Glossary
| Ableism | The cultural, institutional and individual set of practices and beliefs that assign different (lower) value to people who have developmental, emotional, physical, sensory or health-related disabilities, thereby resulting in differential treatment. |
| Aborogimal peoples | The descendants of the original inhabitants of North America. Term used to collectively describe three cultural groups of aboriginal people - «Inuit», «Métis People», and «First Nations». The term "Aboriginal», should be used only as an adjective to describe individuals or mixed groups. |
| Acculturation | The process of interchanging cultural traits (customs, manners, values, etc.) among different ethnic groups, thus contributing to the further growth and enrichment of each one as one group adopts the values and traditions of another racial-ethnic group. |
| Anti-oppression | Strategies, theories and actions that challenge socially and historically built inequalities and injustices ingrained in our systems and institutions by policies and practices that allow certain groups to dominate over other groups. |
| Anti-racism | An active and consistent process of change to eliminate individual, institutional and systemic racism as well as the oppression and injustice racism causes. |
| Anti-semitism | Latent or overt hostility or hatred directed towards individual Jews or the Jewish people (not to all Semitic peoples), leading to social, economic, institutional, religious, cultural or political discrimination. |
| Asylum seeker | Someone who has made a claim that he or she is a refugee, and is waiting for that claim to be accepted or rejected. The term contains no presumption either way – it simply describes the fact that someone has lodged the claim. Some asylum seekers will be judged to be refugees and others will not. |
| Barrier | An overt or covert obstacle; used in employment equity to mean a systemic obstacle to equal employment opportunities or outcomes; an obstacle which must be overcome for equality to be possible. |
| Bilateral treaty | Formal, binding agreement between two states. |
| Claim | Allegation by an individual or state that it is entitled to a REMEDY for an injury caused by an offender (usually the state). |
| Claimant | One who brings a CLAIM |
| Classism | Prejudice and/or discrimination, either personally or institutionally, against people because of their real or perceived economic status or background. The cultural, institutional and individual set of practices and beliefs that assign value to people according to their socioeconomic status, thereby resulting in differential treatment |
| Codification of international law | Process of reducing CUSTOMARY INTERNATIONAL LAW to written form. |
| Colonialism | Usually refers to the period of European colonization from Columbus (1492) onwards, in the Americas, Asia and Africa, and taking on different forms from settler colonies like Canada to non-settler colonies such as India during British rule. |
| Complaint | In legal terms, the initial document that begins an action; a complaint sets forth a brief summary of what happened and argues why relief should be granted. In a human rights case, the complaint (or PETITION, or COMMUNICATION) alleges that government, or individual or institution that must answer to human rights standards (such as a surrogate of the government) has violated the HUMAN RIGHTS of specific individuals or groups of individuals. |
| Convention | Binding agreement between states; used synonymously with TREATY and COVENANT. Conventions are stronger than DECLARATIONS in that they are legally binding for signatory states and governments can be held for violating them. The United Nations GENERAL ASSEMBLY creates international norms and standards when it adopts Conventions; MEMBER STATES can then ratify the UN Conventions, signifying acceptance of their obligations. |
| Cross-cultural communication | Communication between persons from different cultures. It can be enhanced when individuals from the different cultures begin to interpret symbols in similar ways and when they have a strong desire to communicate effectively. |
| Cultural assimilation | The process by which an individual or group acquires the cultural traits of a different ethnic or cultural group through integration. |
| Culture | A social system of meaning and custom that is developed by a group of people to assure its adaptation and survival. These groups are distinguished by a set of unspoken rules that shape values, beliefs, habits, patterns of thinking, behaviors and styles of communication. Source: Institute for Democratic Renewal and Project Change Anti-Racism Initiative. A Community Builder’s Tool Kit. Claremont Graduate University, 2001. Also, the behavioral patterns, symbols, beliefs, institutional values, social forms and material traits of a social, racial or religious group. It also refers to a feature of societies that is constantly renegotiated by all people that make up a social unit; Article 5 of the WOMEN’S CONVENTION calls for the modification of «the social and cultural patterns of conduct of men and women, with a view toward achieving elimination of prejudices». |
| Customary international law | Law that becomes binding on states although it is not written, but rather adhered to consistently out of custom; when enough states have begun to behave as if something is the obligatory law, it indeed becomes law; one of the main SOURCES OF INTERNATIONAL LAW. |
