Key Terms and Protected Grounds
At Trent University, everyone has the right to study, work, and live in an environment that is free from hate, and racism. Below are key terms, definitions, and protected grounds outlined in our Discrimination and Harassment Policy and rooted in the Ontario Human Rights Code.
Hate
Either criminal or non-criminal hostile action directed towards a person or group of peopled that is motivated based on identity race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression, or any other similar factor.
2SLGBTQIA+
An umbrella term for Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual, and other gender and sexual identities. “2S” honors Indigenous gender and spiritual traditions by placing them first. Everyone under this umbrella deserves safety, visibility, and belonging.
Anti-Indigenous
Ongoing systemic discrimination and prejudice against First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples.
Antisemitism
Hostility, prejudice, or discrimination against Jewish people.
Xenophobia
An irrational fear or hatred of people perceived as foreign or different, often manifesting in discriminatory attitudes, exclusionary practices, and acts of hostility toward individuals or groups based on their ethnicity, nationality, or immigration status.
Hate Crime/Hate Incident
Hate Crime: Is a criminal offence committed against a person or property that is motivated in whole or in part by the suspect’s bias, prejudice or hate based on race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression, or any other similar factor.
Hate Incident: Is a non-criminal offence committed against a person or property that is motivated in whole or in part by the suspect’s bias, prejudice or hate based on race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression, or any other similar factor.
Racism
Refers to ideas or practices that establish, maintain, or perpetuate the racial superiority or dominance of one group over another.
Anti-Black
Prejudice, attitudes, beliefs, stereotyping, and discrimination directed at people of African descent.
Islamophobia
Irrational fear, hatred, or discrimination against Muslims or those perceived to be Muslim.
Ageism
Discrimination based on age, often affecting both older and younger people in different ways. It includes harmful assumptions about ability, relevance, or worth based on someone’s age.
Protected Grounds
Consistent with the Ontario Human Rights Code Trent University Prohibits any form of discrimination, harassment, hate, or racism on the following grounds.
Age
Ancestry
Citizenship
Place of origin
Race
Colour
Creed (religion)
Disability
Ethnic Origin
Family status
Gender Identity
Marital status (married, single, widowed, divorced, separated or living in a conjugal relationship outside of marriage, whether in a same sex or opposite sex relationship)
Receipt of public assistance (in housing only)
Record of offences (in employment only)
Sex (including sexual harassment, pregnancy and breastfeeding)
Sexual orientation