Black Community Welcomes Nia Centre’s Plans for Professional Arts Space

By Neil Armstrong

Photo contributed    Alica Hall, Executive Director,Nia Centre for the Arts 

 Veteran musician Jay Douglas is thrilled that the Nia Centre for the Arts has major plans for 524 Oakwood Avenue, an address that has been its home since 2015 but also one that used to be Isabella’s Ballroom, an uptown venue for many reggae shows in the late 1960s and most of the 1970s. 

 On October 16, the Toronto-based charitable organization unveiled plans for its $7.5-million capital project which will transform its14, 000 square foot facility into Canada’s first multi-disciplinary professional arts space dedicated to showcasing art from the Afro-diaspora. 

 Located just south of Eglinton Avenue West, the Nia Centre will feature a range of multimedia learning spaces, a performance area, artist studio, co-working space, and a safe, culturally affirming place for Black youth to explore their creative talents. 

 “This was where on any given Saturday night or Friday night you can go there for dancing to a sound system dance – Duke Reid’s Upsetters and another sound even before Soul to Soul,” says Douglas. He performed there with The Cougars, the R&B group he fronted; and Isabella’s Ballroom also had a roster of musicians such as Horace Andy, Ken Boothe, Pluggy Satchmo and Beryl, Delroy Wilson, The Skatalites, and many sound systems. At the time, this was “the new hot place” for shows featuring Jamaican artists and Douglas notes that Eglinton Avenue was “just coming into its own too.” Isabella’s Ballroom was a venue for stage shows and according to Douglas the only other venue in the city was Massey Hall, located downtown. 

 This Oakwood Avenue address opened in the early 1920s and has also served as a bowling alley, nightclub and Toronto Public Health office. The transformation of the building in this historic neighbourhood will position Nia Centre as a key destination for Toronto’s Black communities to gather and for Black artists to showcase the full range of their creative expression to audiences year-round.

 “Today we start building a legacy for our community. A consistent space to support Black artists and youth — nurturing their talents and sharing their work with new audiences,” said Alica Hall, executive director of Nia Centre at the unveiling event which she hosted. 

 “The Centre ensures that Black art and culture is available year-round. Through exhibitions and public programming rooted in modern and traditional Black expression, we will expand our collective understanding of the Black Canadian experience.” 

 Meanwhile, Michael Brathwaite, co-chair of Nia Centre, described the development as “monumentous.”

 “Not only is it just a first but it also carves out a notch in history for us as Black people and for Back artists that are represented here in Canada. There isn’t a physical space for us but there also isn’t much space for us in the art world and we’ve fought for the past few decades in Canada to really cement that space. And having this physical manifestation of that really does put us into the realm of where we always saw ourselves with our art, with our representation, with our stories, and with our voices.” 

Brathwaite says this is “a recognition of the efforts of everyone from the past within Canada, within Toronto; all those Black artists who’ve been fighting for years and generations to get ourselves recognized not only to the Toronto Arts Council and the Canadian Arts Council but within a mass audience.” 

 “This is a pivotal moment in that fight and in that journey to build a legacy for ourselves moving forward,” says the marketing professional who was motivated to give back to the community after the election of Donald Trump in the United States. 

 When he became involved in 2016, he said Nia Centre was looking at moving from a youth hub to a professional arts centre and there were communications, structural, and infrastructural challenges which he was able to help with to communicate that change.

Photo contributed      Jay Douglas, Canadian musician and producer 

 Karen Carter, co-founder and director of Black Artists’ Network and Dialogue (BAND), an organization dedicated to the promotion of Black artists in Canada and abroad, welcomes the renovation and is hopeful for what that will mean for greater opportunities for professional development and professional practice for Black artists and creatives. 

 “This is a big city and we should have more arts and culture and heritage spaces that talk about the diversity of Black communities and the layers by which we should all -- not only in the community -- but the way from the community level we express our ideas and cultural identity to the broader community.

 “I’m happy Nia exists because for me it’s an opportunity for us to just have more layers to the range of the way we choose to express ourselves artistically and creatively. And I don’t think there’s enough stuff within the arts and culture and heritage lane for Black identity and for better education for the broader community about our present and past history in this country, and the contributions from our creatives as well as helping to better give understanding for what we would imagine our future to be.” 

 At the unveiling, Hall was joined by supporters and major funders such as Adam Vaughan, MP of Spadina—Fort York, who noted that he grew up nearby and attended Oakwood Collegiate; John Tory, mayor of the City of Toronto; and Nation Cheong, vice president, Community Opportunities & Mobilization, United Way Toronto and York Region, as well as community members who tuned in through a livestream. 

 “The building of the Nia Centre for the Arts – Canada’s first Black arts centre – is not only momentous for this city and country, but it is a support system that is much needed. I am pleased that the city is able to support the Nia Centre in bringing this new building to fruition,” said Mayor Tory. 

 “Through its expansion, the Nia Centre, with the support of the City, will further the work and reach of Black artists and ensure that the sector is not only thriving but that opportunities are provided to Black Torontonians. I want to thank Alica and the Nia Centre for the Arts for their persistence and commitment to bringing this project to life and for seeing it through.” 

 By Fall 2021, Nia Centre will expand their in-house programs, which range from artist residencies, film screenings, camps, youth engagement, and much more. These programs will take place inside a facility designed for learning, collaboration, and showcasing Black art.

Photo contributed      Michael Brathwaite, Co-Chair of the Nia Centre for the Arts 

Once renovated, Nia Centre will have expanded capacity to present music, dance, photography, film and theatre. It will include a multi-purpose performance space with capacity for over 100 seated guests, multimedia, collaborative artistic spaces including a digital media lab, a recording studio, as well as a collaborative artist studio space. There will also be a youth hub, and private, rentable event space with outdoor recreational use, a board room and co-working spaces, and hallway galleries on two levels. 

This re-development is made possible through a $6M capital funding from the City of Toronto, Canadian Heritage, United Way Toronto and York Region, and Trillium Foundation. 

The Centre has also launched their capital campaign to raise $1.5M, which will go towards completing the renovation and purchasing equipment. 

“On behalf of the Youth Challenge Fund Partnership Committee, we are elated at this ground-breaking. It has been a labour of love and dedication for young Black leaders to reach this milestone. This space would not be possible without United Way's partnership with the City of Toronto and dedicated community leaders,” said Cheong. 

“We look forward to experiencing the renovated facility filled with young Black artists learning, creating, and strengthening community.” 

 Nation said it had been a labour of love and dedication to reach this milestone and he looks forward to the vibrant space where young Black artists can learn, create, build connections, build careers and strengthen their communities. 

 He thanked the local artists who conceived of Nia going back to 2007 and noted that the founding visionaries include Ian Kamau, Mark Campbell, Weyni Mengesha, D’bi.young, Nabil Shash and Felicia Mings. Nation thanked them for sharing their collective vision, hard work, and perseverance to make Nia a reality. 

 He noted that the Youth Challenge Fund was built on the pillars of youth leadership and collaboration with adult allies. “This space was conceived of and developed by visionary young Black leaders in Toronto. However, it would not be possible without standing on the strong community leaders’ shoulders, elders who were vital to making Nia a reality. He singled out Michael Clemons, Zanana Akande and Denise Campbell for “clearing the way for Black youtb across the GTA.” 

 Nia Centre is located in the heart of the Oakwood-Vaughan Village, steps from the Eglinton West area, which has officially been designated as “Little Jamaica”. With a rich artistic history, this Caribbean neighbourhood is in the midst of its own dramatic transformation based on the installation of the Eglinton Crosstown, and overall community development. 

Nia Centre’s milestone construction intersects with important and timely investments which will benefit the local Black community in a generational way, promoting positive development for youth, and offering a safe, welcome space for Black artists. 

Nia Centre’s renovation plans come at a time when there are also other initiatives to create space for Black Canadians nationally. 

Other Initiatives to Create a National Institute for Black Canadians, and a Cultural Centre for Black Canadians 

 Last year, the federal government supported the creation of a national institute for Black Canadians, an idea proposed by a pan-Canadian group of Black organizations. 

 In its presentation of the 2019 budget, the government noted that in recognition of the United Nations International Decade for People of African Descent it would provide $25 million over five years starting in 2019-20, for projects and capital assistance to celebrate, share knowledge and build capacity in Canada’s vibrant Black Canadian communities. 

 Adam Vaughan, parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, announced that the government’s support would help stakeholders to create the first national institute for Black Canadians. 

 The Canadian Institute for Persons of African Descent (CIPAD) will work to advance initiatives that impact Black Canadians at a systemic level. 

 Floydeen Charles-Fridal, executive director of the Caribbean African Canadian Social Services (CAFCAN) in Toronto, collaborated with the Delmore “Buddy” Daye Learning Institute in Halifax, Nova Scotia and others to submit a proposal for CIPAD. 

 Meanwhile in August of this year, the new BlackNorth Initiative received a donation of $1,000,000 from The Schulich Foundation – the philanthropic vehicle for Seymour Schulich, a leading Canadian businessman and philanthropist. 

 Wes Hall, founder and chairman of the BlackNorth Initiative, said this pledge also supports “the building of a cultural centre for Black Canadians to ensure Black history is accurately recorded and disseminated.”

 “The cultural centre is an important component of our vision to dismantle the anti-Black systemic barriers negatively affecting the lives of Black Canadians.” 

 The BlackNorth Initiative will support the development of programs and initiatives focussing on the challenges facing Black people when it comes to health care, education, the justice system, community safety, at-risk youth, economic empowerment, and other areas. 

The cultural centre will raise awareness about the challenges Black Canadians face, preserve and spotlight Black history in Canada, promote Black arts and culture, and be a gathering place for people of all backgrounds working together to combat anti-Black systemic racism, notes a statement on its website. 

 The BlackNorth Initiative was created by the Canadian Council of Business Leaders Against Anti-Black Systemic Racism to combat anti-Black systemic racism in Corporate Canada. The initiative challenges senior Canadian business leaders to commit their companies to specific actions and targets designed to end anti-Black systemic racism and create opportunities for all of those in the underrepresented BIPOC community. 

 Meanwhile in Cherrybrook, Nova Scotia, the Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia, which was set up in 1983, is a museum and a library resource centre that focuses on the history and culture of African Nova Scotians. 

  ‘Little Jamaica’ Heritage and Innovation Hub, and Other Plans 

 Local politicians, business owners and residents are concerned about community erasure caused by gentrification and the economic challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic being faced by businesses in Little Jamaica. 

 Recently, Toronto City Council unanimously passed a motion by Councillor Mike Colle (Ward 8, Eglinton-Lawrence) seconded by Deputy Mayor Ana Bailão (Ward 9, Davenport), establishing a "Little Jamaica" Heritage and Innovation Hub in the Eglinton West area, from Marlee Ave. West to Keele Street.

The motion also calls for the provincial Metrolinx agency to immediately compensate small businesses that have been devastated by the 8 years of the Eglinton Crosstown construction that has seen over 124 small stores closed. 

 It also calls for the immediate completion of the western portion of the Eglinton LRT from Black Creek to Yonge Street and for the elimination of the commercial property tax that assess small businesses like potential condominiums. 

 The "Little Jamaica" will also honour and recognize local Black civil rights community leaders like Jimmy Wisdom, Charles Roach, Dudley Laws and others at the new Eglinton Crosstown Stations of Oakwood, Dufferin and Eglinton West with Heritage plaques and murals, notes the motion.

Photo contributed    Jimmy Wisdom 

One week later, North York Community Council unanimously passed a motion by Councillor Colle to rename Locksley Avenue, from Eglinton Avenue West to Hopewell Avenue, to "Jimmy Wisdom Way."

This is the first of many steps in the creation of the Eglinton West 'Little Jamaica' Heritage Hub. Known by his thousands of friends and admirers as "Wisdom", Jimmy was a uniquely talented musician and an active community leader and pioneer who constantly gave back to his community and helped many newcomers to Canada and the City of Toronto from his barber's chair on Eglinton Avenue West for over 35 years. 

 This stretch of Locksley Avenue is located right by Wisdom's barbershop and will honour this great trailblazer in Toronto's Jamaican Community. 

 "The Wisdom family is honoured and overjoyed by this decision. We are grateful to Councillor Colle for his recognition and leadership to honour our father, affectionately known as Jimmy Wisdom," said Ninfa Wisdom.

 "The creation of an Eglinton West "Little Jamaica" Heritage Hub celebrates the outstanding cultural and economic contributions made by the Black community in Toronto and affords hope and opportunity for this legacy to be expanded upon,” said Councillor Colle. 

 "COVID has impacted all our small businesses, but "Little Jamaica" has also been facing challenges from Crosstown construction for almost a decade. That's why I am supporting Councillor Colle's motion for immediate relief, extending a lifeline to these businesses," said Councillor Bailão.

The Heritage Toronto plaque that was installed on Eglinton Avenue, near Reggae Lane in 2015. 

Councillor Josh Colle was instrumental in making this a reality. 

There was also a motion by Josh Matlow, city councillor for Toronto-St. Paul’s, Ward 12, which includes Little Jamaica, seconded by Michael Thompson, deputy mayor that was unanimously approved by Toronto City Council.

 It seeks “to provide short-term supports and a substantive long-term vision to ensure the retention and growth of Black-owned and operated businesses, while celebrating the identity, and showcasing the resiliency, of the Caribbean community.” 

 Among its recommendations, the motion calls for City Council to direct the Toronto Office of Recovery and Rebuild to engage with the Mayor’s Roundtable on Black Business to develop a tailored and phased approach to help support Black-owned and operated businesses, specifically along Eglinton Avenue West, on their stabilization reopening, recovery and rebuild strategy and report to Executive Committee by end of the fourth quarter of 2020. 

 It also wants City Council to direct the General Manager, Economic Development and Culture “to explore measures to provide financial relief, including property taxes, license renewal, late tax payment, deferred tax payment with the deferred amount gradually remitted to the city post-construction, or upon the sale of the property, and other measures as appropriate to stabilize Black-owned and operated businesses along Eglinton Avenue West before the end of the first quarter of 2021.” 

 It also calls for the general manager to collaborate with the Mayor’s Roundtable on Black Business, BlackUrbanismTO, Reclaim, Rebuild Eglinton Avenue West, Black Futures on Eglinton, York-Eglinton BIA, Fairbank Village BIA, Eglinton Hill BIA and community members to investigate opportunities, including holding a community consultation process, to rebrand the area of Eglinton Avenue West from Marlee Avenue to Keele Street that reflects the Jamaican-Caribbean history before the end of 2021. 

 The motion recommends developing a plan with the Mayor’s Roundtable on Black Business, BlackUrbanismTO, Reclaim, Rebuild Eglinton Avenue West, Black Futures on Eglinton, York-Eglinton BIA, Fairbank Village BIA, Eglinton Hill BIA and community members that focuses on bringing back previous, and develop new, culturally-focused events and initiatives that will celebrate the Jamaican and Afro-Caribbean cultural heritage of Eglinton Avenue West before the end of 2021.

Black and Caribbean Book Affair Celebrates its 8th Edition

By Neil Armstrong

Photo credit: Eddie Grant                     Afua Cooper

A new book of poems and photographs focused on everyday Black experiences, a collaboration by Halifax’s seventh Poet Laureate Afua Cooper and photographer Wilfried Raussert will be launched during the eighth edition of the Black and Caribbean Book Affair, happening October 15-17, 2020.

Organized by A Different Booklist Cultural Centre: The People’s Residence in Toronto, the three-day celebration of authors, storytellers and publishers will be a virtual event.

Fernwood Publishing describes the result of these poems and photographs in Black Matters as “a jambalaya — a dialogue between image and text”

“Cooper translates Raussert’s photos into poetry, painting a profound image of what disembodied historical facts might look like when they are embodied in contemporary characters. This visual and textual conversation honours the multiple layers of Blackness in the African diaspora around North America and Europe. The result is a work that amplifies black beauty and offers audible resistance, notes the publisher in a synopsis of the book.

Cooper is the author of five books of poetry, including the critically acclaimed Copper Woman and Other Poems. Her historical non-fiction, The Hanging of Angelique: The Untold Story of Slavery in Canada, was shortlisted for the 2006 Governor General’s Literary Award.

 

Dr. Wilfried Raussert is a multidisciplinary artist and scholar. He works across the boundaries of music, literature, photography, art, and literary criticism. He is Chair of North American and Inter-American Studies at Bielefeld University, Germany. 

 

Children’s book author Nadia L. Hohn will kick off the book affair on October 15, 7:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. with #KidsLit4BlackLivesCanada, a post-rally discussion with Black Canadian authors, illustrators and allies.

Photo credit: Oscar Wailoo     Left to right: Rita Cox, Austin Clarke and Kamala-Jean Gopie at a bench naming ceremony at the Harbourfront Centre in November, 2014

 

Also to be featured during the festival is the late bestselling author Austin Clarke’s first collection of fiction, When He Was Free and Young and He Used to Wear Silks, which was published in 1971, and reprinted this month by House of Anansi Press.

Described as a vital exploration of the Black immigrant experience in Canada, it “showcases Clarke’s groundbreaking approach to chronicling the Caribbean diaspora. In lyrical, often racy, and wholly unforgettable prose, Clarke reveals the psychological realities faced by people of colour in a society so often lauded for its geniality and openness,” notes a description of the book on its back cover.

This edition has a new introduction by Rinaldo Walcott, a long-time friend of Clarke and also a Canadian academic and essayist. He is the author of Black Like Who and Queer Returns, and the co-author of BlackLife. His research and teaching are in the area of Black diaspora cultural studies, gender, and sexuality. 

“The neglect of Clarke’s work in the critical realm, despite his unique role as a writer inscribing the Caribbean into the Canadian landscape, has been accentuated by two poles – the Caribbean and Canada. Indeed, Caribbean literature has belatedly celebrated his contributions, and similarly so has Canadian literature,” writes Walcott in the introduction entitled ‘“But I Conquered That Setback”: Austin Clarke’s Gift.’

Walcott will join storyteller and veteran librarian, Rita Cox, in remembering Clarke and his work. 

Photo credit: Clive Sewell    Rinaldo Walcott speaking at the National Black Canadian Summit at the Toronto Reference Library in December, 2017

Earlier this year, award-winning author, scholar and activist Zetta Elliott’s book, Say Her Name, was published by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. She will talk about this work on October 16 as part of the festival.

 

“Inspired by the #SayHerName campaign launched by the African American Policy Forum, these poems pay tribute to victims of police brutality as well as the activists insisting that Black Lives Matter. Elliott engages poets from the past two centuries to create a chorus of voices celebrating the creativity, resilience, and courage of Black women and girls,” notes a synopsis of the book.

 

Born in Canada, Elliott moved to the US in 1994 to pursue her PhD in American Studies at NYU. She taught Black Studies at the college level for close to a decade and has worked with urban youth for thirty years. 

 

Her poetry has been published in New Daughters of Africa; We Rise, We Resist, We Raise Our Voices; the Cave Canem anthology The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South; Check the Rhyme: an Anthology of Female Poets and Emcees; and Coloring Book: an Eclectic Anthology of Fiction and Poetry by Multicultural Writers. 

 

She is the author of over thirty books for young readers and currently lives in West Philadelphia. 

 

Cheryl Willis Hudson and Wade Hudson have edited The Talk: Conversations About Race, Love & Truth, which was published during the summer.

 

“Thirty diverse, award-winning authors and illustrators invite you into their homes to witness the conversations they have with their children about race in America today in this powerful call-to-action that invites all families to be anti-racists and advocates for change.”

 

It is published by Crown Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Random House.

 

Other highlights of the festival include: an interview hosted by reggae radio personality Carrie Mullings with Jason Wilson, author of King Alpha’s Song in a Strange Land: The Roots and Routes of Canadian Reggae, an hour of children’s programing featuring Yolanda T. Marshall and her book My Soca Birthday Party: with Jollof Rice and Steel Pans, and Ndija Anderson-Yantha and her book What Are You Gonna Do with that Hair?, and journalist, author and educator Wanda Taylor sharing her book It’s Our Time: Honouring the African Nova Scotian Communities of East Preston, North Preston, Lake Loon/Cherry Brook. 

Jazz journalist and radio host Mark Ruffin will discuss his book Bebop Fairy Tales: An Historical Fiction Trilogy on Jazz, Intolerance, and Baseball with journalist Clifton Joseph. Educator and activist Kofi Aboagye Akrofi Sankofa will perform some of the poems from his new book Sankofa: Ancestral Callin and talk about its representation of “a conceptual black print for the re-awakening of his African Nation.”

The celebration of authors, storytellers and publishers moves beyond Canada, the United States and Jamaica to include Melanie Raabe, author of The Shadow (Germany) and Louise Hare, author of This Lovely City (UK).

Hare’s debut novel is set in London in 1950 and rooted in the experiences of the Windrush Generation in the post-war city.

“With the war over and London still rebuilding, jazz musician Lawrie Matthews has answered England’s call for labour. Arriving from Jamaica aboard the Empire Windrush, he’s rented a tiny room in south London and fallen in love with the girl next door,” notes a synopsis of the book.

Raabe grew up in Thuringia, Germany and attended the Ruhr University Bochum, 

 

where she specialized in media studies and literature. 

 

After graduating, she moved to Cologne to work as a journalist by day and secretly 

 

write books by night. The Trap, her debut novel was published in 2016, followed by 

 

The Stranger Upstairs in 2017, and her upcoming psychological thriller, The 

 

Shadow, will be published in January 2021 by House of Anansi Press.

 

If you want to know how some publishers are coping in this pandemic and some of their upcoming titles, be sure to check out the Publishers’ session with Christine Randle of Ian Randle Press, Shivaun Hearne of UWI Press, Kassahun Checole of Africa World Press and The Red Sea Press, and Scott Fraser of Dundurn Press. Following that Fraser will host ‘In the Black with Dundurn Press.’

The launch of Afua Cooper’s and Wilfried Raussert’s book, Black Matters, and the session with Cheryl Hudson and Wade Hudson about The Talk: Conversations About Race, Love & Truth are ticked events priced at $20. 

A suggested donation of $7 to the book festival is appreciated.

The 2020 Black and Caribbean Book Affair will be live on Zoom, Facebook, and at www.adbcc.org.

Research Project About Racialized Midwives in Canada Launches Website

 By Neil Armstrong

Photo contributed   Dr. Karline Wilson-Mitchell, Director of the School of Midwifery, Ryerson University

 

A website to support a groundbreaking research project to uncover the history of racialized midwives in Canada was recently launched in Toronto.

 

The virtual event showcased the Colour of Birth website -- 

https://www.ryerson.ca/colour-of-birth/ -- which is a part of the Canadian Midwives of Colour History Project (CMOCHP), initiated in the fall of 2019 by Dr. Karline Wilson-Mitchell, a midwife, associate professor and director of the School of Midwifery at Ryerson University.

 

The project is motivated by the desires of racialized midwifery students to know the history of racialized midwives in Canada.  

 

“The purpose of the website is to keep the public abreast of the work we

are doing as we continue to unearth narratives of racialized midwives.

There is a dearth in the current scholarship and besides the archival

research we are conducting, our hope is that the website will inspire people

to contact us and provide us with information and spread the word about our

project,” says co-investigator Dr. Karen C. Flynn, associate professor in the Departments of Gender and Women's Studies and African-American Studies and associate chair in the Department of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. 

 

The revelation of these stories and representations of midwives of colour in the historical text could empower racialized students, inform practice and midwifery curriculum, notes Wilson-Mitchell who has been practicing midwifery since 1992 and has been teaching in the Ryerson Midwifery Education Program since 2008.

 

“The process of mining for facts and truth, unveils amazing stories of resilience and advocacy in Canada's earliest racialized immigrant and refugee communities.  The project is consequently an act of social justice or healing for the student researchers,” says the professor who is passionate about reproductive justice that informs midwifery education, practice and global partnerships.

 

 Since 1992, her clinical work grew from the U.S. (urban and rural) to Canada (Ontario, remote Quebec) and then to midwifery education and leadership building in the Global South (Jamaica, Tanzania, Zambia, Burundi, South Sudan).

 

 Her scholarship explores the skills and infrastructure necessary to diversify the midwifery workforce and to explore strategies that facilitate equitable and inclusive work environments for midwives and vulnerable populations. 

 

Her goal is to promote resilience and sagacity in vulnerable midwifery students.  

 

Joining Dr. Wilson-Mitchell and Dr. Flynn to execute the project are collaborators: Cyrus Sundar Singh of the Communication and Culture Department at Ryerson University, Dr. May Friedman of the School of Social Work at Ryerson, Dr. Megan Davies of Social Science, York University, and Dr. Margaret MacDonald of Anthropology, York University.

 

“I'm excited to be involved in this project. In my book, Moving Beyond

Borders:  A History of Black Canadian and Caribbean Women in the Diaspora,

most of the nurses I interviewed were also midwives. They were unable to

practice due to a prohibition against midwifery in Canada. This project

builds on the work that I have already done,” says Dr. Flynn.

 

 

In their application to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC), the federal research funding agency, for a grant for the project, which was approved, the team notes that midwives of colour in Canadian settler communities of the nineteenth to mid-twentieth century are not represented in the historical record.

 

“Many of these midwives were enslaved African refugees and indentured worker immigrants, and our goal is to trace and examine their histories. CHOCHP’s objective is to document and analyse the history of racialized midwives in Canada and their roles in the communities they served.”

 

The first phase of this work, a pilot study for which they sought support, focuses on Black midwives in Ontario and Nova Scotia between 1800 and 1970.

 

They hypothesize that a number of factors contributed to the erasure of Black midwives such as de facto segregation, which might have impacted the ability to train and practice in facilities.

 

“Once birth moved from homes into hospitals, Black families were unable to retain their midwives, stripping communities of their cultural practices. This also disrupted the midwives’ traditional role as keepers of healing knowledge.”

Photo contributed   Dr. Karen Flynn, Associate Professor, Departments of Gender 

 and Women's Studies and African-American Studies and associate chair in the Department of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. 

 

Their method of rediscovering this lost history will be to compile relevant genealogical and census data, conduct research at local and provincial museums and archives, and interview seniors who witnessed or hold stories of midwifery care by Black midwives.

 

They plan to initiate and complete the pilot study by undertaking additional activities such as, “identify community partners and knowledge holders and build relationships with them.”

 

Also in the pipeline are plans for a multimedia communication platform to disseminate their research to the public, midwifery community, educators and students.

 

“The paucity of historical research on Black midwives motivates the project. Present-day Black midwives and students lament the lack of documented history. This epistemological lacuna further disenfranchises Black health care providers, and childbearing people in Canada.

 

“The project both draws and builds on studies of racialized communities. In this respect, the rationale for this study is the absence of documented histories of midwifery and childbirth that can also inform and positively disrupt the current narrow constellation of settler midwifery,” the application states.

 

As an example, the team notes that in Canada’s current midwifery landscape, major Canadian cities are increasingly diverse, for example, 49.8% of Torontonians identify as racialized and 48.61% as immigrants; yet white women remain the primary subjects of midwifery scholarship and practice.

 

“Using critical anti-oppressive and Black Canadian feminist analyses that consider the intersection of race, class, gender, nation, and age, CMOCHP places midwives of colour and their clients at the center of analysis, where we take seriously their knowledge, practices, values, experiences, and perceptions.

 

“We are attentive to birth attendants, birth customs and beliefs. Moreover, we interrogate questions of legitimacy as it relates to Black midwives’ credentials and access to health resources for their communities,” says the team, noting that also of significance are the reports by Black immigrants of their dissatisfaction with the childbearing experience.

 

The research team underscores how, despite the intersecting oppressions that Black midwives face, they emerge as agents of change who find creative ways to resist oppression.

 

They note that this groundbreaking project is both timely and relevant. It incorporates the tenets of interprofessional learning where student research assistants and faculty of multiple disciplines will learn with, from and about each other.

 

“It not only fills a gap in the midwifery scholarship and makes visible the contributions of racialized midwives; the project will also empower students and practitioners of colour in all disciplines,” notes the grant application.

 

It says the most significant knowledge users will be midwifery students and faculty across Canada since findings will inform midwifery curriculum.

 

The team also noted that heritage foundations and cultural museums will use the findings and video files to support their collections.

 

They said the living digital art gallery that will be a long-term outcome of this project will provide knowledge for education of the public, content for studies in immigration and settlement, content for Canadian history curriculum, and information on that might empower members of Canada’s diverse communities.

 

“This project creates space for the refinement of storytelling and builds credibility for a method that is highly valued by many racialized communities, thereby promoting empowerment and legitimacy,” they noted.

 

 

 

The United Church of Canada Appoints its First Black Gay General Secretary

By Neil Armstrong

Photo contributed     Rev. Michael Blair, General Secretary of The United Church of Canada

 

As of November 1, The United Church of Canada will have a new general secretary, Rev. Michael Blair, the first Black gay man to hold that office in the 95-year history of the church and to be a senior leader of any mainline denomination in Canada.

He replaces Nora Sanders, who is retiring after almost 14 years as general secretary.  Blair’s appointment by the church’s general council executive during their online meeting August 27 came after a search process that lasted 10 months. 

The role of general secretary is a permanent position, providing leadership in the direction, management, and coordination of the affairs of the church working in close collaboration with the moderator, who is elected every three years as the church’s spiritual leader and spokesperson.

 

“I feel privileged, and excited to be invited to give leadership to The United Church of Canada at this particular time in its history. I am conscious of the historic nature of my appointment,” says Blair, acknowledging that he is not the first Black man, nor person of colour to be in senior leadership in the church as the Reverend Wilbur Howard was the first Black moderator of the church.

 

Howard, who was born in Toronto on February 29, 1912, and passed away at age 89 on April 17, 2001, was elected the 26th moderator and served from 1974 to 1976.

 

 Rev. Blair is currently serving in the General Council Office, Toronto, as the executive minister, Church in Mission Unit, which maintains the relationships with overseas partners, develops faith formation resources for the church and initiates advocacy campaigns for the denomination. He has been in that role for eight years. 

 

“I have worked with Michael for 12 years. I know his deep faith and sense of call to continue the life and work of the United Church in this time, with all its complexities. He is also well known in ecumenical circles and to many of our international partners, so he brings a broad horizon of expertise to the role,” says Sanders.

Blair, who grew up in Maverley in Kingston, Jamaica, says his roots in St. Mary’s Anglican Church in that city continue to keep him grounded.

 

 

The alumnus of Calabar High School came to Canada as a young adult with his family in 1976. 

 

Prior to serving in the United Church, he was a congregational minister of Baptist churches in Toronto and St. Catharines, Ontario, a staff member with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship at the University of Toronto, and as a community chaplain with the Ontario Multifaith Council’s Reintegration Program. 

In 2010, he was admitted to the United Church’s order of ministry, however, his first engagement with the church was as the executive director of the Christian Resource Centre in Regent Park in 2003, just as the process of redevelopment was beginning in the community.

 

The Regent Park United Church owned the property and decided to invest in the redevelopment. The centre now has eighty-seven units of supportive housing in addition to some community, office, and programming spaces. 

 

Blair says working with the church to imagine what that redevelopment would like kind gave him an appreciation for a church community that was willing to take risks and to invest its resources.

 

When he came into the structure of the United Church, he was hired as the executive minister of Ethnic Ministry that worked to support the ethno-cultural linguistic congregations that were part of the church. He had to reimagine what that work could be. 

 

Just prior to his coming, the church had decided that it wanted to become what it called intercultural, to work with these linguistic cultural groups that were on the outside. They were a part of the church but had their own “rhythm and weren’t necessarily fully integrated in the church,” says Blair.

 

He says his work in that process has been very helpful coming into his new role as general secretary, in terms of working with the diversity of the church community.

 

Blair was subsequently invited to reorganize the programming area of the church and became the executive minister of an integrated program involving the ethno-cultural aspects of the church – the French church as well as all the supports to congregations, working with theological schools, youth and young adults’ worship.

 

“I think that experience again enabled me to think about issues of management, leadership, and repositioning how we would do our work.”

 

He was asked to integrate both the local community expression of programmatic life of the church with the global ecumenical so then became the executive minister for Church in Mission.

 

 

Photo contributed   Left to right: Rev. Paul Tche, Christian Disciples (USA&Canada), Rev. Dr. Karen Georgia Thompson, Associate General Minister - Wider Church Ministries of the United Church of Christ in the USA (the first Jamaican to hold the office), Rev. Michael Blair, and Dr. Gail Allan, Ecumenical Officer, United Church of Canada

 

Over a 12-year period, Rev. Blair was able to provide leadership and be involved in reimagining engagement of the church, which gave him a fairly broad global perspective.

 

“I think I’m bringing to the new role a renewed sense of the United Church in the context of a global community and also bringing a justice lens because part of my oversight over the last year was the justice work of the church, also bringing the programmatic lens.”

 

 

Challenges and Opportunities 

 

Reflecting on the challenges and opportunities of the church, Blair says there is a significant challenge around finances as many of the church’s older members are struggling so at the national level the funding capacity is lower. This means the church will need to reimagine what can happen with its finances.

 

He says the United Church has a rich heritage of engagement with the society but he thinks at the local level the church has been “disconnected from the common.” He wants the church to think about how it can re-engage and connect to the communities in which the churches are located.

 

“I think this is probably true for most mainline denominations these days where we attend churches that have historic connections to us so many of us drive past three, four, different congregations of the denomination that we’re a part of to go to our particular congregation. What that means is that we’re not always attentive to what’s happening in the communities where our churches are. For me that’s a critical piece to help us think through how we engage.”

 

Blair also wants the church to think about how it can re-empower the layfolk within the church and to encourage and celebrate their ministry. 

 

It also means considering what it means to be a church in the context of the post-COVID world where “things we value, like community, is going to be harder to engage when there is not a lot of face-to-face connection.”

 

Historic First

 

He’s excited about being the first but contextualizes this by noting that for most of his life in Canada, up until 2001, his energy and passion were around ministry and the Baptist Church. 

 

However, when he came out in 2001 his marriage ended and his job in the Baptist church came to an end.

 

“There was a sense that my world as I knew it, as I imagined, and as I dreamed it, would be totally lost -- so fast forward to 19 years later and being in a position of the first Black gay general secretary really is a way of seeing that life doesn’t end, that there’s opportunity. So I think there is that sense for me of being very privileged, very excited. There’s a sense of me being very overwhelmed at the kind of expectation that that brings. Sometimes the first in the role can be a hard place and on the other hand, for me, it’s a testimony of witness to spaces where there’s still this intolerance of people who are gay or lesbian or trans.

 

“My sexuality is part of the gift of what I bring to my leadership and my experience around that, and in some ways it’s a reminder to folks who struggle to find their place that it is possible. It’s not always easy but it’s possible.”

 

In terms of his global connections, he says there were times when he was muted around his sexual identity for theological and political reasons, and sometimes safety reasons when he travelled globally.

 

“But I think it’s also for me now a way of saying to global spaces, global churches that a person’s sexual identity is not a barrier to God’s ability to use them. So I feel a sense of responsibility to be part of the struggle for justice and freedom for LGBTQ communities in religious spaces.”

 

Photo contributed     Rev. Michael Blair newly appointed General Secretary of The United Church of Canada

Blair knew he was gay from age 10 but it took him more than thirty years to be able to acknowledge and celebrate his sexuality.

 

He attributes this, in part, to growing up in church communities where he bought into the notion that the church had scripted for him that he was abnormal.

 

Rev. Blair says over the years he struggled and thought that if he did all the right things the church said he needed to do, his feelings and desires would be taken care of but they weren’t. “In some ways, it almost killed me,” he says.

 

In his spiritual journey, he discovered Henri Nouwen, a Dutch Catholic priest, professor, writer and theologian,someone he respected as a Christian leader, whom he noted was, unfortunately, outed after his death.

 

“That was for me a gift to realize that here was somebody who I had looked up to as a spiritual mentor who was gay and it became clear to me that part of the struggle of his identity was also part of his gift, in terms of his understanding of his spirituality and that freed me in so many ways to begin a process of saying, why am I afraid of who I am and it enabled me to start a process of coming out.”

 

Blair, who is also a father of two boys, says he learned that his faith calls him to honesty, to truth telling and so it was important to own the truth of who he is, and not allow a system that is oppressive to define him.

 

Rev. Blair says he knows the church is a hard place and the interesting thing is that one of the challenges is that the church isn’t quite clear what it is that it is afraid of. “I think, theologically, part of the issue is around procreation and so the church’s opposition of the relationships of gays and lesbians and procreation is because they have bought into the narrative around creation that, in some ways, they have got some work to do.

 

“For me, owning truth, the truth of who you are is important. I think it’s also important to recognize that the text, scripture, there is no innocent reading of the text. Everybody reads their context so don’t become enslaved to a notion of a reading of the text which says you are an abomination, you’ve got to own that. 

 

“And I think the thing I would say they’re enough communities of people, church communities that acknowledge, name and celebrate our identities and to be part of those communities. It means sometimes you have to let go of places where you enjoy being that those places are soul-destroying. I know for many folks from the Caribbean and Jamaica they stay in spaces that destroy them because they like the expression of the worship or whatever it is. I think if you keep doing that in the hopes that those places are going to change, it’s only soul-killing so choose life and part of choosing life means being honest with who you are,” he advises anyone struggling with their sexual orientation and Christianity or religion. 

 

 

Being the first Black person in his new role also means that is a fairly lonely place because when Blair looks around – with the exception of the Black Church traditions, but even churches that many Black folks attend -- oftentimes the leadership is white.

 

“There’s a sense of being again the only one and that space kind of always…I don’t get a chance to just be, in a way I need to represent and I need to remind folks of who is not at the table. I need to remind folks of the kind of systemic racism that exists in faith communities causing people like me not to find places to kind of be.”

 

There are over 60 Black ministers in the United Church but the church does not have data enumerating its Black membership. Most of the ministers are serving in communities where there are no Black people.

 

Blair thinks the United Church has some work to do, in terms of how it engages Black communities, because the church has so much to offer and “sometimes people don’t engage us because they don’t know who we are, they don’t see themselves among us.”

Blair is a graduate of Ontario Bible College (now Tyndale University College and Seminary), the University of Waterloo, and Wycliffe College – University of Toronto. 

He is also an avid gardener and is passionate about cultural and equity issues.

 

 

 

 

Ruth Goba Steps Down as Executive Director of Black Legal Action Centre

 

Photo contributed     Ruth Goba, former executive director of Black Legal Action Centre (BLAC)

By Neil Armstrong

Ruth Goba, executive director of the Black Legal Action Centre (BLAC), has stepped down from that position, effective September 3.

BLAC has appointed Lesa Francis as interim executive director as the organization searches for a permanent candidate to fill the role. 

In a letter to colleagues and community, said she made the very difficult decision to after much deliberation. 

“Over two years ago, BLAC was created thanks to the vision and hard work of the founding Board of Directors, including the past Chair of our Board, Zanana Akande. The Board envisioned a legal clinic overseen and staffed by members of the community that would speak out on important issues of systemic anti-Black racism and provide critical services to the community. I am honoured to have been chosen to implement that vision.

“As I depart, I want to thank, first and foremost, the extraordinary members of the Black community who we strive to serve. Our community is a remarkable one. We all exist in a society that is rife with systemic racism and prejudice; a society that overlooks and diminishes Black success and devalues Black life. The disproportionately negative impacts of Covid-19 on the Black Community and far too many deaths at the hands of the police have revealed how deeply entrenched anti-Black racism is in our society. Despite that, we are diverse, strong, proud, resilient, tenacious, and beautiful. Our community has been a constant source of strength, support and inspiration to me. Thank you for blessing me with the opportunity to work alongside you. “

Goba also thanked the staff with whom she worked, noting that they are smart, tenacious, compassionate and thoughtful. 

“Their zealous advocacy on behalf of the community and against anti-Black racism will continue. We have worked hard to set a high standard for service and I am excited to see all that BLAC will achieve in the future. I also thank Legal Aid Ontario for their funding and support of BLAC’s work. 

“I am so grateful for having being granted this extraordinary opportunity and I will continue to work (after a break!) toward achieving an equitable society,” she said.

In a letter to the community dated September 3, Rinaldo Walcott, Chair of the Board and Zanana Akande, Ex Officio (Past Chair) said Goba joined BLAC in June of 2018 as executive director and has shown “true leadership during her tenure, advocating tirelessly and steering our organization through some of the most pivotal times for our community. Under her guidance, BLAC has grown to be a leading advocate in confronting anti-Black racism and a strong resource in providing legal support to Black Ontarians.” 

They said the work that was done under her leadership and the credibility BLAC has established is evident by the significant amount of donations the organization has received in recent months, which are being responsibly and transparently managed to ensure their future use for the clinic and the Black community. 

“Our work has only just begun, and because of Ms. Goba’s efforts, BLAC is in a strong position to build on our achievements as we continue to serve our community and combat individual and systemic anti-Black racism in Ontario.”

The Board extended its thanks to Goba for her dedication and hard work, and said it trust that she will continue to have a positive impact the Black community. 

Goba will support the organization through this transition phase. 

Meanwhile, BLAC says it is overwhelmed by the support it has been receiving “as our society continues to confront anti-Black racism and embraces the extraordinary movement taking place in Ontario and around the world.”

“Support for our legal clinic has ranged from everyday Ontarians donating a few extra dollars of their hard-earned money, to small businesses, law firms, students and others hosting fundraising initiatives, to some of Canada’s largest corporations offering significant financial support. We are deeply grateful for every donation we receive and are empowered by the broad support from the people of Ontario and the business community. It is clear that you share in our mission to build a more just society.” 

It said equal access to justice is a critical and fundamental part of ensuring human rights are upheld in Ontario. 

“The contributions we receive enable us to better serve and represent the most vulnerable members of the Black community, and help improve the laws that affect marginalized and low-income Ontarians. It is through these services that we can support the Black community in accessing justice and advance change in our society,” said BLAC.