One of the core values that shapes PAN’s work is to challenge stigma and discrimination, and a new step in this work is the Organizational Stigma Assessment Cycle Project (OSAC). OSAC will support organizations to learn where they may unintentionally be contributing to experiences of stigma and discrimination, and identify areas for growth and change.
The idea for OSAC came out of community calls for action at PAN hosted community events, including the Stigma Reduction Interventions Deliberative Dialogue and Let’s Talk Stigma Reduction! (which included a presentation from Creating Accessible Neighbourhoods/Live Educate Transform Society).
This project is built around intersectionality, a way to think about multiple inequalities people experience, and the larger systems that produce these inequalities- policies, societal attitudes, political and economic systems. For instance, intersectional stigma and discrimination looks at how someone might encounter stigma based on their HIV status and race and sexuality and drug use, rather than looking at stigma experiences based on HIV status alone.
The project is led by PAN and guided by people with lived and living experiences, along with community organizations and allies working in community services in BC, including Creating Accessible Neighbourhoods (Live Educate Transform Society).