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It was a weekend to share, to heal, to celebrate, and to resist.
More than 200 delegates met for Unifor’s annual Black, Indigenous and Workers of Colour Conference in Port Elgin, Ont. from Sept. 26 to 28. The conference focused on the theme of “Rooted in resistance: healing, justice and solidarity.”
“Solidarity is incomplete if it does not reflect the realities and experiences in racialized workers – workers who have too often carried a dual burden of economic inequalities and discrimination,” said Unifor Director of Equity and Racial Justice Tricia Wilson.
“Indigenous, Black and Workers of Colour have always been essential to the labour movement. Our histories are our resilience, courage, and resistance to exclusion.”
Unifor National President Lana Payne told BIWOC delegates she loved this year's conference theme, 'Rooted in Resistance.’
"If this past year has taught us anything, it is that resistance is one of the most powerful tools working people have to fight against injustice," Payne said.
Payne cited Unifor's equity work—including support for MMIWG2S Indigenous housing, Truth and Reconciliation events, celebrating Black History Month, Asian Heritage Month, and advocacy through the Social Justice Fund—as a "shining example of progress and solidarity. Of hope and heart and that spirit of never giving up."
Payne emphasized the need to protect Canadian jobs and to continue resisting injustice, including policies rooted in racism, xenophobia and corporate greed, as well as the exploitation of migrant workers.
“Every time you stand up to those who perpetuate harm and try to divide us, every time you bargain a new Racial Justice Advocate, and every time you show up to events in your community and for your union—we grow stronger together,” she said.
The conference kicked off Friday evening with an Indigenous welcome by Elder Shirley John, followed by a drumming circle with the Niin Epiitendaagzid drummers.
Unifor Ontario Regional Director Samia Hashi spoke to the activism of Unifor BIWOC members.
“Every day, I see BIWOC activists stepping up, pushing conversations forward, making sure that our workplaces and union are fairer, safer, and more inclusive,” she told delegates.
Hashi gave updates on wins over the last year, and ongoing battles at the bargaining table and picket lines and encouraged members to stay united and speak up.
“Unity is our strongest weapon,” she said.
“When corporations and politicians try to pit us against each other by race, by gender, by region, our job is to stand shoulder to shoulder and say: Not today. Not ever…Many workers deserve a fair shot at a good job, a safe workplace, and a future free from discrimination and hate.”
Guest speaker Kayla Webber touched on the idea of "Rooting and shape-shifting" –
staying connected to community while honouring ancestors, through solidarity.
Webber, of Trinidadian and Jamaican heritage, fondly recalled spending summers with grandparents in Toronto’s Little Jamaica. She said BIWOC members must recognize life beyond just surviving, but toward thriving, justice and transformation, and framed healing not as a metaphor, but as an embodied demand.
“Honouring [ancestors] is not just about looking back,” she said. “It’s about grounding our work in legacy, accountability, and the sacred responsibility to carry forward what they began.”
Webber called on unions and institutions to move past neutrality “and into transformation” by redistributing resources, confronting white supremacy, and centering and investing in healing and dignity.
Unifor's Director of Indigenous Relations Gina Smoke spoke about the importance of everyone in the room—particularly men—to continue to choose healing work and to reach out when they need mental health support.
“Addictions, happens mainly because of addictions and mental health. There’s a lot oftrauma that we grow up in,” said Smoke.
“Fortunately, for myself, with all the trauma I have, I get to be here today to hopefully do better, be better–but I also know it doesn’t always happen this way.”
Delegates listened intently to three Indigenous panelists on the second day of the conference, just days ahead of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on Sept. 30.
Former Chief of Long Plain First Nation Dennis Meeches gave a powerful speech describing his own family experiences as he was raised by his grandparents on the powwow trail, learning to sing and dance, and how the National Indigenous Residential School Museum, which was declared a national historic site in 2020, is an important part of reconciliation in Canada.
"My mom, ran away from the school with a few of her friends and they got caught, brought back to the school, and they shaved their heads bald. All three. My mom and her friends put bags over their heads to hide the shame of what happened to them,” he explained.
“[This museum] helps other survivors and their families on their healing journey, educates and brings awareness about the impacts of residential schools, and prevents the erasure of a painful chapter.”
Speaker Katherine Strongwind, who is one of an estimated 20,000 Indigenous children who were taken from their homes between the 1950s, to the mid-1980s, shared her work to address and heal the intergenerational trauma caused by the Sixties Scoop.
Strongwind co-founded the Sixties Scoop Legacy Group in 2017 and continues to push for recognition, identity, restoration and healing.
“We still do not know how many Indigenous children were taken, or how many died while in care or were adopted,” she said. “People like me will continue to speak up, speak out, and educate…so we can move forward together in a good way.”
Tera McDonald challenged delegates to think critically about what reconciliation truly means. She reframed reconciliation in everyday terms: consideration, generosity and friendliness.
"Economic reconciliation sounds you know, fancy...but at its root is the separation of Indigenous people through colonialism, bureaucracy, politics. It is the separation of families from where they can thrive," she said.
“Be generous with space, hold space, listen to someone’s story… Kindness will go along way.”
In her speech about countering the far-right, Action Canada Policy and Advocacy Director Debbie Owsusu-Akyeeah warned that reproductive justice and human rights are the first casualties when democracy erodes. She used the Ottawa “Freedom Convoy” blockades in 2022 as an example of polarization and backlash against progressive wins.
"Solidarity is the antidote of the threats," she said. “We also need to use better narrative-making around our issues. I know it sucks to have to be the ones to check our messaging because the other side can get away with saying everything. The difference, though, is that we're up against actors who have a lot of money who are coordinated and have actually spent so much time undermining progressively movements, because they're so powerful.”
Delegates engaged in a “Rise of the Right” workshop in breakout rooms following Owsusu-Akyeeah’s presentation.
Michelle Wilson, a transit operator and a member of Unifor 111, was re-elected as the Indigenous Representative on Unifor’s National Executive Board, while Sharlene Henry was elected by delegates as the Black and Workers of Colour Representative.
"I'm truly honoured to be re-elected to this Indigenous position," said Wilson, a proud Cree/Mohawk woman from the Michel‘s First Nation in Alberta and who lives in British Columbia on the unceded territory of Kwikwetlem First Nation.
"This isn't just a win—it's a win for all of us. For our nations, our voices, and the work we're doing together. We've made progress, but we're just getting started."
Henry, a co-chair of the York South-Weston Tenant Union in Toronto and a member of Unifor Local 1285, thanked delegates.
"I'm going to do the best job to represent all workers, but especially Workers of Colour and Indigenous siblings as well,” she said. “Solidarity."
In her keynote address, trauma-informed psychotherapist Risha Dave shared her personal journey and professional insights on how self-care must be redefined beyond the perception from the Westernized wellness industry – spas, massages and supplements for example – set out to profit on intergenerational trauma.
Rest interrupts the cycle of BIWOC workers being seen as valuable only based on productivity, she said.
“Self-care is not something to buy or to perform. It’s something to reclaim,” she said.
“By resting, we refuse to be in a system that was designed to exploit us,” said Dave. “So, we’re saying my life is not a reserve for your profit.”
The last day of the BIWOC Conference drew attention to why migrant worker issues matter. Delegates listened to four panelists share personal stories and criticize calls to eliminate the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. They emphasized migrant worker justice is essential to both human dignity, advocacy and the Canadian economy.
As the conference ended, Wilson, Unifor's Director of Equity and Racial Justice, likened members' different experiences and stories as building strength in togetherness.
“Finding rhythm in your life is your balance,” she said.
“As workers, our rhythm is the rhythm of solidarity, the pace of walking together. When we find our collective balance, we become unstoppable.”
