May 2, 2023
Dear Yabome:
We thank you for taking the time to reply to our letter regarding the Equity Compass.
We are grateful for the changes that you have made to the earlier version of the document. We are also happy to hear that your office has committed to producing a glossary and guide to EDI terminology. Every field has its own jargon, and meanings of words change with time and with prevailing attitudes. Clear definitions are critical when writing for a general audience (not just for those in social and health sciences).
While we appreciate the statement “The Compass also needs to be operationalized in the context of all SFU Collective Agreements”, this operationalization is the crux of the issue and, to our knowledge, has not been explained to the SFU community. We remain concerned about impingements on academic freedom – and on fairness (e.g., in hiring) – as the principles of the Compass are put into practice. We will continue to observe this process as it evolves.