Ontario NDP candidate drops out over: 'I want to be a Black woman' comment
Amanda Zavitz quits 'after further reflection and discussion with community members'
With one week to go before Ontarians cast their ballots, a white Ontario NDP candidate has dropped out of the race over comments she made at a conference last year in which she expresses a secret desire "to be a Black woman."
Amanda Zavitz, a sociology professor at Western University running in the riding of Elgin-Middlesex-London, announced in a Facebook post that she was resigning her candidacy.
"After further reflection and discussions with community members, I have decided to resign as the Ontario NDP candidate for the upcoming election," she wrote. "It has become clear that my past comments are distracting from the critical task of defeating Doug Ford and electing an Ontario NDP government.
Her decision to drop out comes a day after she apologized for the comments, also in a Facebook post.
The controversy began when Progressive Conservatives highlighted a YouTube video of Zavitz speaking at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women conference in New York City last March. CBC News captured a copy of the video, which has now been removed.
Zavitz, speaking at a podium at the New York conference, recalls an exercise she and participants did at a Toronto conference 10 years prior called "post secret." Zavitz said participants were asked to write down their deep-rooted secrets. Some were picked and read to the audience. One included an admission of an affair, another spoke about stealing money from a spouse's bank account.
In relaying this to the audience at the New York event, Zavitz revealed her secret.
"My secret is that I want to be a Black woman," she said. "If you don't know me, you might question this. You might wonder if I'm lying, or if I've really thought this through. If you do know me, you will know 100 per cent for certain, it is true."
In the video of her speech, Zavtiz goes on to tell the New York audience she's often criticized as being a "Karen" because she's a white women who advocates for equality. The name "Karen" has fallen into use as a generic and pejorative term to refer to any privileged woman, often white, who is perceived as demanding and entitled.
"The easy answer is that I want to lead the fifth wave of feminism and that when you look like I do and people call you a Karen, it's difficult to be taken seriously as a leader of the fifth wave of feminism," Zavitz tells the New York audience.
"The more complicated answer is that I want to know all that I know, I want to be a sociologist and a women's studies professor. I want to be an expert in inequality with lived experiences of poverty and living in addiction and alcoholism. I want to be able to share my ideas without the barrier of looking the way that I do."
Race not something you can put on, advocate says
Nicole Kaniki, a founder and director of Senomi Solutions Inc., said Zavitz's decision to stop her campaign was the right one in the wake of the comments. Kaniki's firm specializes in equity, diversity and inclusion.
"She wants to be a Black woman to be a better advocate and ally, which really just demonstrates her lack of understanding about the Black woman experience," said Kaniki. "It objectifies us further, as if our race and gender is something that we can put on and take off and that she can put on."
A white person talking about stepping into the identity of a Black woman is problematic, she added.
"What about making space for Black women to lead ahead of you rather than leading for them?" Kaniki said in an interview on CBC's Afternoon Drive.
Comments 'deeply concerning' said Stiles
On Thursday, Zavitz sent an email in response to questions about her comments from CBC News.
She explained herself in this way: "The point I intended to make was that greater awareness of the lived experience of Black people and communities would improve understanding of what it's like to face systemic racism. I apologize for any harm caused by my remarks."
The video was first surfaced by the Progressive Conservative Party campaign, which said NDP leader Marit Stiles "owes Ontarians an explanation as yet another problematic NDP candidate has been exposed." In a statement, the party said Zavitz's comments "trivialized the life experience of Black Ontarians."
When asked about the comments Thursday before Zavitz had announced she was quitting, Stiles told reporters she found them "deeply concerning."
"I think they're inappropriate comments, but she has apologized," said Stiles. She didn't answer when asked if she would keep Zavitz as a candidate.
There is a formal process for candidates who withdraw after nominations close. An Elections Ontario spokesperson told CBC News on Friday they had not yet received an official withdrawal notice from any candidate in Elgin-Middlesex-London. The spokesperson said generally when a candidate drops out after nominations close, their name remains on the ballot and notices are posted at polling locations to make voters aware the candidate has withdrawn.
On her campaign web page, Zavitz describes herself as "a dedicated educator, activist, and small business owner committed to social justice and community advocacy."
The site also says through her teaching work at Western and Fanshawe College, she's championed "diversity, equity and inclusion."
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