Canadian Blood Services’ statement on Black History Month

This week, we mark the start of Black History Month. It’s a time to celebrate and honour the rich and diverse histories and accomplishments of Black people and communities in Canada, including those who generously support and contribute to
Canada’s Lifeline.

It’s also an important opportunity for institutions like ours to reflect on and recommit to ongoing actions to ensure our workplaces, communities, and broader health systems are as racially and culturally inclusive as possible.

Canadian Blood Services has long celebrated Black History Month in our workplaces, with our Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) employee resource group playing an important role in how we foster inclusion and celebrate diversity, with Black employees and allies.

This year, it felt especially important for us to also publicly recognize our Black donors, volunteers, and community partners, and reflect on some of the systemic barriers to inclusion that continue to be a daily reality for Black people in Canada.

Anti-Black racism impacts many of the donors we need to welcome through our doors, the patient communities we serve, and the experiences of others who engage with us and support our mission. Further, given the diversity of the Black population in terms of backgrounds, experiences and intersecting identities, some Black people and communities who wish to engage with our organization may experience multiple barriers to inclusion.

It’s why, in alignment with our strategic priority to grow and diversify the donor base, Canadian Blood Services has committed to addressing systemic racism and other distinct and overlapping barriers to inclusion as priority areas of work in our current strategic plan.

We’re working to build a donor base that reflects Canadian society in terms of racial and ethnic diversity, and diversity of all kinds, to ensure that high-quality blood products continue to be available for patients from all backgrounds and communities. While most patients can be helped by donors from one of the four main blood types (A, B, AB and O), some people with conditions like sickle cell disease or thalassemia require rare blood type combinations that are more likely to be found in donors of a similar ancestry.

Because sickle cell disease is much more common among Black people in Canada, for instance, donors whose ancestors are from sub-Saharan Africa, or the Caribbean, are more likely to have the blood type combination needed to support Black patients.

We’re also seeking to become an anti-racist organization that ensures culturally appropriate, respectful and welcoming interactions for all individuals and communities that choose to support and engage with us.

Celebrating the contributions of Black people and communities and addressing the challenges they continue to encounter goes far beyond the margins of a single month, and Canadian Blood Services continues to prioritize engagement, collaboration and relationship building, year-round.

We’re committed to working within our organization, and with our health system partners, to address anti-Black racism and overlapping systems of inequity, to improve health outcomes for diverse Black patient populations.  

You can learn more here about our ongoing efforts to build a more inclusive blood system for and with diverse African, Caribbean, and Black communities in Canada.  

As we commemorate Black History Month this February, we invite everyone across the country to join us in celebrating our country’s diverse Black communities and deepening our understanding of Black history, particularly in the context of Canadian healthcare systems.