There was little talk around the horseshoe during the January 19th meeting of Peterborough City Council, as most items on the agenda were ratified on consent, including council’s reception of a report from Peterborough’s Integrity Commissioner (IC) Guy Giorno, concluding his investigation into complaints regarding Mayor Jeff Leal’s use of the N-word during a business administration lecture at Trent University.

The report claims that Leal's use of an “odious, vile, dehumanizing racial slur” did not violate the Council’s Code of Conduct, with Giorno illustrating how the code in its present state is insufficient at handling such situations. 

At the previous general committee meeting, Town Ward Councillor Alex Bierk moved three amendments to Giorno’s report: that city staff be directed to not only amend the City’s Strategic Plan to include anti-racism and race relations as community wellbeing priorities, but also provide a timeline for all of council and city staff to receive anti-racism and diversity, equity, and inclusion training, as well as to review the Council Code of Conduct and recommend amendments to prohibit the use of racial slurs “regardless of context or circumstance.” 

The acceptance of the report and its recommendations marks the end of a nearly year-long saga following the Mayor and the City of Peterborough’s continued silence on the controversy, save for a public apology released on April 9th, 2025, which complainants in Giorno’s investigation deemed “insufficient” and “lacking accountability.”

On January 8th, Arthur solicited comment from both the office of the Mayor and the City of Peterborough regarding Commissioner Giorno’s findings. On January 9th, City communications staff simply reiterated how “City Council will be considering the Integrity Commissioner's report at its upcoming General Committee meeting on January 12, 2026.”

Mayor Leal has not made further comment since the slur’s nature was made public, but the report does include a lengthier justification from Leal. Claiming he made an “error in judgement,” Leal alleges he used the slur to illustrate the “rudimentary, crass and racist views” of former US President Lyndon B. Johnson, and also alleges he was unaware of how his use of the slur was against current academic practice.

“I sincerely meant no harm,” he told Giorno. “Practices and standards in academic settings change—while I thought that I was meeting the standard when I introduced the quote by saying, ‘He used this language that you would never use today,’ I now understand that I did not meet the current practice and I regret that.”

Only two delegates were registered to speak to the IC report: Iyiola Alade, the president of the Trent Central Student Association (TCSA), the main complainant organization in the report, and executive director of Community Race Relations Committee (CRRC) Patricia Wilson.

Prior to delegations, however, Mayor Leal—the chair for most regular council meetings—recused himself due to the “nature of the delegations” and turned chairing duties over to Ashburnham Ward Councillor Gary Baldwin before leaving council chambers.

Notably, this set of recommendations from the Integrity Commissioner’s report do not include remedial measures that would require Mayor Leal to declare an interest or recuse himself, as there is no financial penalty posed against the Mayor, unlike Giorno’s recommendations following Leal’s previous violations of the Council Code of Conduct in 2024. 

Leal’s departure from council chambers didn’t deter delegates from condemning his actions, including TCSA President Iyiola Alade, speaking on behalf of TCSA executives present. He didn’t mince words when he—one of three Black executives at the TCSA—repeated the slur to council.

“The use of this slur is deeply insensitive to members of the community whose family members across history were called that word right before they were killed,” Alade told council. “So to reiterate the word, another allegedly claimed to be quoting a racist US president—which is a lie—is a direct attack on Black identities and not a mistake.”

“This same leader, who's been present in Black History Month proclamations over the years and has given speeches—clearly, man is a hoax.” Alade continued. “It’s alarming that such disgusting behaviour has evidently given way for increased levels of racial discrimination across the city, as confirmed by increasing reports of anti-Black racism within Peterborough.”

Both delegations alluded to the fact that Peterborough has one of the most disproportionate hate crime rates in Canada, with its reported rate per 100,000 people sitting at 24%: more than double the national hate crime rate (11.9%) and one of the highest rates in Ontario cities of similar size, surpassing the total hate crime rate in the province (16%). 

CRRC Executive Director Patricia Wilson also strongly condemned the Mayor and the City’s response to the issue, saying it is “extremely disappointing and inconsistent with the commitments we've made as a community.” 

“In [2026], it is not reasonable for anyone, especially an elected official and former cabinet minister, to claim ignorance about the harm of the N word and … the harm that it carries,” Wilson said. “It should come as no surprise that this word is harmful and unacceptable to say… [and] saying that you didn't know, in my opinion, is dishonest and a way to further evade accountability for harmful actions.” 

“I find it deeply concerning, as previously stated by members of council, Peterborough continues to be the hate crime capital with some of the highest reported instances of hate crimes in Ontario,” she told council. 

Wilson also testified to the increased acts of racism in Peterborough at large, citing a “record number” of interventions that CRRC has facilitated in local schools over the last year. According to Wilson, the most frequent instances of racial advocacy CRRC has conducted within the last year has mostly been in cases of “extreme” racism against youth under 12 years old. 

“I have kids that are suicidal because of that word. I have kids that are scared to go to school because of that word. They're wetting the bed in anticipation for school because of that word and because of the extreme racial bullying and harassment they've been experiencing, I have kids who are now in intense therapy because of that word,” Wilson said. 

“So yes, our words matter, and what we say matters, especially as someone in a leadership position within our community. Elected officials have a responsibility to understand the power of their words and what they carry… feigning ignorance does not repair harm or rebuild trust, accountability and meaningful action, both of which our mayor has failed to do.”

After her delegation, Ashburnham Ward councillor Keith Riel asked Wilson about further remedial measures the City could take as a result of this situation. 

“Training, I think, is a good first step, but I think more funding towards organizations that are doing this work like CRRC… BLM Nogojiwanong is [also] doing a lot of anti-racism work in our community,” Wilson replied. 

Wilson also suggested the City employ a “zero tolerance policy” as a comprehensive measure, as the situation outlined in the IC report has “taken away” from racial advocacy efforts by organizations representing racialized communities in Peterborough. 

“These [instances] of overt racism have been pretty rampant in our community, and more funding, more initiatives to combat that,” Wilson said. “Outside of working with the police, I think that funding allocation [could] be better served in other places.”

“70% of people said they really enjoy Peterborough, but… despite that, we have the highest amount of reported hate crime. So what does that mean?” Wilson concluded. “That means that the racialized community members here in our community are not getting the supports that they need, and the people that are able to enjoy Peterborough aren't part of those demographics.” 

Leal then returned to council chambers, resuming his duties as chair to facilitate council voting on most items on the consent agenda, save for the motion regarding Giorno’s investigation into his conduct at Trent. Leal recused himself from the first recommendation—the acceptance of the report itself, which passed unanimously 10-0 save for Leal—yet still voted on the subsequent amendments on pursuing anti-racist education and amending the Council Code of Conduct to prohibit slur use, which also passed unanimously.