they are emulating our actions in our day to day behaviours and choices.” – Dr. Jazmine McCoy
Please contact the Board of Directors with any feedback or questions about our statement at: boardchair@fircom.ca