Join us for a series of events on Black Activism in Education and Community as we showcase examples of how Black communities have responded to racism in Vancouver and in Canada.
Recent and ongoing incidents in Vancouver and Canada illustrate that anti-Black racism is very much a local reality. Black communities that include activists, artists and academics have a long history of working to create new narratives, analyses and immersive experiences that shift this reality.
This event highlights the thinking and efforts of Black communities, and aims to expand the public conversation and prompt non-Black communities to act in effective solidarity to dismantle anti-Black racism.
Our special guest for this event is Shelby McPhee, a recent graduate of Acadia University, who will share stories and comments on how to recognize and address anti-Black racism.
The event is jointly hosted by the UBC Black Caucus, Centre for Culture, Identity and Education, and the Equity & Inclusion Office. Register for the next event of the Black Activism in Education and Community series with Dr. OmiSoore Dryden.
Free, but registration is required. Light dinner and refreshments provided. Music by DJ Denise.
Round trip bus service from Agronomy and West Mall will be available for students at 5:15pm. Seating is limited.
Opening and welcome:
- Dr. Ainsley Carry, Vice-President of Students, UBC
Speakers:
- Shelby McPhee, anti-Black racism activist, Co-Founder of Acadia Black Student’s Association
- Danni Olusanya, UBC student in History, Co-President of the Black Student Union
- Cicely Blain, anti-racism activist and consultant, Co-founder of Black Lives Matter Vancouver
- Sadie Kuehn, community activist and writer, first Person of Colour elected to a School Board in BC
- Dr. Ismael Traore, Collaboration Laboratory leader, UBC’s Centre for Community Engaged Learning
- Dr. Handel Wright, UBC Professor in Educational Studies; Director of Centre for Culture, Identity & Education
Shelby is a community activist, writer, speaker and native of the Bahamas. He is a recent graduate of Acadia University with a Masters Degree in Political Science who is most noted for speaking out publicly on anti-Black racism after he was racially profiled at Congress 2019 held at UBC last summer.
As defined by Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy (2019-2022):
Prejudice, attitudes, beliefs, stereotyping and discrimination that is directed at people of African descent and is rooted in their unique history and experience of enslavement. Anti-Black racism is deeply entrenched in Canadian institutions, policies and practices, such that Anti-Black racism is either functionally normalized or rendered invisible to the larger white society. Anti-Black racism is manifested in the legacy of the current social, economic, and political marginalization of African Canadians in society such as the lack of opportunities, lower socio-economic status, higher unemployment, significant poverty rates and overrepresentation in the criminal justice system.