Taking Action on Zero Barriers to Inclusion

This month marks National Indigenous History Month, Pride and Juneteenth – all milestones dedicated to celebrating equality, inclusion and diversity. This year our celebrations look different for a number of reasons. Not only are we living through a pandemic but we’re also being called upon to stand up – and take more action – in support of zero barriers to inclusion. 

Across our bank, we are committed to contributing to meaningful change. Yesterday we announced a donation to Minnie’s Hope Social Pediatric Centre in Montreal. Indigenous Peoples are the fastest growing population in Canada and are experiencing overcrowding issues that affect their children’s mental and physical health. Through this donation we can help provide the Cree and Inuit communities in Northern Quebec with critical pediatric care and evaluations as well as therapeutic, social and educational programs — built in partnership with community elders to reflect the values and knowledge of the community.

I’m also proud to share that this month BMO Harris Bank expanded the availability of Mastercard’s True Name feature to additional payment card types. Members of the transgender and non-binary communities now have the ability to use their true first name on BMO Harris Bank credit and debit cards without the requirement of a legal name change. BMO was the first – and remains the only – bank to offer this option globally to our customers. 

And today is Juneteenth, which commemorates the end of slavery in the United States, an important historical moment. In recognition of this day and in support of our commitment to standing against racial injustice, BMO’s U.S. branches will close at noon today and all employees are being encouraged to take time for learning and reflection.

As we continue to make progress on our own journey, we know that more needs to be done. There can only be one response to making change happen and that’s to learn from our past and improve our actions as we move forward. Thank you to our employees from across BMO who are speaking up to help us get there. I am personally committed to working as an ally and partnering with my colleagues to help create a more equal society – one where we all enjoy the same rights and privileges.