2021 was going to be a big year for SCM: it’s the 100th anniversary of SCM Canada and SCM’s U of T chapter. Back in 2019, we were already discussing an SCM 100 conference, celebrations, a special commemorative logo… and then the pandemic happened.
As we begin 2021 in a declared state of emergency, it may be that our experiences have much in common with those of SCMers 100 years ago. In 1921, students in Toronto had recently survived a world war and a global pandemic, and were living through a time of radical social change. New technologies were transforming society. Workers struggled for labour rights in a context of vast wealth disparity. Black and Indigenous communities fought for safety and dignity. And politically engaged young people sought to establish communities that incarnated justice, solidarity and love. In 2021, our membership has become more diverse in many ways, and Canadian society has advanced in terms of formal equality and human rights protections; yet we continue to engage in many of the same struggles for equity.
In this 100th year of SCM, may we learn from our history, and renew a vision of a society defined by justice, solidarity and love.
-Esther, SCM coordinator, U of T & York
Read about what the SCM is doing in Toronto here