The man with a white beard, glasses and pleasant half-smile looks unassuming on the deep red billboard looming over the busy Saskatoon freeway. But to judge by the public reaction to his words, displayed in white block letters next to his portrait, you’d think this man was a rabble-rouser.
It’s unintentional, of course. Jim Williams, the man in the billboard, is simply a Saskatoon resident who volunteered to share his thoughts on racism as part of the city’s anti-racism campaign called I Am The Bridge. In 2015, the Community Diversity and Race Relations office of the city’s community development department launched the campaign in response to the Truth and Reconciliation calls to action, specifically around anti-racism education.
In the first phase of the campaign, the committee called on residents to submit videos of themselves answering questions about their thoughts on and experiences with racism, and what personal role they can play in ending it in Saskatoon. Williams was one of a few dozen culturally diverse volunteers to submit a video.
Here’s what he had to say: “I am a white, heterosexual, able-bodied male: the most privileged demographic in human history. If I’m going to be the bridge to ending racism in Saskatoon or anywhere else, I have to acknowledge my own privilege and I have to acknowledge my own racist attitudes, and work through my discomfort.”
The anti-racist ad that triggered a backlash - Macleans.ca
What a liberal pussy.
