Open and candid conversations on diversity in Montréal next week with Canada's Francophone community

MONTRÉAL, May 22, 2015 /CNW/ - The Canadian Race Relations Foundation is bringing two events to Montréal next week in an effort to deepen the important dialogue around diversity. The next in the series of Urban Agenda roundtables will be held from 6 to 9 pm on May 27, and a full-day symposium, Living Together, will take place on May 28.

The Urban Agenda: Race Relations and Multiculturalism in Canadian Cities, a public event, will be co-hosted by the City of Montreal at the Centre for Sustainable Development with media partner Média Mosaïque. The Montreal roundtable theme is "Concordia Salus: Promises and Challenges", which captures the motto of Montreal as an ideal of community building.

The roundtable will be moderated by Kerlande Mibel, President, Zwart Communication, with expert panellists: Nacira Adem of Conseil interculturel de Montréal; Myriam Bérubé of Centraide of Greater Montreal; Micheline Labelle PhD from Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM); and Marie-Christine Ladouceur-Girard, from the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal. The proceedings include a Q&A open to all attendees.

The May 28 symposium features a day of consultations with representatives of Francophone communities across Canada. Living Together: Faith, Belonging and Canadian Values, co-hosted by the Centre d'études ethniques des universités montréalaises (CEETUM), will tackle the intersection of faith, culture, language, Canadian values and belonging.

Anita Bromberg, CRRF Executive Director views both dialogues as timely, coinciding with the World Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development and its 'do one thing for diversity' theme. "As Canada grows increasingly diverse, there is a strong incentive for an open and candid conversation in areas we may seem uneasy about – yet these conversations are crucial to the goal of social harmony."

SOURCE Canadian Race Relations Foundation

CRRF Executive Director: Anita Bromberg, 416-508-9033