Red Deer Local Immigration Partnership is continuing work to create a more welcoming community for newcomers by building on its anti-racism campaign. 

In 2021, the agency conducted a survey and constructed a report on racism concerning its understanding and occurrence in Red Deer. Following the report and the “Proud To Be Your Neighbour” campaign, Gordana Jovanovic; Outreach and Communications Coordinator at Red Deer Local Immigration Partnership is optimistic about finding resources right here in the City of Red Deer. 

Gordana says “In order to make Red Deer a home community that welcomes all, we must first identify the resources that can help to make life more inclusive and where people can feel as if they belong”. She believes that this survey is one of the building blocks to creating a home for newcomers looking to make Red Deer their permanent home city. 

This new survey will be headed by professors of sociology at Red Deer Polytechnic Drs. Choon Lee Chai and Jones Adjei who were inspired to continue the investigation on people who have experienced racism. The follow up survey will aid in identifying anti-racism resources in Red Deer, with the goal of improving the quality of life in central Alberta. 

Jovanovic continues: "The results of the survey conducted in 2021 indicated that 49.8% of Red Deerians believed racism in Red Deer was worse than other places and it also revealed the rate of discrimination against visible minorities compared to white people, and the places in which racism occurred more frequently". The report included such findings, as well as information on the definitions of racism and how different kinds of racist action are experienced by minority groups. 

The previous report identified the effects of racism but the new survey is very different. This new survey uses a process called ‘asset mapping” which is a procedure for identifying important community services and resources, including population skill set, physical spaces, institutions, organizational resources, and components of the local economy. Dr. Chai puts it more plainly “The survey will employ the process of asset mapping to identify anti-racism resources in Red Deer, which we hope can improve anti-racism efforts in Central Alberta."

You can fill out the survey, by clicking here.