Over 90 percent of racist incident helpline callers had needs met; says Province

When it comes to BC’s racist incident helpline, 93.7 percent of callers say their needs were met.

That comes from the BC Government in an update on the helpline a year after it was first launched on May 30, 2024.

The helpline was launched as a toll-free, multilingual service to provide support for those facing discrimination based on their skin colour, culture, ethnicity, or place of origin by offering guidance and referrals to local support services.

The province says in the past year, 807 people have called the helpline, with over 2,329 referrals made to support services across BC.

“On average, each caller was directed to three support services, indicating people coping with racism require help on multiple fronts, such as legal advice, peer support and mental-health resources,” they say.

“The average call length was 15 minutes, with approximately 47% of calls from urban areas and approximately 8% from rural.”

The findings also show that when it comes to call volume, Courtenay had the highest volume among rural communities, while Vancouver had the highest volume among urban communities.

Over 25 per cent of callers were between the ages of 30 and 39, with incidents such as harassment, verbal slurs, threats, and denial of support and employment happening the most in the workplace at 22.3 per cent.

Parliamentary secretary for anti-racism initiatives Jessie Sunner says the helpline is a pillar of their efforts to fight racism and discrimination.

“It bridges a gap between people dealing with the trauma of racism and the essential services they need to heal,” said Sunner.

“We are committed to continuing to empower local advocates, communities and organizations so that we can together create a province where everyone feels safe, supported and valued.”

They say the helpline is available from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays at 1-833-457-5463.

–Files by Hussam Elghussein, My Cowichan Valley Now