Black History Month — Week Three

It’s been a busy week.

Through these weeks of reflecting, celebrating, and learning about the history of Black Canadians, I hope the sheer diversity of the Black Canadian experience has been evident. When we speak about Black history we can speak about it within the Canadian context, and as we’ve seen via some of the resources previously shared, the uniqueness of Black history in our own region, as well as Black history in the broader global context.

We know that Black history doesn’t begin with slavery. Yet, often, that’s the first narrative we encounter in our Canadian education. 

Missing from this are stories of Black excellence.

Where were the stories and histories of pre-colonial African history? The Black kings and queens who existed, and who still exist? What of the leaders, the activists, the scientists, the doctors, the inventors, the writers, the content creators? All these people who have contributed to society, to science, and art, and who have shaped our culture, where are they?

They exist…and fill pages and pages in Nigerian, Eritrean, Ghanaian, Jamaican and Barbadian textbooks. Immigrants from these countries and regions bring this knowledge with them and share with their children, families, and friends and colleagues.

Friends, the Black Canadian experience is diverse. We need to recognize and celebrate this diversity.

Many of you have shared that you are looking to learn more. We know that students are wanting to learn more. Black Canadian students, in particular, aren’t waiting around either, they are proactively seeking this knowledge via their own research, blogs, books, movies, and podcasts.

For this week, I wanted to share and amplify Black artists and content creators, and given that we all learn differently, here are my suggestions for engagement this week. Enjoy!

• Watch movies and television shows! There are tons of great ones on streaming sites like Netflix, Hulu, Prime and Disney+, most of which have been created, written, and star Black artists and centre Black stories and the Black gaze (more on this next week!).

• You can also check out the National Film Board of Canada as they’ve curated a great line up. This is a list of 10 films that ‘Celebrate Black Excellence’.

• If you haven’t seen Abbot Elementary yet you’re missing out friends! This is an incredibly insightful and funny show, which is created by and stars the incredible Quinta Brunson, a young, Black content creator.

• If you’re more of a podcast person, check out and share these podcasts by Black Canadians with your colleagues and your students. My personal favourites are ‘The Secret Life of Canada’ and ‘Code Switch’.

Once again friends, if you have any suggestions or would like for me to share and amplify events or resources, or if you have questions or want to chat some more, please feel free to connect with me.

As ever,

Sundeep