The City of Kamloops has hired a new person to take charge of ensuring the community is diversified and accessible.
Taking on the new role as the City’s new coordinator for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion is Tymmarah Mackie.
“I’m excited to be taking on this new position in Kamloops and look forward to showing everyone the benefits that will come from the work we will be doing,” said Mackie. “Municipalities with a strong focus on equity, diversity, and inclusion attract and retain quality staff, become better problem solvers, get more creative and innovative, and ultimately provide better services to their communities.”
Previously having worked throughout Alberta in similar roles before crossing the border into B.C. at the end of August; Mackie says one of her key roles will be to align policies in Kamloops to the new B.C. Accessibility Act, which took into effect September 1.
“There are people within a population, not just in Kamloops, but within a community who have historically been excluded.”
In partnership with Thompson Rivers University, Indigenous groups, and community organizations, including Kamloops Immigrant Services and Kamloops Pride, Mackie will also aid in the development of an EDI training program for City leaders, managers, and staff.
Additionally, Mackie says she will be creating a new training program to help the city promote Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion for projects and hiring opportunities.
“For the employment piece, whether its attraction, retention or promotion of diverse populations, engagement opportunities as well, but also looking at policies, practices, and procedures and of course that accessibility plan being developed.”
She says she will be connecting with the populations the work impacts, to identify their experiences using city services and employment to find out where the barriers exist.
“Age is one of the aspects whether its seniors or youth, persons with disabilities, Indigenous communities so Tk’emlups and other Indigenous people here in the community, the folks from the Pride community as well so 2SLGBTQ+ or gender of sexually diverse populations, newcomers, and persons of colour, to get a sense of where they see a need for improvement, and then actually develop a plan to address the highlights.”
She says this as she wants to ensure the work target the accessibility barriers that are of need in the community.
“For example, I would consider myself to be able-bodied for now, I’m not a person with disabilities but there is no way I would know what someone else’s experience is so I cannot make assumptions, because if we do the work, without consulting then we will make mistakes and we do not want to make mistakes, we want to be meaningful and inclusive.”
When it comes to mobility accessibility in the city, Mackie suggests Kamloops is any different from than many other mid-sized municipalities across Canada.
“They have actually done a lot of work already like they had done some consultation with the community a number of years ago, and they actually already developed a diversity and inclusion plan. They have a working group that is dealing with it already so my role will be to touch base, connect with them, find out what they have already done, and identify what’s included in the plan that I can help with.”
Beyond that, Mackie says people in Kamloops may notice some changes as well once her work is done, pointing to the issue of public restrooms.
“When you think about gender identity and the transgender community, we want to make sure they are able to access the washroom of the gender they identify with and that is legislation in a lot of provinces.”
She suggests gender signs on bathrooms be removed, to indicate they are accessible, for everyone to go into.
“If you think about a coffee shop or a gas station, there will be two, single stall washrooms, and one will say man or have that image, and one will have the dress suggesting this is the one for the women,” she said.
“So, I’m speaking from my own cisgender identity as a woman; I identify as a woman, and I was assigned woman at birth. If there is a woman in the women’s washroom and there is no man in that single stall washroom, guess where I am going. I’m not waiting for her to come out. I am going in the men’s washroom.”
Mackie’s new role is a contract position, with her tenure in Kamloops City Hall expected to last 18-months.
-With Files From Paul James