3 takes on Black History Month in N.L.
Sulaimon Giwa, Einam Mohamadain and Carmichael Polonio share some thoughts
February is officially recognized as Black History Month in Canada — a designation made in 1995 following a motion introduced by the first Black Canadian woman elected to Parliament, Jean Augustine.
In Newfoundland and Labrador, a search of the provincial government's website for Black History Month turns up no related results.
St. John's, the province's capital city, does not have any events on its February calendar marking Black History Month.
And while recognizing the immeasurable contributions of Black Canadians is vital, it shouldn't be limited to just one month a year.
The 2016 census results list a total population of 2,355 Black citizens in Newfoundland and Labrador.
That's a big increase from the 2011 census, which listed 1,450 people identifying as Black living in the province.
With an ever-increasing population of Black Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, CBC asked three people to share their views.
Sulaimon Giwa is an assistant professor at Memorial University with a PhD in social work. His doctoral research explored experiences of gay men of colour to racism, which received the runner-up distinction for the Barbara Godard Prize for the best York University dissertation in Canadian Studies.
Carmichael Polonio is currently back in university for a year, but is a trained engineer who sits on the provincial advisory council on the Status of Women.
Einam Mohamadain moved with her three children to Mount Pearl in 2018, after her husband was kidnapped in Libya and she applied for refugee status.
Hear just some of what they wanted to share in the video player below, and see more highlighted content from across Canada on CBC's Being Black in Canada topic page.