Stressing Sacred Spaces. Part 5

Community Development

It is noteworthy that chairs at a number of OMB hearings encouraged opposing parties to speak directly to one another29. Establishing neighbourhood committees composed of representatives of groups living in the area might facilitate greater community cohesion. Groups could focus on issues of common concern. When conflicts arose, informal networks would be in place to address difficulties. Such community self sufficiency would not only deprive lawyers of their fees; it would develop human connections that improve quality of life.

Certainly prejudicial attitudes make such endeavours a challenge. Nonetheless, it is preferable and less expensive to engage with local residents at the same table in a coffee shop or meeting room than across from each other in a courtroom.

Education

The curriculum for both legal and planning education must incorporate an explicit anti-racist consciousness in readings, discussions, lectures, etc. Until planners and lawyers are sufficiently familiar with the struggles of persons on the margins, they will be unable to communicate that information to others i.e. local residents in opposition to a particular project.

Unfortunately, law students rarely learn the practical skills of lawyering in an academic environment. While clinical education programs do offer students opportunities to draft affidavits, develop factums, offer oral and written submissions, etc, the majority of students do not enrol in such programs30. Lawyers drafting municipal by-laws and/or provincial legislation must develop critical perspectives, imagining the myriad of ways in which principles translate into practice, statute into (non) status for people of colour.

Planning education must not emphasize only land use analysis and geographic information systems. A "scientific" focus adhered to by well-meaning planners separates the technical opposition to a project from people's underlying attitudes and emotions. A skilful planner must navigate feelings and computer generated mapping systems.

The planning curriculum must incorporate an analysis of places of worship within the larger planning agenda. A number of courses offered at the Faculty of Environmental Studies31, for example, address social housing. Class discussions analyse how such living arrangements perpetuate systemic forms of discrimination. However, places of faith are seen to be at the margins of, rather than central to, most people's experience of oppression. Such a pedagogical approach ignores an important aspect of "minority" experience. While English speaking North America prides itself on its secular governance, many recent immigrants originate in places where mosque (in particular, but not exclusively) and state are one and the same. In a theocratic society, faith based community takes on heightened importance. This difference in perspective needs to be reflected in planning curricula.

Community development, educational efforts and laws are only as effective as those who implement them. As this society becomes more faith-full, such measures may effectively address culturally or racially motivated opposition to religious institutions.